APSAC, in conjunction with the NY Foundling, is excited to announce the launch of a new policy center. The overall goal of the policy center is to translate the best available research findings into useable resources for policy makers, promoting best practices in professions involved with child maltreatment.
All professionals working with children and families involved in child maltreatment need access to quality information, based on the best available data, that they can translate into useable solutions to solve their most critical practice issues. The policy center will help professionals in all related fields access, translate, and implement the best available research findings into effective practice. Aside from writing and distributing informational white papers or policy papers on critical issues, the work will be targeted to help people in the field apply the information to best advantage their practice and the children and families they serve.
Some envisioned activities include:
Identify and articulate the most critical and challenging policy and practice concerns in the child maltreatment field
Scrutinize and evaluate available research on each topic
Carefully plan targeted activities to drive strategic change
Work with practitioners and consultants to design implementation strategies
Translate and distribute findings and recommendations
Ensure that all products are available and accessible to practitioners and end users
The issues listed on the “Policy Center Issues” document are gathered from many channels, including, but not limited to:
Internally, by organization staff
Membership/stakeholder
External Organization’s request
APSAC members are encouraged to add to this list. In fact, because the membership includes some of the field’s most respected experts, it’s imperative to get your input.
The general framework for the analysis process, which is depicted in the “Policy Analysis Process Overview” document, was informed by research on over 150 US and international policy organizations and think tanks that are similar to the APSAC Center for Child Policy in some way – in their focus, goal, sector, principles, or organizational capacity. Much of the information was gathered from the “Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program” at the University of Pennsylvania’s Lauder Institute. The resulting process was then adapted specifically to consider the characteristics of membership organizations, like APSAC, and the unique challenges and benefits they present.
Download an overview of the CCP below!