How the Framework of Implementation Science Guided an Evidence‐Based Dependency Parenting Program Initiative in Florida

• Author: Sindy Gonzalez,Jovasha K. Lang,Lynne Katz,Mary Anne Ullery
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jfcj.12082
• Date: 01 December 2016
• Published date: 01 December 2016

How the Framework of Implementation Science

Guided an Evidence-Based Dependency

Parenting Program Initiative in Florida

By Lynne Katz, Sindy Gonzalez, Mary Anne Ullery, and Jovasha K. Lang

ABSTRACT

In Florida, like most states, many of the parenting programs that are being

utilized with families in the dependency system are non-evidence based, and fail to

provide quantifiable data on parent progress during and after completion of the pro-

grams. Providing pertinent information in court on parents’ progress in a parenting

program, as opposed to simply monitoring attendance, is a growing need voiced by

dependency judges and child welfare case management professionals. Clear, reliable

information related to parenting skills acquisition and insight can help to ensure that

families involved in the child welfare system have access to quality services that

improve outcomes for their children. The purpose of this paper is to detail how a

statewide initiative to increase the number of Florida circuits providing evidence-

based parenting programs to their clients utilized implementation science to guide their

Dr. Lynne Katz is a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University

of Miami. She is the Director of the University’s Linda Ray Intervention Center for high risk children ages

0-3 who were born prenatally drug exposed and/or were victims of child maltreatment. Since 1993, she has

coordinated the program’s comprehensive early intervention services for over 1500 infants and toddlers and

their families and has worked as the early intervention partner with the Juvenile Court in Miami for close to

two decades.

Sindy Gonzalez, B.A. is a recent graduate of the University of Miami in the department of psychol-

ogy where she has worked with the project team evaluating the implementation process of the court parent-

ing initiative. She is currently working in an early intervention classroom with young children with

developmental delays and hopes to continue doing research on vulnerable populations of children.

Dr. Mary Anne Ullery has been the Research Director at the University of Miami’s Linda Ray Inter-

vention Center in the Department of Psychology since 2006. Her research focuses on effective early interven-

tion for children prenatally exposed to cocaine ages 0-3, developmental outcomes of children from high-risk

environments, and children in the child welfare system. She has published several journal articles on early

intervention for children who are high-risk and/or are in the child welfare system.

Jovasha K. Lang is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who works within the Office of Court

Improvement in Tallahassee, Florida. Jovasha holds a Master of Social Work Administration and Commu-

nity Development from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University. Jovasha has over 8 years of clinical

experience and 14 years of experience working with children and families in various capacities within the

child welfare system. Jovasha is passionate about improving the lives of children and families within the

child welfare system through the innovation and implementation of family court initiatives.

Juvenile and Family Court Journal 67, No. 4

©2016 National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges

69