CWS-CARES Public Library

The CDSS Office of Tribal Affairs (OTA) is grounded in meaningful Tribal Consultation and Engagement that elevate and assist in building the capacity of the State, Tribes, and Counties to collaboratively create and sustain an equitable continuum of care for American Indian and Alaska Native children and families.

The Office of Tribal Affairs, as a part of the Office of Equity, guides the California Department of Social Services efforts to help create and facilitate policies, procedures, and programs that serve Tribes, and tribal children and families.

OTA actively contributes to CWS-CARES development by guiding the direction of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) Steering Committee. This workgroup consists of tribal representatives collaborating with CWDS and CDSS to improve data quality and ICWA implementation in California. Through these discussions, OTA has helped shape key system updates to be more inclusive and culturally responsive. These efforts ensure CWS-CARES better reflects tribal children and families’ needs and strengthens data collection for improved child welfare outcomes.

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer.

Background

One of the main benefits in transitioning from legacy to CWS-CARES is the creation of a single, comprehensive data system. With streamlined case data entry and storage, counties will save time and resources and reduce the need for supplementary external systems.  

What are external systems? 

An external system is defined by the project as, “a tool or application used by organizations to deliver child welfare services in addition to, or outside of, the legacy CWS/CMS solution. This includes Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) software, County-developed systems, and data files.” The project is actively working on identifying which of these external systems have overlapping, or “duplicative,” functionality with CWS-CARES. 

How does the project determine which external systems have overlapping or duplicative functionality? 

Given that CWS-CARES is still in development, discussions about external systems can be challenging. While the CWS-CARES Project Value Services (PVS) team has made initial assessments on which systems are duplicative, they rely on county input and collaboration to make all final determinations. The External Systems Coordination Unit (ESCU) has defined the categories for external systems as: 

• In-scope – a system with functionality that will be fully covered by CARES V1 
• Partially in-scope – a system with some functionality that overlaps with CARES V1 and some functionality that does not overlap with CARES V1
• Out of scope – a system with functionality that is not planned for inclusion in CARES V1 

External Systems Flow Chart

What will happen to external systems after Go-Live?

Due to federal regulations, all systems that are fully in-scope (duplicative functionality to CWS-CARES) will eventually need to be decommissioned, or discontinued, from use. Counties, in collaboration with ESCU, will develop tailored plans for external systems deemed in-scope and partially in-scope, to ensure continued operations. These plans will account for system dependencies with other external systems, the criticality of any missing functionality, alternate solutions, and whether the absent functionality is planned for inclusion in future versions of CWS-CARES. Out of scope systems may continue operating with or without modifications, as long as they remain compliant with federal and state regulations. 

What support can counties expect when planning for decommissioning? 

We are committed to meeting county and tribe needs for support, transparency, and uninterrupted county and tribe business activity throughout the transition to CWS-CARES and beyond. We have created the External Systems Coordination Unit (ESCU), a team solely dedicated to providing counties with support in preparation for the decommissioning process. As we approach Go-Live, ESCU will work in collaboration with county representatives to create decommissioning plans that address individual county needs while also ensuring federal and Comprehensive Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS) compliance. 

How will external systems data be converted to CWS-CARES?

Counties will conduct Source-to-target-mapping (STTM), data cleansing, and data loading for eligible systems. For systems that are not being converted but will be decommissioned or taken offline, counties will need to determine how best to retain and access necessary data. This may include maintaining read-only access, manual data entry, or implementing other solutions to support operational needs.

We recognize that counties and tribes are experiencing a lot of change in the transition to CWS-CARES; we appreciate your patience, feedback, and active participation throughout the process.  

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer.

The CWS-CARES Organizational Change Management (OCM) Team disseminated an Engagement Survey to the 58 county child-welfare agency implementation teams (Implementation, OCM, and Training Coordinators and their backups) and representatives from the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) divisions involved in the project: the Child Care Licensing Division (CCLD); Children and Family Services Division (CFSD); and the Research, Automation, and Data Division (RADD). ​

Purpose ​

The purpose of this Survey was to gauge the level of preparedness for change at Organizations on behalf of representatives involved with the project and understand their perception of CWS-CARES at this stage in the project. ​

​Timing​

The survey launched September 2nd and closed September 30th, 2024. Note that the Survey’s window from September 2nd to 30th coincided with prototype demonstrations beginning September 19th, so several recipients had not yet participated in product demonstrations.​

Format ​

15 questions were grouped into the following dimensions: Demographics; Compelling Purpose; Product; Stakeholder Engagement; Training and Support; Communications; and Preparation for Change. ​

