An Overview of Themes and Tracks
Detailed Schedule
Key: L = Leadership Track; T = Trauma Track; E = Ethics Track; V = Virtual Option
Leadership Track sponsored by DePelchin Children’s Center/Texans Together
CEUs: Almost all sessions are pre-approved by Texas Health and Human Services Licensed Administrator Division for LCPAA and LCCA continuing education credits except where noted.
Monday, Steptember 21
Click the session title to view the full description. Sessions that are available virtually are noted with (V).
Breakout Session A | 10 - 11:30am
A1: Tragedy in the Workplace: Managing the Unthinkable (V, T)
This workshop explores how child welfare agencies in Texas can prepare for and respond to tragedy within operations serving children and families. Participants will learn practical strategies for managing critical incidents, supporting children and staff through trauma, and maintaining regulatory and ethical standards during times of crisis. The presentation addresses leadership decision-making, communication protocols, and post-incident recovery planning. Grounded in real-world experience, this session offers guidance for navigating the unthinkable with compassion, competence, and resilience.
Presenter: Megan Zellner, Foster & Adoption Clinical Director, The Settlement Home for Children
A2: Everything Begins and Ends with Leadership: A Framework for Recruiting, Hiring & Developing Leaders Who Scale Impact (L)
Leadership capacity determines organizational impact, yet most systems focus on programs before people. This interactive session equips child- and family-serving administrators with frameworks to recruit, hire, and develop leaders aligned to mission and culture — so teams can scale impact without sacrificing quality. Participants will leave with actionable strategies to assess leadership depth, strengthen pipelines, and lead with intentionality in complex environments.
Presenter: Will Jones, President & CEO, Thompson; Tony Smith, Partner Wipfli
A3: Ethical Decision-Making in Child Welfare: Protecting Children and Families, and Leading with Integrity while Navigating Complex Decisions (E)
This workshop gives child welfare leaders practical tools for navigating complex ethical decisions in high‑stakes environments. Participants will learn a clear decision‑making model, explore real scenarios from residential and foster care settings, and strengthen their ability to balance safety, autonomy, cultural responsiveness, and regulatory expectations. The session is designed for administrators who want to lead with integrity, clarity, and confidence. Attendees will leave with actionable strategies and stronger documentation practices that support ethical excellence across their programs.
Presenters: Tara Reed, Clinical Director, Hearts with Hope Foundation
A4: Moving from Insight to Action: Youth Aging Out of Foster Care in Texas
The National Collaborative for Transition-Aged Youth, formed by the American Public Human Services Association, FosterClub, and Youth Villages, brought together stakeholders, young people, and experts to transform child welfare policies and improve outcomes for youth ages 16 to 26 in or leaving foster care. The result is the Playbook of Best Practices, a national resource co-designed with young people to guide practitioners, agency leaders, and policy makers with a set of core principles to provide high-quality supports across foundational domains, including permanency, employment, and education. This session pairs that national framework with findings from convenings held across nine Texas cities with 205 young adults and 120+ frontline staff, examining where the blueprint is working, where it falls short, and what it will take to close the gap. Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of the most urgent practice and policy gaps facing transition-age youth in Texas, and concrete strategies they can bring back to their programs, teams, and communities.
Presenters: Katja Russell, Executive Director of Strategic Partnerships, Youth Villages; Valerie Hallam, Director of Systems Advancement, TACFS, David Daniels, Transition Age Youth Program Specialist, TACFS
A5: Fidelity as a Foundation, Not a Flaw: Scaling Evidence-Based Practices in Texas’ Community-Based Care System
As Texas continues expanding Community-Based Care (CBC) and strengthening integrated behavioral health within child welfare, scaling evidence-based practices (EBPs) without losing fidelity is essential to achieving real outcomes. This symposium explores how fidelity safeguards preserve effectiveness, equity, and trust as EBPs expand across regions and provider networks. Drawing from NYAP’s multi-state implementation of TF-CBT, NMT, and MI, presenters share practical strategies for training, supervision, coaching, and adaptation that align with Texas’ CBC goals of placement stability.
