We hosted an event on November 17th, 2021, that addressed the following theme: “Reproductive Justice Teach-in: The New Texas Law, National Implications and Actions to Take”. Our panelists Alise Powell, Ashley Navarro, Lynne Walter, and Maya Hart. The session was moderated by Kennedy Bridges and Sarah Verbiest. This event was co-sponsored by the School of […]

In collaboration with the UNC Office for Diversity and Inclusion and the School of Social Work Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, the Jordan Institute for Families is co-hosting the Race, Racism, and Racial Equity (R3) Symposium virtual series.  Our goals with this series are to 1) highlight the work of UNC scholars to confront […]

It has been over a year since the COVID-19 pandemic first began to infuse grief, uncertainty, and isolation into the lives of families across the nation. Our nation’s youth are no exception to this struggle. Adolescents, or tweens and teens, are the group of children most vulnerable to the ongoing challenges of COVID-19. Teens are […]

As refugees and immigrants join communities in the United States, those with limited English proficiency (LEP) rely on interpreters to bridge communication gaps. For individuals who have always spoken the dominant language of a given setting, the importance of language access might be overlooked. However, proper interpretation makes all the difference for LEP clients in […]

Our team had the opportunity to talk with North Carolina’s district court judges about race, ethnicity, and child development. In this post, we share our approach to this important conversation. We used Dr. Joia Crear-Perry’s* re-framing, “race isn‘t a risk factor, racism is” as the lens for our discussion. Our first step was to describe […]

Jordan Institute for Families Director, Sarah Verbiest, was a featured interviewee on Focus Carolina where she shared some insight into what ignites her passion for her work. You can read the full interview description and listen to the recording here!

As part of the Carolina Social Workers Action for Voting (C-SWAV) this fall, Averyl Edwards checked in with fellow student Jillian Riley to talk about voting, volunteering, and running for office. To watch highlights of the interview click the link at the end of the block. To learn more about her campaign and to volunteer […]

As schools and childcare centers re-open in North Carolina, what will be the same and what will be different? We know that young children, particularly those in communities with fewer resources, have been experiencing massive disruption in their usual routines. We also know that parents have been feeling significant stress related to health and financial […]

A team of faculty, staff and students have created an anti-racist resource document with the intention that these resources will be an accessible means for each of us to find ways to engage in anti-racist actions. Click here for the link. Of note, this is a list that will continue to grow and change. In […]

Research in Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) has increased in recent years with hundreds of studies finding a strong and consistent relationship between child adversity and numerous public health outcomes (see the ACE Pyramid in Figure 1). According to the CDC, ACEs are potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood as well as the conditions in […]

NOTE: We are happy to be able to cross post this blog by Dr. Allison Metz in partnership with the National Implementation Research Network. Are there lessons we can learn from the current response of service systems which have galvanized into action to meet the needs of children and families during the COVID-19 pandemic? How […]

Global “stay at home” orders to reduce the spread of COVID-19 have led to massive unemployment and economic challenges of major proportions. This has exacerbated problems for households that were already financially unstable while putting millions of other households at new risk. In an effort to provide relief to families and businesses, the US Congress […]

Supporting Public Systems and Communities in Crisis – Reposted in partnership with the National Implementation Research Network As we seek to support public agencies in implementing mission critical work during the pandemic, we are reminded of a fundamental approach to effective implementation practice – co-creation. Co-creation involves the authentic engagement of stakeholders, community partners, and […]

We’ve been hearing a lot about how “we are all in this together” in facing the global pandemic that is COVID-19.  We are all experiencing the need to physical distance, not being able to see and be with loved ones, working remotely for those of us who aren’t considered essential workers, making limited trips for groceries, the pharmacy, and to exercise, and for […]

Pregnant people in North Carolina are routinely held in jails and prisons when they are too poor to pay for their freedom when arrested. These individuals have NOT  been convicted of a crime, but are often incarcerated far away from their families and children because they do not have the financial resources to pay their […]

The Jordan Institute for Families team is growing. In the process, we wanted to explore ways to create roles and positions that model what we hope to create – mutual support, shared decision-making, collaboration, and respect. Interested in exploring new approaches to community engagement and leadership, we searched for alternative structures that would align with […]

Implementation Practice During a Time of Crisis How do we provide implementation support to public systems and communities during a pandemic? This guest post and resharing of a podcast provides some good ideas for managing during this time. Special thanks to our colleagues for sharing this helpful work! The National Implementation Research Institute promotes and […]