Positive Outcomes for All: Using An Institutional Analysis to Identify and Address African American Children’s Low Reunification Rates and Long-Term Stays in Fresno County’s Foster Care System (Executive Summary and Full Report)

In 2009, Fresno County Department of Social Services (DSS) volunteered to partner with the Center for the Study of Social Policy to participate in a study known as the Institutional Analysis, which seeks to understand and address organizational and structural contributors to poor outcomes for children and families involved in the child welfare, juvenile justice and other systems. Fresno County DSS already has made efforts to remedy many of the findings identified in the Institutional Analysis and has outlined a clear action plan, which is included in the report below.