Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network

FamiliesMar 23 2022

A National Technical Assistance Center

Child Trends is partnering with Generations United, the project lead, to evaluate the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network (Network), the first-ever national technical assistance (TA) center on grandfamilies and kinship families. Grandfamilies or kinship families are those in which children reside with and are being raised by grandparents, other extended family members, and adults with whom they have a close family-like relationship, such as godparents and close family friends. The Network exists, free of charge, to offer a new way for government agencies and nonprofit organizations in states, Tribes, and territories to collaborate and work across jurisdictional and systemic boundaries—all to improve supports and services for grandfamilies and kinship families now and into the future.

As the Network’s evaluation partner, Child Trends will 1) develop criteria for evaluating and selecting evidence-based, evidence-informed (EB/I), and/or promising practices to elevate among jurisdictions; 2) conduct a process and impact evaluation of the Network; and 3) share lessons learned with the Network partners (including the federal funding agency, the Administration for Community Living).

The evaluation activities include:

  • A comprehensive assessment of Network activities to determine the extent to which the TA and other activities were implemented as planned, and whether recipients of the TA (i.e., states, territories, Tribes/Tribal organizations, and other organizations) were satisfied with the TA provided
  • An assessment of whether the Network activities result in 1) increased capacity/competency among TA recipients to support kinship and grandfamilies (intermediate outcome); 2) expanded array of EB/I programs and services for kinship and grandfamilies (long-term outcome); and 3) families with improved access to the array of supports and services (long-term outcome)

To learn more and connect with the Network, please visit: www.gu.org/projects/ntac-on-grandfamilies-and-kinship-families/.

The Network’s project deliverables are supported by the Administration for Community Living (ACL), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $9,950,000 with 95 percentage funded by ACL/HHS and $523,684 and 5 percentage funded by non-government sources. The contents are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by ACL/HHS, or the U.S. Government.

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