CIRE Forum: Connecting the Dots: Using Linked Administrative Data to Improve Public Child Welfare Programs

Listen to the “Policy in Perspective” podcast featuring Ann Person, director of the Center for Improving Research Evidence (CIRE) and Matthew Stagner, senior fellow at Mathematica. Person and Stagner explore the latest trends in using administrative data to improve public child welfare programs.

Use the audio player below to listen now or to download the episode.

Download the CIRE Forum Podcast

Today more than ever, expanded access to sophisticated administrative data gives child welfare agencies the ability to inform program development and improve outcomes for vulnerable children and families. However, linking administrative data across systems and applying these data to decision making poses challenges such as maintaining confidentiality and understanding the meaning and usefulness of data in the various human services systems. Learning to use these data effectively and efficiently requires expert guidance from state and local leaders who specialize in data systems, policy, and practice.

On November 5, Mathematica’s Center for Improving Research Evidence (CIRE) hosted a forum that explored how administrative data can be used to improve public child welfare programs. Drawing on lessons learned from successful programs in Florida and Wisconsin, the forum panelists:

• Identified trends in the use of administrative data to improve child welfare programs
• Addressed the challenges related to interoperability
• Reviewed best practices that will help agencies with program development and implementation

Expert Panel:

• Ann Person, Senior Researcher and Director of CIRE, Mathematica
• Matt Stagner, Senior Fellow, Mathematica
• Maria Cancian, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy for the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Bryan Lindert, Senior Director of Quality Management at Eckerd Community Alternatives, Hillsborough, Florida
• Jennifer Noyes, Associate Director of Programs and Management, Institute for Research on Poverty, and Codirector of the Center on Child Welfare Policy and Practice, University of Wisconsin–Madison