​Responses ​

The Survey’s overall response rate was 120 out of 200 (60%). 59 out of 61 (97%) Organizations participated. Nearly 60% of respondents have worked in a child welfare-related role for over 10 years, indicating a strong knowledge base for the needs of child welfare work.​

Free Responses - Themes, Summary of Responses, and Mitigation Strategies​

The final question of the Survey was a free response question asking respondents if there are questions or comments the project team should review. The free responses were then shared with the relevant impacted teams. These included the OCM Team, Implementation Team, Training Team, Strategic Communications Team, External Systems Workgroup, and Product-as-a-Service (PaaS) Team. All of the teams reviewed the language and suggested mitigation strategies that are either upcoming in the project roadmap or are new ideas leveraging existing material.​

Summary of Findings​

Aggregated results indicate that the majority of respondents agree or strongly agree with statements such as “I believe CWS-CARES will meet future program needs of child welfare work” and “I am aware of ways to provide feedback about CWS-CARES.” ​

​Questions resulting in the highest numbers of disagree or strongly disagree responses were related to external systems (“I understand the impacts that CWS-CARES will have on my Organization's use of external systems.”) and preparation for change (“I am confident I will be able to adopt CWS-CARES with ease in the future.”). ​

​These findings have been shared and discussed with the appropriate project teams, and mitigation strategies are being developed to address key areas that need improvement.​

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer.

The California Office of Technology and Solutions Integration (OTSI) is responsible for the successful delivery of our large, complex IT systems statewide. As such, OTSI is the technology sponsor of CWS-CARES, and provides ongoing leadership and direction to support the successful delivery of CARES. ​

 ​As the technology sponsor, OTSI participates in various areas of the CWS-CARES system development.  Technical and subject matter experts provide guidance on user experience, state, and federal policy, and ensure that the project is on schedule for delivery. OTSI also administers and manages the CWS-CARES project. This includes project plan management and reporting, project integration, budget oversight, and contract management.  ​

Two of the primary project resources that OTSI manages are the CWS-CARES Monthly Legislative Update and the CWDS Planning Roadmap. The roadmap is bigger picture, and includes milestone descriptions, critical training and implementation activities, and Extended User Scenario Testing (EUST) periods through CARES V1 Go-live in October 2026. The monthly legislative report is more tactical in nature and offers detailed statuses on key project milestones and implementation activities.  ​

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer. 

The CWS-CARES Project team partners with organizations to ensure information is shared effectively. Each organization has three key communication roles for CWS-CARES that foster statewide adoption and utilization of CWS-CARES: Single Point of Contact (SPOC), Implementation Coordinator, and OCM Coordinator.  

Download the CWS-CARES Communications Infographic: A guide on how to participate in and support CWS-CARES communications.
It covers: 

• An overview of the three main CWS-CARES communications roles (Single Point of Contact (SPOC), Implementation Coordinator, and OCM Coordinator)
• Opportunities to stay informed 

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer and a Bulletin: CWS-CARES New Resources to Support your Work | Child Welfare Digital Services.

The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) is the project sponsor and participates in various areas of the CARES project.  Subject matter experts from Accounting, Fiscal, Legal and Program provide input and policy guidance on development activities.  ​

​The Child Welfare System Branch (CWSB) is responsible for representing the CDSS at Child Welfare Digital Services (CWDS).  The branch chief wears multiple hats including sitting on the CWDS Executive Leadership Team.  Five of the staff are Service Managers and work directly with the Product Delivery Team to develop functionality to support case management, external stakeholder coordination, financial management, resource family approval, resource management, reporting and metrics. Staff research child welfare regulation, statute, and county letter guidance to ensure CARES supports current child welfare policy and practice to comply with the Comprehensive Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS) requirements.  ​

The team works directly with multiple tribes to identify how CARES will support users in meeting the Indian Child Welfare Act requirements. Working directly with counties, the team identifies external or ancillary systems to ensure business operations will not be impacted when CARES goes live. The team also provides fiscal oversight to the CARES project and conducts biennial data quality reviews as required by CCWIS.  ​​

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer.

The role of the CWS-CARES Implementation Coordinator (IC) is very important to the successful implementation of CWS-CARES. An IC serves as the primary point of contact between their county, tribe, or organization and the project Implementation Team.

The IC works closely with a designated CWS-CARES Implementation Lead (IL) to conduct, manage, track, and report on a set of readiness activities. In addition, the IC supports their organization’s Implementation Team (which includes the Data Quality Analyst, OCM, Training, and Technical Coordinators) to understand and complete readiness activities that are being tracked on the Go-Live Readiness Checklist. The IC responsibilities include informing their leadership of the progress being made and to ensure implementation readiness activities are completed to prepare their organization and end users for CWS-CARES Go-Live. ​

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer.

