Training Curriculum
Developing Models of Effective Child Welfare Staff Recruitment and Retention Training
A federally-funded child welfare training project at the Michigan State University School of Social Work
Training Series: Staff Retention in Child and Family Services
The purpose of this training series of workbooks is to increase child and family service agencies' effectiveness in developing and retaining their staff by applying information from research and best retention practices to their work.
The foundation for this material is the important mission of child and family service to provide safety, permanence and well being for children, within a context of family-centered practice. Underpinning this foundation is a heightened sensitivity to the potential impact of significant emotional events on child and family service professionals which can lead to excessive stress, burnout and, possibly, secondary trauma.
Case materials, tools and skills integrated throughout this workbook series intend to honor and support leaders and supervisors as they cope with the value dilemmas and emotional content found in the “real world” of child and family services.
The ultimate goal of this curriculum is to improve retention practices and outcomes for child and family service agencies. With such an end in mind everybody wins: the staff, the agency, the families and children, and especially the supervisor, whose life is vastly improved by having a stable, loyal workforce.
Workbook Curriculum
This curriculum has been designed with a series of workbooks. A workbook is provided for each of the following subjects in the core curriculum series.
Workbook 1 – The Role of Leaders in Staff Retention: provides information, tools and methods for leaders to use to support supervisors in creating and sustaining a positive culture for staff retention.
Download Workbook (1,138 kb, pdf)
Workbook 2 – The Practice of Retention-Focused Supervision: provides research information and supervisory competencies for retaining effective staff, including self-assessment and planning tools. It includes methods and tools for setting objectives, structuring the supervisory process and managing stress in the workplace.
Download Workbook (1,037 kb, pdf)
Workbook 3 – Working with Differences: provides understanding, methods and tools for tailoring supervision to the diverse characteristics, learning and behavioral styles and professional development needs of staff.
Download Workbook (1,234 kb, pdf)
Workbook 4 – Communications Skills: provides specific information, tools and activities to adapt communication skills to the supervisory relationship.
Download Workbook (1,107 kb, pdf)
Workbook 5 – The First Six Months: provides a structure, methods and tools for orienting, supporting and training new staff during their first six months on the job, with particular attention to helping staff cope with and manage the stressors of the job.
Download Workbook (1,076 kb, pdf)
Workbook 6 – Recruiting and Selecting the Right Staff in Child and Family Service: provides information on promising practices and tools for recruiting and selecting front line staff; includes profiles of desirable qualities needed in front-line supervisors and staff and methods for developing effective collaborations with universities.
Download Workbook (1,000 kb, pdf)