Rock Families First Movement

Did you know: Each year, 37.4% of all children will be investigated by Child Protective Services by their 18th birthday, resulting in hundreds of thousands of children being separated from their families - yet there is no evidence that they are safer in foster care. Along with the life long predictive intergenerational harm, it also leads to higher costs for the community and nation as a whole for years to come.

These significant harmful impacts, and the 2018 federally legislated Family First Prevention and Services Act (FFPSA), led to the creation of the Rock Families First Movement and it’s three primary goals:

In partnership with Rock County Human Services, parents in the Rock County community (the BeeHive), and Alia (national non-profit organization leading child welfare systems transformation), are co-designing a new way forward. Through several integrated efforts and the collaboration of parents and Rock County staff, an “IdeaBook” was created in 2022. The IdeaBook is being used to implement a new approach to CPS interventions to engage with parents and strengthen families. We are working together to uncover the natural supports within the Rock County community in an effort to reduce the government’s overinvolvement with families. We are educating mandated reporters to know how they can support first, and we are building increased partnerships to sustain this work in the community long-term.

View and download the Rock Families First material below to learn more about our "why" and share!

Rock Families First Full Brochure
Rock Families First General Overview

Connect with us! 

If you are a community member or partner wanting to learn more about how you can be involved in the movement, contact: 

Tracy Dumas, Alia Innovations
Director of Community Engagement
(608) 346-1296
Tracy@aliainnovations.org

For general questions:
RCHSD@co.rock.wi.us