In September, the fourth cohort of the AdoptUSKids Minority Professional Leadership Development (MPLD) program graduated. The ceremony was held in Washington, DC, over three days.
This was the culmination of a yearlong fellowship that promotes professional leadership development of emerging minority leaders working in child welfare.
Fellows complete research projects that inform the field
A key part of the fellowship is the completion of an action research project that addresses an issue in child welfare and is related to adoption. In DC, fellows presented the results of their projects and reflected on their participation in the MPLD program.
Graduates completed research about topics ranging from kinship care to transracial adoption and youth engagement
Congratulations to the 13 graduates of this year’s MPLD cohort! See a list of the graduates, along with the titles of their action research projects, below. Find recordings of each presentation on the MPLD YouTube channel.
- Greta Archbold: “Kinship Overview: Keeping the Kin Connection”
- Cordelia Cranshaw Skeete: “Young Adult Readiness”
- Anisa Evans-Tucker: “Nothing about Us without Us: Older Youth Permanency Matters”
- Renee Evelyn: “Connections without Boundaries”
- Jarmin Fuentes: “Evidence-Based Practice in Child Welfare: Trauma-Focused CBT”
- Angela Jenkins: “Increasing Permanency for Our Youth by Decreasing Congregate Care Placements”
- Sarahi Juarez: “Acing ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences)”
- Mercedes O’Bryant Gruzeski: “Language Matters”
- Christopher Poles: “Preparing Monroe County CPS Investigators to Be Culturally Competent”
- Erica Slocum: “Transracial Adoption: Becoming Culturally Competent”
- Devyn Taylor: “Transracial Adoption Conversations (TRAC) Coaching Model”
- Jillian Williams: “The Value of Partnering with Youth in Foster Care”
- Sandra Womack: “Helping Parents Support Their Children’s Social and Emotional Health”
Connect with AdoptUSKids for more MPLD updates
- You can read about past fellows and their projects on this site.
- Join AdoptUSKids on LinkedIn. There, we are part of a growing community committed to sharing tools, resources, and new perspectives with child welfare professionals.
- Subscribe to our newsletter to be notified when we are accepting MPLD applications and receive other information for professionals.