Presenters: Lauren Zuccaro, Senior Director of Clinical Development, NYAP; Leah Mundy-Mahr, Director of Clinical Training , NYAP
A6: Building Stronger Families, Safer Communities: Advancing Child Abuse Prevention Through Family Resource Centers and Community Partnerships
This interactive workshop introduces family and child well-being professionals to the power of prevention and how community partnerships strengthen families before challenges become crises. Participants will learn to support healthy child and family outcomes, and why access to these services matters for the families they serve. Through a hands-on partner mapping activity, attendees will identify their existing community connections, uncover gaps, and explore new partnership opportunities. Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of how to build a more connected, responsive support network for children and families in their communities. Additionally, this session will explore how Family Resource Centers (FRCs) serve as community anchors that prevent maltreatment, reduce child welfare involvement, and preserve families through protective-factor-based programming and strategic partnerships.
Presenters: Ashley Leal, Vice President of Family Enrichment, SJRC Texas; Meliss Loyola, Director of Family Enrichment
A7: “Are We There Yet?”: Examining the Practical Implications of the new Kinship Licensing Standards
This session examines the implementation of Texas’s revised kinship licensing standards under the Texas Administrative Code (Title 26, Chapters 745 and 749). Through data analysis, practitioner insight, and structured dialogue, presenters will explore first-year outcomes, compliance considerations, and child safety implications. Attendees will gain practical guidance on balancing regulatory flexibility with accountability in kinship foster home oversight.
Presenters: Dr Valerie Jackson, Founder and CEO, Monarch Family Services; Kristy George, MBA, LCPAA; Foster Care Specialist, Methodist Children’s Home; Carolyn Bishop, LMSW, LCPAA, Senior Vice President of Programs, Arrow Child & Family Ministries
Opening Keynote | 12:20 - 1:50pm (V)
Mindset Matters!
We live in a negative world. The way we think, communicate, and show up for the people around us is shaped by our negativity bias, the brain’s tendency to fixate on bad experiences over positive ones. In Mindset Matters!, Clint Swindall challenges audiences to recognize that negativity isn’t something that happens to us. It’s a choice we make in how we respond to the challenges in our lives.
This is especially true for those who work to support and strengthen children, youth, and families across Texas communities. The mindset these professionals bring to their work directly shapes the outcomes for the people they serve. In this session, Clint draws on the framework featured in his new book, Tell Me Somethin’ Good!, to guide audiences through two powerful lessons for reclaiming a positive mindset and building a culture where others can do the same.
Presenter: Clint Swindall, President/CEO – Verbalocity
Breakout Session B | 2:10 - 3:40pm
B1: Beyond Fidgets and Fruit Snacks: Implementing a TBRI® Culture for Measurable T3C Success (T)
Many agencies understand TBRI® theory, but few have mastered the shift from training staff to transforming organizational culture. This session provides GRO and CPA leaders with the advanced, “boots-on-the-ground” TBRI® strategies needed to move beyond foundational knowledge into T3C operational alignment—strategies used to achieve a 75% reduction in serious behavioral incidents at a residential operation. You will walk away with a roadmap for systemic TBRI® implementation that ensures trauma-informed care isn’t just a treatment program requirement, but the lived reality of your agency.
Presenter: Amanda Herron, Founder & CEO, Nurturing Change
B2: Leading your Nonprofit’s Budget Process (L)
A successful budget process goes beyond spreadsheet skills and a good template. In the best budget processes, the board and staff are aligned on their roles and the budget’s purpose, the organization chooses frugality over cheapness, nonprofit leaders collaborate through difficult choices, and they’re prepared for wild cards.
Presenters: Sean Hale, Founder, Nonprofit CFOs
B3: Holding People and Systems Accountable Without Causing Harm: Ethical Leadership in High-Stress Environments (E)
Child- and family-serving organizations across Texas operate within complex regulatory environments while navigating trauma exposure, workforce shortages, and increasing service demands. Leaders must uphold licensing standards and client safety expectations while also fostering staff well-being and retention. In high-stress systems, accountability is essential — yet traditional corrective approaches can unintentionally cause shame, fear-based compliance, and secondary trauma. This ethics-focused workshop examines how leaders can uphold professional and regulatory responsibilities while preserving dignity, fairness, and psychological safety. Participants will leave with practical, trauma-informed strategies to build accountability cultures that strengthen workforce stability and improve outcomes for children and families.
