Governor's Task Force Protocols
Legislation
American Humane Pets and Women's Shelters (PAWS)™ Program Startup Guide
Recommendations for Coordination between Friends of the Court and DHS Children's Protective Services 
Citizen Review Panel Child Protective Services, Foster Care and Adoption
Resources for Mandated Reporters of Child Abuse and Neglect
Addressing the Educational Needs of Children in Foster Care in Michigan-Resource and Best Practice Guide
Supervising Child Protective Services Caseworkers
Michigan Committee on Juvenile Justice
Michigan Child Welfare Law Journal

A Model Child Abuse Protocol

The protocol is designed to be adapted at the local level, county by county, applying the guidelines for developing community-based interagency child abuse protocols.

Forensic Interviewing Protocol

From 1996 to 1998, DHS and the Governor's Task Force on Children's Justice worked together with Debra Poole, Ph.D., Central Michigan University,  in developing and implementing this protocol that would improve the interviewing techniques of all professionals involved in the investigation of child physical and sexual abuse in Michigan. 

Michigan Child Injury and Death Coordinated and Comprehensive Investigation Resource Protocol

The Task Force contracted with Michigan Public Health Institute to develop the Michigan Child Injury and Death Coordinated and Comprehensive Investigation Resource Protocol. The purpose behind the Resource Protocol is to provide information to ensure successful coordinated investigations in child maltreatment cases, including child maltreatment cases that result in a child death, and to minimize additional trauma to child victims.

Munchausen By Proxy A Collaborative Approach to Investigation, Assessment and Treatment

The purpose of this publication is to present a multidisciplinary approach that guides various professionals through detection, investigation, legal proceedings, and treatment of phenomena generally called Munchausen by Proxy (MBP). Identifying and responding to this unusual and complex form of child abuse requires a carefully coordinated multidisciplinary intervention. This document is not a substitute for each professional being knowledgeable about MBP from the perspective of his or her own discipline. Rather, this publication is meant to serve an integrative and coordinating function to help each professional understand his or her role in the context of the others.

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Federal Legislation Governing the Task Force

To view the federal legislation governing the task force, go to the following link:

Children's Justice Act (42 USC 5106C; PL 100-294, as amended)

Michigan's Child Protection Law

Michigan's Child Protection Law is available here.

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American Humane Pets and Women's Shelters (PAWS)™ Program Startup Guide

American Humane is leading a national program to guide domestic and family violence emergency housing shelters toward permitting residents to bring their pets with them. American Humane's Pets and Women's Shelters (PAWS)™ Program acknowledges the richness of the bond between people and their pets, which often provide unconditional love and comfort to adult domestic violence victims and their children. For that reason - as well as for the safety of the pets - American Humane strongly advocates keeping domestic violence victims and their pets together whenever possible. This Startup Guide provides simple, how-to methods for starting a PAWS Program at a domestic violence shelter.

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Recommendations for Coordination between Friends of the Court and Department of Human Services' Children's Protective Services

In Michigan, Children's Protective Services (CPS) and Friend of the Court (FOC) offices operate separately in the executive and judicial branches of the government. However, they are equally dedicated to the best interests and safety of the children they serve. Because families may be involved with both CPS and the FOC, there is a need to coordinate activities between these agencies. Several state and county agencies appointed employees to form a workgroup to develop recommendations for coordinating local FOC and CPS activities. Local CPS and FOC staff can use these recommendations to coordinate activities that work best in their respective counties. The recommendations are also intended to assist families in understanding the roles and responsibilities of CPS and FOC.

Recommendations for Coordination between FOC and CPS

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Citizen Review Panel on Child Protective Services, Foster Care and Adoption

The Governor's Task Force on Children's Justice services as one of the three Citizen Review Panels required by CAPTA legislation. To view the national Citizen Review Panel site, go to the following link:

National Citizen Review Panels

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Mandated reporters are professionals under the Child Protection Law that are required to report suspected incidence of child abuse and/or neglect. View the Mandated Reporter's Resource Guide or go  to the  mandated reporters page  of the DHS Web site for more information on who are mandated reporters and how to report.  Michigan State University's Chance at Childhood Program has also developed resource guides for mandated reporters. To view those resource guides, go to the publications page at the  Chance at Childhood Web site .

Anyone who has suspects child abuse and neglect can report to DHS. Go to the of the DHS Web site,  report abuse now page , for more information on making a report to CPS.

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Each person who influences a foster child's education is given an opportunity to mitigate the effects that placement in foster care will have on the child's long-term educational success. This resource guide is the first step toward positively affecting a foster child's education. The purpose of this resource guide is to:

• Increase the overall knowledge of legal resources and legal requirements regarding foster children and education.
• Outline generally accepted developmental and academic standards for school aged children.
• Provide information on the educational supports and services available to decrease the negative educational outcomes for children involved with foster care.
• Clarify education advocacy roles for child welfare professionals.

View the Education Resource and Best Practices Guide here.

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The  Child Abuse and Neglect User Manual Series    has provided guidance on child protection to hundreds of thousands of multidisciplinary professionals and concerned community members since the late 1970s. This manual,  Supervising Child Protective Services Caseworkers  , provides the foundation for effective supervisory practice in child protective services (CPS).

View the manual  Supervising Child Protective Services Caseworkers   here.

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Michigan Committee on Juvenile Justice (MCJJ)

This committee's primary charge, as referenced in the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 2002 and the Governor's Executive Order No. 2003-9, is to provide advice and input on prevention and treatment of juvenile delinquency, administration of juvenile justice and the reduction of juvenile delinquency. To learn more about this committee, view the  MCJJ web-site .

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Michigan Child Welfare Law Journal

The Governor's Task Force on Children's Justice has provided funding for the publication of the Michigan Child Welfare Law Journal, published by Michigan State University's Chance at Childhood Program. The Journal publishes information useful to practitioners in the child welfare field, including attorneys, social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists and other health care professionals. To view editions of the Journal, go to the publications page at the  Chance at Childhood Web site .

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