Roundtable Overview and Materials
The Child Welfare Policy Roundtable highlights the major child welfare and foster care issues facing California, visions for systemic reform, and policy opportunities to improve the lives of our state’s most vulnerable children and youth. This monthly meeting features a panel of policymakers, practitioners, advocates and former foster youth and provides an informal opportunity to learn and ask questions about California’s child welfare system. Legislative staff, advocates, stakeholders, and the public are invited to join the conversation. For meeting information or if you are having problems accessing any of the below materials, please contact Susanna Kniffen at [email protected].
June 2026: The Impact of Federal Policies and Actions on California’s Child Welfare System
Policies Impacting LGBTQ+ Youth and Families
Rebecca Curtiss, Counsel, Youth in Out-of-Home Care Project, [email protected]
Lambda Legal, lambdalegal.org
Immigration Enforcement against Children and Families
Jennifer Nagda, Chief Program Officer, [email protected]
Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, theyoungcenter.org
HR 1 Implementation and Access to SNAP/CalFresh
Keely O’Brien, Policy Advocate, [email protected]
Western Center on Law and Poverty, wclp.org
Federal Policies Impacting Older Youth in and Leaving Foster Care
Jenny Pokempner, Policy Director, [email protected]
Youth Law Center, ylc.org
California Youth Connection
Mercedes Parker, Community Advocacy Coordinator (Northern), [email protected]
California Youth Connection, calyouthconn.org
Foster Youth Education Fund
Kendra Jackson, Analyst within Office of the California Foster Care Ombudsperson, [email protected]
Foster Youth Education Fund, fyef.org
Wonder Mentoring Program
Sydney Bice, Associate Director of Policy & Advocacy, [email protected]
Stanford Sierra Youth & Families, ssyaf.org
View a Recording of the Meeting
Overview and History of TRS
Angie Schwartz, Deputy Director, Children and Family Services, [email protected]
California Department of Social Services, cdss.ca.gov
Strength Building Program Overview and Impact
Kristina Tanner, Special Projects Coordinator, [email protected]
Youth Law Center, youthlaw.org
Wraparound Immediate Needs Program and Impact
Alex Briscoe, Principal, Strategy and Systems Change, [email protected]
Public Works Alliance, publicworksalliance.org
Care and Supervision and Creating Kin-First Culture
Jenn Rexroad, Executive Director, [email protected]
California Alliance of Caregivers, cacaregivers.org
Creating a Child Well-Being System and Intersection to Prevention and Reunification
Janay Eustace, President & CEO, [email protected]
The Child Abuse Prevention Center, thecapcenter.org
View a Recording of the Meeting
- Alliance for Children’s Rights, allianceforchildrensrights.org
Kristin Power, Vice President, Policy & Advocacy, [email protected] California Alliance of Child and Family Services, cacfs.org
Annie Thomas, Policy Advocate – Child Welfare, [email protected]Children’s Law Center of California, clccal.org
Julie McCormick, Senior Policy Attorney, [email protected]Children Now, childrennow.org
Susanna Kniffen, Senior Director, Child Welfare Policy, [email protected]County Welfare Directors Association of California, cwda.org
Amanda Kirchner, Director of Legislative Advocacy, [email protected]John Burton Advocates for Youth, jbay.org
Simone Tureck Lee, Senior Director of Programs and Policy, [email protected]National Center for Youth Law, youthlaw.org
Dafna Gozani, Legislative and Policy Strategies Director, [email protected]Youth Law Center, ylc.org
Jennifer Pokempner, Senior Policy Director, [email protected]
View a Recording of the Meeting
Understanding Child Welfare Data in California: Who is Served and How the System Works
Anthony Gómez, PhD
Research Specialist, [email protected]
Transition-Age Youth Research & Evaluation Hub (TAY-Hub), UC Berkeley, tayhub.berkeley.edu
Wendy Wiegmann, PhD
Project Director, [email protected]
California Child Welfare Indicators Project (CCWIP), UC Berkeley, cssr.berkeley.edu
Extended Foster Care and Outcomes for Adolescents and Young Adults
Andi Lane Eastman, PhD
Project Director, [email protected]
Transition-Age Youth Research & Evaluation Hub (TAY-Hub), UC Berkeley
Research Associate Professor, Children’s Data Network, USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, tayhub.berkeley.edu
Lived Experience Perspective: Why Research and Policy Matter
Christian Sotomayor
Graduate Student Worker, [email protected]
TAY-Hub, Master of Public Policy Candidate, Goldman School of Public Policy, UC Berkeley, tayhub.berkeley.edu
About Children Now
Children Now is a nonpartisan, multi-issue research, policy development and advocacy organization dedicated to promoting children’s health and education in California. The organization also leads The Children’s Movement of California, a network of more than 3,000 direct service, parent, civil rights, faith-based and community groups dedicated to improving children’s well-being. Learn more about us at www.childrennow.org.