Presenter: Marissa Smith, Assistant Vice President for Programs, Methodist Children’s Home
B4: From Survival to Strength: Helping Youth Build Confidence Beyond Trauma
The session begins with a clear overview of key concepts related to resilience, confidence-building, and relationship-centered support for youth who have experienced adversity or instability. Foundational content is delivered in concise segments to allow frequent opportunities for participant involvement and discussion. Attendees will engage in guided reflection prompts that encourage them to examine their own caregiving or professional practices and identify areas where small adjustments can
Presenters: Dre Nuzum, Certified Life & Health Coach (HCI), Resilience Speaker & Youth Mentor
B5: Safety That Sticks: What Separates Sustainable Abuse Prevention Efforts from Short-Term Compliance
Why do some organizations sustain strong abuse prevention practices year after year, while others drift back to increased risk? Drawing from research on Highly Reliable Organizations (HROs), this session explores what it truly takes to build and maintain a culture of safety in child welfare settings. Participants will learn the key organizational characteristics that distinguish programs where safety thrives from those where it fades over time. This session offers practical, research-informed strategies to institutionalize abuse risk management and protect children from low-frequency, high-impact harm of abuse.
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Presenter: Laura Hardin, Director of Consulting, Social Services, Praesidium; Hannah Evans, Risk Consultant, Praesidium
B6: Eighteen Is Not the End (A Panel): Bridging the Gap Between Foster Care and Adulthood
This interactive panel combines data, trauma-informed systems analysis, and lived experience from foster care alumni to examine the gap between policy-defined adulthood and developmental readiness. Participants will explore how relational permanency, extended support, and youth-informed practice can reduce post-discharge vulnerability and improve long-term outcomes.
While policy may define adulthood at eighteen, neuroscience and lived experience tell a different story. As highlighted in current aging-out data youth who exit foster care face elevated risk of homelessness, incarceration, trafficking, and early parenthood within the first years of independence.
Presenters: Jordan Hope Vera, Program Manager, Fostering Hope; Lee M., Kaylea H., Felicity S. and/or Nautica S.
B7: Step Right Up to the Right Match: Reimagining Adoption in Texas’ Capacity Crisis
In today’s child welfare environment, finding permanency for youth—especially those with complex needs—can feel impossible. With Texas facing an ongoing capacity crisis across the state, the need for intentional, strategic, and well-supported adoption practices has never been more urgent. This interactive workshop will define matched adoption as a systems-level strategy designed to improve permanency outcomes, reduce disruptions, and better support children, families, and providers. Presenters will give practical tools for how they have developed programs where rather than relying on urgency alone, matched adoption focuses on clinical compatibility, trauma-informed preparation, realistic expectation-setting, and structured transition planning resulting in successful matched adoptive placements.
Presenters: HollyAnn Petree, LCPAA, Founder and Executive Director of Addy’s Hope Social Service; Denise Sowders, M.Ed., LCPAA, AIM Adoptions; Jamie Poe, LCPAA, Addy’s Hope
Breakout Session C | 4 - 5:30pm
C1: From Institutions to Homes: Supporting High-Needs Youth in Family-Based Foster Care (T)
Child welfare systems are shifting away from residential treatment toward family-based, “least restrictive” placements. This workshop examines the reasons behind this transformation and its real-world implications for licensed providers, administrators, and caregivers. Drawing on both research and lived experience across the full continuum of care, the presenter offers a rare youth informed perspective on how different placement settings shape behavior, attachment, and stability. Participants will gain practical strategies to support successful placements, reduce disruptions, and improve outcomes for high-needs youth. This session is especially valuable for providers navigating the challenges of serving youth who historically would have been placed in congregate care.
Presenters: Tai Kapaji, Speaker/Advocate
C2: Leading Through Change: Building Organizational Capacity in a Shifting Landscape (L)
The child and family services landscape is in constant motion. From T3C implementation and regulatory shifts to workforce instability, increasing client complexity, and evolving federal and state expectations, organizations are being asked to adapt continuously. Yet unmanaged change leads to staff fatigue, turnover, and increased risk to program stability and outcomes. This interactive workshop introduces practical, evidence-based change management strategies that help leaders implement change in ways that strengthen culture, enhance staff competency, and improve program outcomes. Participants will leave equipped with structured frameworks and practical tools to lead change with greater clarity and consistency.
Presenter:Rebekah Powell-Lewis, Founder & CEO, ThriveUp Collective, Inc.
