The Child Welfare League of America led by President and CEO of CWLA Christine James-Brown brought a delegation of child welfare agencies to Cuba to exchange information and approaches regarding child and family well-being. “We are excited to learn about the resilience of families and how they manage without a child welfare system in place,” James-Brown said shortly before departing.
The delegation included executive leaders from the Children’s Home of Jefferson County, the Council of Family and Child Caring Agencies, Family Matters of Greater Washington, the Field Center for Children’s Policy, Practice & Research, University of Pennsylvania, Heartland for Children, Lena Pope, the New England Association of Child Welfare Commissioners and Directors, Proyecto Nacer, Inc., the School of Social Work, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey and the Children’s Village. All 11 members were chosen by CWLA and The Coalition for Research to Practice through a cross-system application process. James-Brown joined community leaders, educators, researchers, and officers from children and family service programs. The goal was an exchange of information to learn how best to support our nation’s most vulnerable citizens through maximizing the strengths of Cuba’s community-based child welfare practices and to share the best practices of the United States systems with Cuban leaders. The trip ran from September 27 through October 3.
“The recent work toward normalization of relations with Cuba after more than 50 years presented an opportunity for a delegation to travel with a focus on child welfare, childhood development, childhood learning, and children’s overall well-being,” said Todd Landry, chairman of the board of CWLA.
