Family Engagement
What is Family Engagement?
Family Engagement Training includes instruction and tools designed to enhance the capacity of individuals who work with children and youth and their families to effectively engage with those families in a way that helps them achieve their vision and receive the support they need. Training focuses on developing the engagement skills of juvenile justice, protective services, and early childhood workers, as well as community partners, youth, advocates, and families themselves. The overall purpose is to engage with families effectively on all aspects from service planning to delivery of services for children and young people engaged in behavioral health systems.
Why is Family Engagement Important?
Family and youth involvement within a System of Care requires mutual respect and meaningful partnerships between families and professionals. Family Engagement Trainings guide community providers and State staff from initial meeting with youth and families to understand the core principles to ensure effective and long-term engagement. Participants have the opportunity to learn strength-based and family-driven techniques to empower, support, and guide families through the System of Care.
Our Role in Family Engagement
The Center of Innovation, in partnership with Children Youth and Families Department-Behavioral Health Services (CYFD-BHS), facilitate the ongoing development and improvement of the System of Care in New Mexico by providing Family Engagement Trainings to community behavioral health providers, CYFD staff, and other stakeholders who work with children, youth, and families.
Trainings are Focused On:
- Understanding and applying the five core values of engagement: Genuineness, Respect, Empathy, Active Listening, and Trust
- Identifying why engaging families is important and ways to do so
- Learning self and co-regulation skills to effectively engage families including evidence-based techniques and recognizing challenges and barriers to family engagement
- Using strength-based techniques and language to engage families in their own vision and outcomes
Upcoming Family Engagement Trainings