C3: Step Right Up for Families: Where Ethics and Permanency Meet (E)
Kinship caregivers step up for children every day—often with little preparation and immense pressure. This interactive workshop explores how child welfare leaders can step up alongside them by aligning ethical decision-making, family-centered practice, and permanency planning into a cohesive, kin-first system of care. Participants will examine common ethical tensions in kinship practice, consider how crisis and family stress impact stability, and explore strategies for strengthening multidisciplinary collaboration from intake through permanency. Attendees will leave with practical tools to evaluate their systems, honor family strengths, and implement leadership strategies that promote stability and long-term success for Texas families.
Presenters: Leah Wilson, Director of Kinship, Arrow Child and Family Ministries; Scott Batson, Associate VP of Capacity Development, Arrow Child and Family Ministries
C4: AI Governance for Mission-Driven Organizations: From Foundations to Foresight
The session focuses on how organizations can create clear rules, roles, guardrails, training practices, and operational decision-making structures that support responsible and effective AI adoption. The workshop also includes a live demonstration where participants collectively and iteratively develop an AI-assisted output together, helping translate governance concepts into practical workflow.
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Presenter: Alex Salas, Social Capital Projects
C5: Beyond Compliance: Building Prevention-Centered Organizations
Child welfare and childcare leaders are being asked to strengthen safety and accountability while simultaneously advancing prevention. This interactive workshop explores how compliance-driven environments can unintentionally shape decision-making, reporting patterns, and family engagement — particularly with families impacted by poverty or prior system involvement. Participants will learn practical leadership strategies to reduce fear-based practice, strengthen reflective supervision, and foster organizational cultures that balance safety with relational, prevention-centered approaches. Attendees will leave with concrete tools to support staff confidence, improve critical thinking, and embed prevention into everyday operations — without compromising compliance.
Presenter: Romero Davis, Senior Director Child, Family WellBeing, Social Current
C6: From Awareness to Action: Preventing Child Sex Trafficking
This 90-minute workshop will focus on practical prevention strategies for all communities. Designed for youth, educators, social service professionals, parents, and youth advocates, the session will present evidence-based insights with an emphasis on discussion to equip participants with the tools they need to recognize, respond to, and reduce risk factors associated with child sex trafficking.
Presenter: Kellye Turner, Awareness, Prevention and Justice Solutions Lead, Office of the Governor, Child Sex Trafficking Team
C7: Building Strong Foundations: A Step-by-Step QMHP Training Model for Texas Child Care Leaders
Recruiting, training, and retaining Qualified Mental Health Professionals (QMHPs) to work with children in care can feel overwhelming without a clear roadmap. This workshop introduces a practical, step-by-step training model designed specifically for child-serving organizations, providing a logical, time-sequenced pathway that builds competency without overloading new hires or administrators. Participants will gain access to curated training resources, tools for developing their own materials, and a framework for creating ongoing compliance checkpoints to keep QMHPs on track. Attendees will also hear directly from a trained QMHP about the impact of a structured onboarding and development process. Walk away with a replicable system you can immediately implement in your organization.
Presenters: Angela Mitchell, COO, The Center for Psychological Serivces; KImberly Booker, COO The Center for Psychological Services; Olivia Maxie, QMHP-CS The Center for Psycholgical Services
Conference Reception | 5:30-7pm
Tuesday, September 22
Click the session title to view the full description. Sessions that are available virtually are noted with (V).
Breakout Session D | 8:30 - 10am
D1: Beyond Behavior: Adapting Clinical Treatment for Developmental Disabilities (T)
Residential programs are often structured around treatment and behavior support models that assume environments which do not consistently reflect the realities of residential care. These assumptions can create expectation mismatches, particularly when serving children with developmental differences, limited communication, or trauma-related delays. This workshop explores how escalation is often driven not by willful behavior but by interventions that exceed a child’s functional capacity within a residential setting. Presenters will share how simplifying behavioral supports and aligning expectations to functioning level can improve stability, staff consistency, and engagement across diverse populations. Using real-world implementation insights, this session demonstrates how interdisciplinary teams can adapt care delivery to better match the realities of residential environments.
