Blog

Visit our Human Services Blog regularly for information about current issues, research and happenings in the field of human services. All content is generated by UC Davis Continuing and Professional Education staff, instructors or colleagues.

We also produce several digital publications—each with a specific focus on an area of human services practice:

California Wraparound

Strengthening Wraparound Through Collaboration: CDSS and the Resource Center for Family-Focused Practice

  • by Danielle Gabri, MA, Staff Services Manager I, Family-Centered Practice Unit, System of Care Branch, Children and Family Services Division, California Department of Social Services
Our partnership exemplifies what is possible when agencies work together toward a shared goal. CDSS is proud to collaborate with RCFFP in providing the guidance, training and resources needed to ensure that Wraparound remains a strong, effective, and family-driven model of care in California.
Tabatha Rodgers

Growing Out of Trauma

  • by Tabitha Rodgers, Transition Aftercare Services & Substance Abuse Coordinator
Growing up in the foster care system for six years before returning to my mother, I remember being scared, sad and angry. As a 7-year-old little girl yearning for love and comfort, I found myself surrounded by strangers, bouncing between foster homes and the Mary Graham Children's Shelter in French Camp, CA.
A group of people, many scattered about, but the ones grouped together form a positively progressing upward line, with a small dip in the mid-point to suggest a realistic, ending with an upward arrow.

Record-Breaking Statewide CQI Conference Unites Child Welfare and Probation Professionals

  • by Jason M Borucki
From March 25–27, 2025, the Northern Academy at UC Davis Human Services welcomed California’s child welfare and probation county teams to 2025l CQI Statewide Conference for Child Welfare and Probation in Sacramento. With 350 attendees from 49 California counties and one Tribe, the annual event enjoyed the highest turnout since it began in 2018.
Three girls cheering in triumph

2025 Sarah Duncan Award Nominees Announced

  • by Jason M Borucki
In celebration of National Social Work Month in March, the Northern Academy invited our colleagues and community partners in the Northern California region to nominate an outstanding social worker for the 2025 Sarah Duncan Champion for Children and Families Award! We are excited to announce this year’s nominees!
A circle of people hold hands

Building a New Future for Child Welfare, One Human at a Time

  • by Tyler Morgenstern, UC Davis Human Services

As in nearly all fields, digital tools of all stripes are now standard-issue in the world of social work and child welfare. But even as such tools offer tantalizing new efficiencies, they are in many ways a poor fit for the uncertainties and gray areas that make up the  challenging reality of child welfare services.

California Wraparound

From the Director

  • by Nancy Hafer, M.S., Director, Resource Center for Family-Focused Practice
While it’s often been said that the only certainty is uncertainty, Wraparound remains relentlessly determined to be there for children and families when they need it, and as early as they need it, so that their lives are strengthened and improved by services rather than overwhelmed by such uncertainty. This is what Wraparound can be, and needs to be, to keep our most vulnerable and marginalized children, families and communities safe.
Kimberly with her older sister, Savannah, and mom, Eveline.

Kimberly and Eveline: A Ventura County Wraparound Family Success Story

  • by Beau Godtel, MA, BCBA, Senior Administrative Specialist Ventura County Human Services Agency, Child and Family Services
After months of being away from her family, Kimberly was returned to her mother’s care alongside her other siblings. The Wraparound team worked diligently to build connection and trust with Kimberly and Eveline as the family began to navigate their new life together. The flexibility of Wraparound and access to flex funds allowed us to creatively support the family in their goals, and to celebrate accomplishments.
Parent Partner Advisory Committee

A Heartfelt Thank You and Appreciation to Ebony Chambers-McClinton

After serving as an outstanding co-chair for the Parent Partner Advisory Committee (PPAC) for more than a decade, Ebony Chambers-McClinton is moving to a special advisor role. As this longtime champion for social justice, child welfare and mental health takes on her new role, the PPAC would like to share this open letter of gratitude.
Beau Godtel

Wraparound Makes a Difference, and We Have the Data to Prove It!

  • by Beau Godtel, MA, BCBA, Senior Administrative Specialist Ventura County Human Services Agency, Child and Family Services
How do you know if your Wraparound families continue to be successful after services have ended? Much of this answer will come down to what kind of outcomes data you collect.
Person writing in notebook

Acronym Corner

  • by Tamara Trejos, LMFT, Wraparound Specialist, UC Davis Human Services
While using acronyms at work amongst those familiar with them creates a shorthand and easy mode of communication, acronyms can also create confusion and communication barriers when used in situations where not everyone is familiar with the meaning. Acronym overuse can also make new team members or people outside of a specific field feel excluded.
Michael J. Rauso

A Promise Kept

  • by By Michael J. Rauso, Division Chief, Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services
Early in my career, way before DCFS, I worked in a psychiatric facility with the chronically mentally ill. That is where I met Paul, who was much older and had such a gentle soul. He grew up in an orphanage in New York, and essentially never got to experience a family. He went from one institution to another, and eventually died in one. I promised myself that I would do everything in my power to make sure no one ever had to experience that.
Two smiling adults with a happy young girl.

New Wraparound Training and Resources

The Resource Center for Family-Focused Practice at UC Davis Human Services is excited to announce the launch of two new Wraparound Skills Labs. We’re also offering Wraparound Foundational Class Passports—easy-to-use tools available on our website to help you keep track of your attendance in the fundamental Wraparound classes.
A group of people putting a giant puzzle together.

Specialized Toolkits to Support the Human Services Workforce

  • by Jason M Borucki
California’s human services workforce is as vast and diverse as it is vital to the health and well-being of the children, adults, families and communities it serves. As national leaders in the transformation of human services through innovation, collaboration and pursuit of best practice,  UC Davis Human Services frequently produces practice-specific Toolkits to meet the specialized needs of this valued workforce.
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