Articles, page 3

• SWAN Legal Training Team Continues Virtual Presentations Through Fall

  SWAN’s team of legal training specialists (LTS) has spent the past year converting and fine-tuning presentations, adapting from in-person presentations to a virtual training format to continue delivering high-quality legal trainings to child welfare professionals across the state of Pennsylvania. We were excited to see that our online trainings have been “virtually” just as popular as in-person presentations. Our team has had ...

  Posted on July 21st, 2021

• SWAN Mini-grant Funds Creative Virtual Events

  As a team with primarily social work or counseling backgrounds, technology can sometimes pose a learning curve; however, at The Children’s Home & Lemieux Family Center, we are lucky that our team is always up to the task. In November, we were able to use a National Adoption Month mini-grant to host COVID-19-safe virtual events and connect with families who wanted to learn more about foster care and adoption.

  Posted on February 26th, 2021

• Attendance Rates Increase, Connections Maintained through Virtual Events

  It’s been nearly one year since the COVID-19 pandemic brought in-person gatherings to an abrupt halt causing the network to shift standard events and meetings to a virtual format. While there are drawbacks and we miss the richness of face-to-face interactions, a silver lining has been the ability for more members to participate in network events and for connections among the network to be maintained.

  Posted on February 9th, 2021

• Bethany Christian Services Keeps Parents Connected During Pandemic

  2020’s pandemic challenges have made way for creative solutions to keep agencies, children and parents connected. One example of pandemic-inspired innovation is Bethany Christian Services’ move to virtual support groups, which they began to offer in May 2020 when it appeared that COVID would indefinitely extend restrictions on in-person meetings.

  Posted on February 9th, 2021

• Coming in February: Second Virtual Statewide Child Preparation Activity Swap

  Building on the success of last year’s first virtual Child Preparation Activity Swap, a second event is planned for February. The activity swap facilitates the exchange of ideas about child preparation activities among child preparation workers. The February event will feature activities related to the holidays.

  Posted on February 9th, 2021

• PAE Adapts Virtual “Waiting Child” Tapings

  The nationwide COVID-19 pandemic has reminded us that change is constant, but change can also be a catalyst for learning and improvement. Since March 2020, the Pennsylvania Adoption Exchange (PAE) has had to adapt the “Waiting Child” segments to be filmed remotely to mitigate the spread of the virus. The flexibility of this format provides even more opportunities to feature the voices of waiting children and youth and ...

  Posted on October 26th, 2020

• “Permanency is Not on Hold”: Creative Solutions for Matching During COVID-19

  Social distancing guidelines may have temporarily altered how Pennsylvania is conducting adoptions in 2020, but it has not slowed the progress of the Statewide Adoption and Permanency Network (SWAN). Matching events, like so many other gatherings, were forced to move to an alternative format due to the outbreak of COVID-19. Regardless, the Pennsylvania Adoption Exchange (PAE) is excited about family-child connections continuing to be made and the future opportunities that virtual matching meetings present for waiting children.

  Posted on October 26th, 2020

• Youth, Caseworkers Promote PRTs at IL Retreat

  The merits of the Casey Family Permanency Roundtable (PRT) process were on full display at the 2020 Older Youth Retreat, held August 10-14. “Everyone works together to help you, make you whole, help you to see the remarkable person you are. I love the PRT process because it’s all about the youth,” exclaimed Maria Graziano, IL coordinator for Luzerne County, sharing her enthusiasm for the PRT process and the benefits for older foster youth.

  Posted on October 26th, 2020

• SWAN/IL Summer Statewide Meeting Generates Socially-Distant Engagement

  For the first time, the SWAN/IL Summer Statewide Meeting went virtual. To ensure safety due to COVID-19, over 800 people from across the network participated in the meeting via Zoom, rather than in-person.