Presenters: Storm Rivas, LPC, LCCA, Respite Care of San Antonio; Maria ” Ria” Sandri, Mariana M. Mandala
D2: Leading with Care: Fostering Engagement and Belonging in the Workplace (L)
This workshop is designed to equip human services professionals with research-informed approaches to create and sustain supportive working environments. Participants will explore what strategies foster connection and belonging in the workplace, discuss what cultivating supportive working environments looks like, the importance of investing in staff development and how to promote staff engagement. Research shows that strong leadership, team commitment, and intra-team relationships can help reduce staff turnover and increase retention which is why attendees will have the opportunity to reflect on their own teams and programs. Guided reflection and discussion will help attendees understand how the strategies and skills shared can further prepare them to create environments with more engagement and less burn out.
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Presenter: Tia Brooks, Program Manager, Healthy Futures of Texas; Emily Ladtkow, Program Coordinator, Healthy Futures of Texas
D3: Blueprint for Authentic Engagement: Building, Ethical, Sustainable Partner, Partnerships with Living Experts (E)
Organizations across the child welfare system are increasingly engaging with Living Experts while this is positive thing we want to help identify clear standards, these efforts can unintentionally become tokenistic or harmful. This workshop will introduce a practical blueprint for authentic, ethical collaboration with Living Experts, including best practices for preparation, co-training, compensation, leadership development, and aftercare. Participants will learn how to move beyond storytelling toward shared power and meaningful partnership. Attendees will leave with actionable strategies and policy recommendations so they can implement within their own organizations to strengthen engagement, trust, and long-term impact.
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Presenters: Chelsey Castro, Senior Permanency Resource Specialist, Texas Alliance of Child and Family Services; Lakya Lewis, Youth Impact Specialist, TACFS
D4: From Possibility to Practice: How AI Is Advancing Child Welfare
This workshop explores how artificial intelligence is moving from concept to practical application in child welfare, with a focus on supporting—not replacing—professional judgment. Attendees will gain a clear, plain‑language understanding of how AI is being used today, the kinds of problems it can help address, and the safeguards that matter in a human‑centered field. The session will also reflect on recent advancements made through collaborative technology efforts, including work involving TFI and FPTG, without assuming prior technical knowledge. Participants will leave better equipped to engage thoughtfully with AI, ask informed questions, and consider how emerging tools can responsibly enhance outcomes for children, families, and staff.
Presenter: Angela Nowell, Chief of Staff, TFI Family Services, Inc; Elizabeth VanAcker, Chief Operating Officer, Five Points Technology Group; Chris Pantaleon, Five Points Technology Group
D5: Beyond Compliance: The ABCs of CQI
Quality improvement doesn’t require a dedicated department — it requires the right mindset and practical tools. In this engaging and accessible session, participants will learn the foundational principles of Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI), why compliance alone is not enough, and how to use simple data-driven strategies to strengthen outcomes and reduce risk. We will break down the “ABCs” of CQI into clear, actionable steps that any agency, regardless of size or structure, can implement immediately. Attendees will leave with a practical framework, real-world examples, and greater confidence in leading improvement efforts within their own organizations.
Presenters: Brandi Dunning, Senior Director, Quality Improvement and Risk Management, DePelchin Children’s Center/Texans Together; Kristi Dorsey- Director, Network Contracts, Texans Together
D6: Regulated Adults, Regulated Environments: Supporting Staff to Improve Child and Youth Outcomes
This workshop explores how staff regulation, stress management, and trauma awareness directly impact the safety, behavior, and long-term outcomes of children and youth in care. Participants will learn practical, trauma-informed strategies to reduce burnout, strengthen team stability, and create emotionally safe environments for both staff and those they serve. Attendees will leave with immediately usable tools to support workforce wellness while improving program effectiveness and service outcomes. This session is ideal for leaders, supervisors, and direct care professionals who want to strengthen their teams and improve outcomes without adding unnecessary workload.
Presenter: Nicole Toney, Licensed Child Care Administrator, Healthcare Solutions Unlimited
D7: From "Maybe" to "Always": Cultivating Lasting Permanency
Families thrive when communities stand ready to support them before they say “yes” to foster care, kinship and adoption and stay fully connected throughout the process. This hands-on workshop guides regional leadership, CPA’s, and support organizations through collaborative readiness assessment, explores practical ways to integrate the recruitment/adoption/post-adoption continuum, and offers tips and tools for strengthening collaboration. Participants will leave with a better understanding of opportunities for increased collaboration in their communities, how to engage potential families more effectively, and what steps they can take to join a statewide, unified effort to advance permanency for children in Texas.
