In September, the third cohort of the AdoptUSKids Minority Professional Leadership Development (MPLD) program graduated in a three-day online ceremony. The celebration was the culmination of the 12-month fellowship that promotes professional leadership development of minorities in the adoption field.
During the event, child welfare leaders spoke to the graduates and fellows discussed their work over the last year.
Children’s Bureau Assistant Commissioner Aysha Schomburg delivered an inspiring message to the group, telling the fellows that they need to take on leadership roles with bold intention, be willing to take “calculated and necessary risks,” and have an “unsurpassable love” for the children and families they serve every day.
Fellows identify child welfare challenges and solutions
A central component of the MPLD fellowship is the completion of an action research project addressing an issue related to adoption or guardianship. During the three-day event, each fellow presented the results of their project and talked about how participating in MPLD had furthered their careers.
Examples of the topics fellows addressed in projects include:
- Moral injury among child welfare professionals
- Addressing disparities in child welfare
- Targeted recruitment and retention of families of color
We’ll be sharing the results of the action research projects and interviews with the fellows about their experiences with the leadership program in future articles. You can read about past fellows and their projects on this site.
Subscribe to our professionals newsletter to be notified when we are accepting MPLD applications and receive other information for professionals from AdoptUSKids.