   

  Posted on July 9th, 2020

• Permanency Professional Honored for Perseverance and Passion

  Connie Snyder has been a frontline worker with Warren County Children and Youth for 13 years. In that time, she has found forever families for 64 children. While the number is itself impressive, Connie’s drive to never give up, even on the hardest-to-place children, even when her supervisor might say it’s time for plan B, is what is most impressive. Last summer, Connie received the Permanency Professional Recognition Award at the Pennsylvania Permanency Conference for her outstanding work.

  Posted on April 8th, 2020

• COVID-19 Directives Continue

  The SWAN prime contractor will continue the important measures put in place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 until otherwise directed by the Department of Human Services/Office of Children, Youth and Families (DHS/OCYF). 

  Posted on April 3rd, 2020

• National Social Work Month: Celebrating those who Strengthen Generations

  March 17^th is known for the celebration of St. Patrick’s Day and all things Irish, but this year it was also a special day for our profession. The entire month of March is National Social Work Month with the third Tuesday celebrated as World Social Work Day. For 2020, the National Association of Social Workers chose the theme “Generations Strong” to honor how social workers build healthier

  Posted on March 31st, 2020

• Update on Response to COVID-19

  On March 17, we notified you regarding measures taken by the SWAN prime contractor to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The SWAN prime contractor will continue these important measures through April 3, 2020 or until otherwise directed by the Department of Human Services/Office of Children, Youth and Families (DHS/OCYF).

  Posted on March 27th, 2020

• Spring Administrative Updates Posted

  As efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 continue, we want to thank your continued work to support children and families across the Commonwealth. While we are not able to meet in person at the Spring SWAN/IL Quarterly Meetings, the Administrative Updates that would have been distributed at the meetings have been posted here. Take a moment to catch up with news from DHS/OCYF, the prime contractor and the IL program.

  DHS/OCYF ...

  Posted on March 27th, 2020

• Impact of and Response to COVID-19

  On March 16, 2020, per the directive of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Department of Human Services/Office of Children, Youth and Families (DHS/OCYF), the SWAN prime contractor took measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. 

  Posted on March 17th, 2020

• Centre County Orphan Care Alliance Gives Meaning to “Care Community”

  Imagine voicing one of your greatest needs and having a network of caring individuals respond in force.  Recently, a Centre County birth mother pursing reunification reported running out of firewood for winter heating. The Centre County Orphan Care Alliance (CCOCA) sprang into action ...

  Posted on February 18th, 2020

• The McCleerys: A Family Built Through Connection and Compassion

  Adoption had been on the minds and hearts of Katie and Tobias McCleery for a long time. After the birth of their third child, they knew their family still had room to grow and that adoption would be their path forward. In 2012, the McCleerys became foster parents through Bethany Christian Services and welcomed their son Tyler into the family shortly after.

  Posted on January 6th, 2020

• Millers Create Large, Warm, Loving Family

  Brooke and Tierra Miller always knew they wanted a big family. Both grew up in large, warm and loving families, and they wanted to provide the same experience for their own children. After discussing the options available to them to make that happen, they decided to become foster parents. 

  Posted on December 13th, 2019

• Families, Agencies Invited to Attend Winter Statewide Meeting Matching Reception

  The Department of Human Services, Office of Children, Youth and Families, Statewide Adoption and Permanency Network (SWAN) and Independent Living Services (IL) will sponsor a Matching Reception on January 22, 2020 from 6 - 8:30 p.m. at the 2020 SWAN/IL Winter Statewide Meeting, held at The Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center, State College. 

  Posted on December 13th, 2019

• SWAN Affiliates Invited to Join SWAN Farm Show Exhibit

  The 104^th Pennsylvania Farm Show will take place January 4 - 11, 2020 at the Farm Show Complex and Expo Center.  The Farm Show is attended by more than 100,000 people each year and offers a unique opportunity to recruit foster and adoptive families.  SWAN will have a display, and OCYF invites all SWAN affiliates to join in staffing the booth each day.

  Posted on December 13th, 2019