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Presenters: Cara Fox, Heart Galleries of Texas Program Director, Heart Galleries of Texas; Erin Argue, Heart Galleries of Texas Post-Permanency Director
Breakout Session E | 10:20 - 11:50am
E1: When Caring Hurts: Recognizing and Reclaiming Compassion in Child Welfare (T)
Compassion fatigue is not a weakness; it is an occupational hazard of working in child welfare, and it is time we treat it that way. When Caring Hurts invites child welfare heroes at all levels to take an honest look at how the weight of this work quietly chips away at individual resilience and organizational culture. Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of the warning signs of burnout, the science behind compassion fatigue, and actionable self-care strategies that can be integrated into daily professional life. This session is a call to invest in the people who invest everything in the children and families we serve.
Presenter: Athenia Gordon, Manager, Contract Support Services, Texans Together
E2: Stepping Up: Leading with Clarity When the System Feels Heavy (L)
Leadership in child care has never required more courage. In a field navigating regulatory pressure, staff burnout, family trauma, and systemic change, administrators must “step up” before the path is fully clear. Participants will leave with practical frameworks to stabilize teams, strengthen work culture, and lead with intention even when the pressure is high.
This interactive leadership lab blends systems strategy, trauma-informed practices, and emotional intelligence for program-level leaders.
The session opens with a powerful framing of what “Step Right Up” really means in today’s child care climate: leading in ambiguity, stabilizing staff under stress, and making high-stakes decisions in real time.
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Presenter: Jennipha Ricks, Founder & CEO | Trauma-Informed Leadership Strategist, Jae Elle Consulting, LLC
E3: The Ethics of Family Engagement in Juliana’s Case: An Interdisciplinary Case Study (E)
Using a case study of an immigrant family, this interactive workshop explores the ethics of family engagement. Participants will engage in activity to critically assess decision-making and ways to support a family with potential child maltreatment risk factors. Participants will also identify strategies for self-reflection and addressing implicit bias when engaging families.
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Presenters: Catherine LaBrenz, Associate Professor / Director Child Welfare Research Center, University of Texas at Arlington; Dr. Micki Washburn, Associate Professor, University of Texas at Arlington; Professor Tracy Orwig, Associate Professor of Practice, University of Texas at Arlington
E4: A View from the Bench: Judicial Considerations in Child Welfare Cases
This workshop will provide a panel presentation from three judges who exclusively preside over child welfare cases in Texas. The workshop will begin with an overview of court requirements in child welfare cases. Offering both rural and urban perspectives, the workshop will explore judicial insights on topics including caregiver involvement in court hearings, visitation, and Community-Based Care.
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Presenter: Jamie Bernstein, Executive Director, Children’s Commission; Judge Kim Brown, Associate Judge, Tarrant County Child Protection Court No. 1; Judge Katrina Griffith, Associate Judge, Harris County Child Protection Court; Judge Cheryl Vaughan, Associate Judge, 8th Region North Child Protection Court
E5: Beyond Stress Management: Eliminating Burnout at the Nervous System Level
Unlike traditional stress-management workshops that focus primarily on external workload and productivity strategies, this session addresses stress at its physiological root. Leaders will learn how chronic stress lives in the nervous system and how unresolved dysregulation contributes to burnout, reactive decision-making, conflict, and staff turnover. Participants will leave with embodied, neuroscience-informed tools that release stress from the body — not just manage it on the calendar.
Presenter: Danielle Guillory, Speaker | Somatic Practitioner | Doula, Be Well with Danielle
E6: Better Health Outcomes: Leveraging Medicaid to Strengthen Care Across the Texas Child Welfare Continuum
This interactive 90-minute session will equip experienced child welfare administrators with practical, Texas-specific strategies to better leverage Medicaid to improve child and family outcomes. Participants will explore how federal policy shifts, new funding flexibilities, and integrated care models can strengthen service delivery, stabilize placements, reduce administrative burden, and improve long-term well-being.
