NCAP AND AMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARCH ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP DESIGNED TO ACCELERATE BEST PRACTICES

BOSTON, March 2, 2015 – The National Center on Adoption and Permanency (NCAP) and the American Institutes for Research (AIR) today proudly announced a unique partnership intended to improve outcomes for children who need enduring families, through the joint development, promotion and implementation of more-effective, evidence-based laws, policies and practices.

“This partnership builds on and complements the strengths of both organizations,” said Adam Pertman, the President of NCAP. “Most important, it enhances our individual and collective ability to carry out common goals in the realms of adoption and child welfare.”

“We look forward to working together in many ways, all of which will focus on improving the lives of children who need homes and of the families who provide them so that everyone can experience successful life-long connections, a critical factor in healthy development,” added Cheryl Vince, AIR Senior Vice President and Director of AIR’s Health and Social Development.

Initial activities on which AIR and NCAP plan to collaborate, beginning immediately, include:

· Conducting, synthesizing and analyzing research to identify evidence-based and -supported interventions and strategies for promoting the well-being of children, youth and families.

· Providing consultation, training and technical assistance to federal, state, tribal and county social service agencies; international, national and local non-profit organizations; and parent/family/advocacy groups to increase knowledge and improve policy and practice.

· Offering consultation, training and technical assistance to build and expand an adoption-competent workforce, utilizing practices that are trauma-informed and culturally responsive.

· Employing diverse communications strategies to provide tools, accelerate knowledge and facilitate progress toward lifelong connections for children, youth and families.

The mission of the National Center on Adoption and Permanency is to transform adoption – and other forms of permanency – from a model that primarily focuses on child placement to one that enables children and their families to succeed. To achieve its goals, NCAP provides a unique “one-stop” destination for a broad range of information, resources and multidisciplinary services relating to adoption, foster care and child welfare.

The American Institutes for Research is a national nonprofit behavioral and social science research and evaluation organization; its mission is to conduct and apply the best research and evaluation in order to improve people’s lives, with a special emphasis on the disadvantaged. To achieve its goals, AIR uses the best science available to bring the most effective ideas and approaches to enhancing everyday life.

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact Adam Pertman (NCAP) at 617-903-0554 or apertman@myriadsp.com or Kim Helfgott (AIR) at 202-403-5879 or khelfgott@air.org.