Program Evaluation & Research:
Current Projects

The Butler Institute for Families is committed to contributing to the development of strong, evidence-based programs. Using rigorous, outcome-oriented approaches, the Butler Institute conducts research and program evaluation in a number of practice areas. The Butler Institute is committed to research that produces pragmatic, practice-based information that can be used to improve interventions.

Current research and program evaluation projects include the following federal, state, and local examples:

• Improving Child Welfare Outcomes Through Systems of Care:

  Funded through a grant from the federal DHHS-ACF Children’s Bureau, the Butler Institute for Families is the evaluator for the Jefferson County Colorado Initiative, including the successful Parent Partner program linking knowledgeable mentors with families involved in child welfare.

• Post-Adoption Demonstration Project - Improving Family and Marital Outcomes for Adoptive Families:

  The Butler Institute evaluates the Colorado Communities for Adoptive Families program, which is funded by DHHS-ACF Children's Bureau to implement innovative post-adoption services. This includes an assessment of a new innovative approach to use marriage strengthening to support adoptive parental relationship health and prevent adoption disruption.

• Promoting Effective Training Practices among Child Welfare Workers in Nevada:

  The Butler Institute evaluation team conducts comprehensive training assessment and evaluates the effectiveness of efforts to address training needs and promote professionalism among child welfare workers through this collaborative endeavor involving the Nevada Division of Child and Family Services; the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Child Welfare Improvement Initiative; the University of Nevada, Reno: Nevada Training Partnership; and the University of Denver, Butler Institute for Families (DU).

• Improving Organizational Strength in Wisconsin:

  The Butler Institute conducts a comprehensive strengths-focused evaluation of the Wisconsin Child Welfare Training System to examine and make recommendations for improving organizational structure and functioning, the training evaluation processes and the potential impact of training on case practice and outcomes for families.

• Healthy Marriage and Family Formation Training Project:

  The Butler Institute for Families evaluates the DHHS-ACF Children's Bureau child welfare training grant focusing on Healthy Marriage and Family Formation in a three-state area. Learn more about this project.

• Western Regional Recruitment and Retention Project:

  Research and evaluation in the area of staff recruitment and retention in child welfare is funded through a tri-state DHHS-ACF Children's Bureau child welfare training grant.Learn more about this project.

• Collaboration between TANF and Child Welfare to Improve Child Welfare Outcomes:

  The Butler Institute is the evaluator for Jefferson County Human Services' TANF - Child Welfare Collaboration Project funded through a grant from the federal DHHS, ACF. This project examines the efficacy of a collaboration model to improve outcomes for children and families involved, or at risk for involvement, in these two systems.