Presenters: Brittany McAllister, Associate Director, Consulting, Sellers Dorsey; Rachel Marsh, Associate Director, Consulting, Sellers Dorsey
E7: Beyond the Placement: Mobilizing Community Support for Foster and Kinship Families
This interactive workshop explores how foster care, kinship, and transitional programs can intentionally engage community partners to create sustainable, wraparound support systems for children and families. Participants will learn practical strategies for identifying, recruiting, and retaining community stakeholders—including faith-based organizations, businesses, schools, and civic groups—to strengthen placement stability and youth outcomes. The session will provide a step-by-step framework for building collaborative partnerships that extend beyond donations and into mentorship, workforce readiness, respite, and permanency supports. Attendees will leave with concrete tools to mobilize their own communities, increase caregiver retention, and expand transitional resources for youth aging out of care. If you are ready to move from operating in isolation to building a community-driven model that improves outcomes and reduces burnout, this session will give you a roadmap to make it happen.
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Presenter: Tina Capito, LCCA, Garden of Hope Central Texas
Lunch Keynote | 12:45 - 2:15pm (V)
Yes, And
Four Day Weekend is the longest running comedy show in the Southwest. They’ve performed over 7,000 shows and have had the honor of delivering this Yes, And training to the United States Congress and provided entertainment for 2 US Presidents. They are here to teach the art of improvisation and how it applies to the business world and beyond.
Four Day Weekend’s YES, AND session will focus on empathy, using the Yes, And perspective, listening, trust building, and connection. The goal is to help organizations retain talent, improve communication, create a more collaborative environment, and develop trust through a fun, interactive, and shared experience. They find that the Yes, And framework will benefit this audience as a tool to further the impactful work they do in child and family services.
Presenters: Frank Ford and Emily Chapman
Breakout Session F | 3 - 4:30pm
F1: Leading with Courage in Trauma-Exposed Systems (T)
Child welfare leaders are called to step forward with confidence—even when the path ahead is uncertain and the emotional toll of the work is high. In trauma-exposed systems, dysregulation, burnout, and turnover are often signs of adaptation, not failure. This session reframes how trauma impacts not only the children served, but also the professionals leading the way. Participants will learn how nervous system awareness and regulated leadership create sustainable teams, stronger cultures, and better outcomes. Walk away with practical strategies to lead with courage, clarity, and intention—especially when the stakes are highest.
Presenter: Lilli Correll, Founder & Principal, Resolve to Rise
F2: Leading from the Front: Supervisors as Empowered Leaders in Staff Retention and Organizational Success (L)
Across Texas and nationally, child and family serving organizations face unprecedented workforce challenges – burnout, turnover, staffing shortages, and increasing regulatory demands. Leadership today requires stepping forward with confidence and courage, especially when the roadmap isn’t fully clear. This session explores how frontline supervisors can “step right up” to strengthen engagement, stabilize teams, and influence retention through practical, low-cost leadership behaviors. Participants will leave with actionable tools and strategies they can immediately implement to support staff wellbeing, build morale, and lead with greater clarity and impact.
Presenter: Emily Riley, Chief Administrative Officer, Arrow Child & Family Ministries; Jennifer M. Renault, Sr. VP of Programs, Arrow Child & Family Ministries
F3: Leveraging Ethical, Mission-Driven AI in Child Welfare (E)
Explore the five major shifts artificial intelligence is driving in child welfare, and equip yourself to harness these changes ethically, strategically, and in ways that support (not replace) professional judgment. When properly utilized, AI can helping reduce administrative work, ease caregiver burdens, and strengthen leadership decisions. This session includes real-world examples and a nonprofit case study showing how AI has been leveraged to improve the day-to-day and outcomes for children, families, and staff. Walk away with practical strategies to use AI responsibly and make it work for your mission.
Presenters: Gabrielle Meyer, Chief Operating Officer, Miracle Foundation; Shree Dandekar, Chief Product and Technology Officer, Miracle Foundation
F4: Supporting Youth Aging Out of Foster Care: Practical, Cross‑System Strategies for Successful Transitions
Youth aging out of foster care face heightened risks related to housing instability, health, education disruption, and employment. This panel‑style workshop uses real‑world scenarios to highlight practical strategies child welfare, healthcare, and community providers can use to support youth ages 15–18 as they prepare for adulthood. Attendees will learn how early, youth‑centered transition planning and cross‑system collaboration can reduce gaps in care and improve long‑term outcomes. Participants will leave with concrete tools and resources applicable across licensed child care and service settings.