The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is a federal law enacted in 1978 to protect the best interests of Native American children and promote the stability and security of Native American tribes and families. The ICWA establishes minimum Federal standards for the removal of Indian children, delineates the roles of State and Tribal governments in child welfare cases, establishes placement preferences for placement with family and Tribal members, and institutes protections for parents regarding the termination of parental rights. In California, ICWA provides guidance to counties, regarding the handling of child abuse and neglect and adoption cases involving Indian children and sets minimum standards for these cases, to support Indian children and families, and ensure children remain connected to their family, Tribe, and culture. ​

Among protections for Indian children, ICWA requires caseworkers to make several considerations when handling an ICWA case, including: ​

• Providing active efforts to the family; ​

• Identifying a placement that fits under the ICWA preferences provisions; ​

• Notifying the child’s tribe and the child’s parents of the child custody proceeding; and​

• Working actively to involve the child’ tribe and the child’s parents in the proceedings.​​

ICWA ensures that tribes as sovereign nations, have a strong voice in child custody proceedings involving Indian children. Tribes have exclusive jurisdiction over cases when the child resides on the reservation, or when the child is a ward of the tribe. Tribes have concurrent jurisdiction for an ICWA case, when the child is living or domiciled off the reservation, or the Tribal court declines to take the case. In California when the county and Tribe have concurrent jurisdiction, ICWA establishes a presumption that the county must transfer jurisdiction to the Tribe, upon request.​

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer.

To ease the transition from CWS/CMS to CARES, the Implementation Team continues to partner with Organizational Change Management Coordinators and Organizational Change Management Advisory Workgroup Representatives from the counties.​

Organizational Change Management (OCM) Coordinators​

Each county has a designated Organizational Change Management (OCM) Coordinator that supports their county by:​

• Sharing information about CARES with their teams.​

• Tailoring communications and other CARES work products to be relevant to their county's individual needs.​

• Strengthening feedback loops within their organization and providing insight about their team's experience throughout this transition.​

In spring 2024, OCM Coordinators and other representatives from each county were invited to attend a two-day OCM Training to equip them with the tools and skills needed to support their teams.​

• Agenda: Training participants learned basic principles of OCM, discussed common challenges that arise during change, and identified strategies for addressing challenges.​

• Knowledge sharing: The training sessions provided an opportunity for participants from different counties to share their experiences with change and exchange lessons learned and best practices.​

• Resources: Participants also received a toolkit of information to help them start communicating and building awareness about CARES within their organizations.​

Organizational Change Management (OCM) Advisory Workgroup Representatives​

In Fall 2023, select representatives from each region were also identified by their Regional Chairs to engage in OCM through the OCM Advisory Workgroup.​

• Monthly meetings give representatives the chance to provide ongoing guidance and oversight into the activities and communications developed for CARES end users and other stakeholders.​

• Workgroup participants provide input on OCM work products and serve as an open channel of communication and feedback.​

• They also help to understand and speak to ongoing change management risks and issues that may affect the end-user adoption of CARES as V1 is developed and implemented.​

As the CARES project progresses, OCM Coordinators and OCM Advisory Workgroup representatives will have additional opportunities to participate in OCM activities.​ 

Originally published in the CWS-CARES Explorer.

The CARES Implementation Team is a group within the CARES project team focused on helping Counties, CDSS, Probation, and Tribes with Title IV-E agreements prepare for CARES V1 Go-Live in October 2026. The team is comprised of Implementation Leads (ILs) who are assigned to each of these organizations to serve as single point of contact for all CARES-related tasks and questions.​

ILs collaborate with Implementation Coordinators (ICs) from each organization to regularly review and update the CARES V1 Go-Live Readiness Checklist. The checklist includes people, process, and technology readiness tasks organizations must complete to be ready for Go-Live. ​

Among the key responsibilities of the ILs is learning the new CARES V1 features and functionality so they can provide system demonstrations and answer questions about the new software prior to end user training delivery.​

To stay informed about CARES V1, ILs attend product development meetings, demonstrations, and other project discussions. ILs also play an important role in routing questions received from the organizations, sharing feedback, and pulling in additional subject matter expertise as needed for the completion of readiness tasks. ​

ILs are of critical importance to the success of CARES V1 because they because they provide organizations the support they need to get ready for Go-Live. Additionally, they create visibility into the status and overall health of Go-Live Readiness activities between now and October 2026.​