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Presenters: Chad Frymire, Director of Public Policy, Dallas CASA; Emily Dang , Youth Independence Support Specialist
F5: "Building the Wheel: The Power of Every Spoke"
“Building the Wheel: The Power of Every Spoke” is a dynamic, results-driven workshop created specifically for child care administrators who are ready to strengthen collaboration and elevate program impact. Using the powerful wheel metaphor, this session demonstrates how every stakeholder—leaders, educators, families, and community partners—functions as a critical spoke in building a stable, high-performing child care system. Participants will engage in interactive activities and guided discussions that uncover gaps, align teams, and foster meaningful partnerships. Administrators will leave with a proven, practical framework for implementing sustainable community collaboration within their programs. When every spoke is aligned and supported, the entire organization moves forward with clarity, purpose, and measurable success.
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Presenters: Amy Crowley, Region 1 Area Director, Heart Gallery of the Panhandle Plains, Heart Galleries of Texas; Lee Ann Lefevre, MA, LPC,Grant recipient, Heart Gallery of the Panhandle Plains
F6: Advancing Protective Factors Through Family-Centered Practice
Family-centered practice is a foundational approach for strengthening child and family well-being. By intentionally focusing on protective factors—such as parental resilience, nurturing parent-child relationships, social connections, concrete supports, and social emotional competence—professionals can create environments that prevent adversity, empower families, and improve outcomes across systems in an equitable and inclusive way. This session explores practical strategies, real world applications, and evidence-informed tools that help agencies and practitioners meaningfully embed protective factors into everyday interactions.
Presenters: Tameka Caldwell, Director of Family Strengthening, Texas Alliance of Child and Family Services; Chelsy Alexander, Director of Learning Engagement, Texas Alliance of Child and Family Services
F7: Step Right Up as an Educational Ally: Courageous Leadership for Youth in Care
Children and youth in foster care face educational and systemic barriers that often interrupt stability and limit long-term success in traditional school settings. Meaningful change requires educators, facility partners, case managers, and child care administrators to work together as unified allies rather than in parallel roles. This panel explores practical ways leaders can recognize unmet academic needs, strengthen collaboration with school partners, and intentionally develop student self-advocacy skills. Attendees will leave with concrete strategies to better equip youth to communicate their needs and move through their educational journey with greater confidence and clarity.
Presenter: Anissa Geeslin, Behavioral Specialist Coordinator, Braination
Wednesday, September 23
Click the session title to view the full description. Sessions that are available virtually are noted with (V).
Closing Keynote | 9 - 10am (V)
Hope in Broken Things
Those tasked with leadership in the care and protection of children have always carried a heavy burden. They support staff whose work is unrelenting and emotionally demanding, care for children and families navigating profound disruption, and hold systems that often fail the very people they were built to serve. The cumulative exposure to toxic stress, vicarious trauma, moral injury, and systemic dysfunction takes a known and profound toll on health, professional satisfaction, and the capacities that brought leaders to this work in the first place. The current moment is requiring more from all of us: more skill, more capacity, more commitment, and more stamina. We need leadership skills that hold when the path is uncertain, capacity that expands as systems strain, and practical tools readily applied to challenging daily interactions. In her closing keynote, Dr. Kemia Sarraf brings rigorous science and human story to one essential truth: there is no path around the brokenness; we will have to find our way through it. Drawing on neuroscience, narrative, and more than two decades of work with leaders confronting exhaustion and the impact of traumatic stress exposure and moral injury in themselves and their teams, Dr. K offers a new paradigm for understanding and confronting the impact of our current reality with immediately actionable, restorative steps for both individuals and the teams they lead.
Presenter: Kemia M. Sarraf, MD, MPH, CCC, TIPC
Super Session I: Spotlight Sessions – A Rapid-Fire Showcase
In this fast-paced general session, moderated by TACFS’ Director of Learning Engagement, Chelsy Alexander, hear from child welfare leaders across a variety of Texas programs in a new twist on our traditional state leader panel. This year, each leader will have the opportunity to individually share out updates and highlights in a TedX meets “state of the state” style overview. Hear a recap on the past year and learn more about what is on the horizon.
Facilitator: Chelsy Alexander, Director of Learning Engagement, TACFS
Supersession II: A Conversation with SSCC Leaders
As CBC has continued to expand and we are moving away from the legacy system, we will close out conference by hearing from the leadership of the SSCCs across Texas. This will be a facilitated panel where they will answer questions about the current and future landscape of child welfare in Texas.
Facilitators: Kristene Blackstone, COO of TACFS and Rachel Walters, VP of Advocacy, TACFS