Application for the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network Bridging Systems Workgroup for States

Overview

The Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network (Network), the nation’s only federally funded technical assistance center for those who serve kinship/grandfamilies, is thrilled to roll out a unique opportunity to replicate its evidence-informed model, Bridging Systems for Kinship Families (Bridging Systems).

This opportunity will help your state enhance services and supports for kinship families, both foster care involved and the many more who are not, by leveraging community resources, addressing service gaps, and creating a streamlined system of coordinated support for kinship families. Bridging Systems was evaluated by Child Trends and has been shown to be an effective model. Learn more about the Bridging Systems work in Idaho, San Diego County, and the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin.

We invite applications to participate in a peer workgroup of three to four states that will focus on learning and developing strategies from the Bridging Systems model to replicate and implement in their own state. Each state will be represented in the workgroup by a team of two individuals: one governmental agency staff, and a second person representing a government agency in a different system or a community-based organization. A similar opportunity will be available for Tribes starting in fall of 2027 and for counties beginning in fall of 2028.

The Commitments and Expectations:

LEARNING: Your team will participate in virtual workgroup sessions that will meet bi-weekly over a three-month period. These sessions will equip you with information, tools, and peer sharing to prepare you to initiate, develop, and implement this model in your own state.

COMMITMENT OF TIME:

Short term: An initial time commitment will be made to participate in the work group sessions:

7 sessions, 1 hour each, held bi-weekly March-May 2027
Up to an hour between each session to complete tasks, apply skills learned, and prepare for upcoming sessions
A scheduled 1:1 technical assistance meeting with the Network team (additional technical assistance available upon request)
A scheduled meeting with Network staff to discuss your progress toward implementing your statewide Bridging Systems project, 3-6 months after the conclusion of workgroup sessions

Required Session Dates in 2027 – All sessions take place from 1 to 2 pm ET (Attendance at all sessions is required)

March 3
March 17
March 31
April 14
April 28
May 12
May 26

Long term: A longer-term time commitment will be made to replicate the model. The length of time will depend on the plan established by your team.

IMPLEMENTATION: With the support of your leadership, and the resources and information you received during the workgroup sessions, you will work with other systems in your state to develop and implement a plan to replicate Bridging Systems.

RECEIVE SUPPORT: The Network will not fund or manage participants’ Bridging Systems projects but will provide on-going no-cost support by sharing information and tools to support your team as you conceptualize and implement your plan.

SHARE PROGRESS AND IMPACT: Share your progress and outcomes on implementation with the Network staff so other jurisdictions can learn from your work.

Application Process:

Network staff will review applications, virtually interview top applicants, and select which applicants will participate in this opportunity.

Application Timeline:

Applications due: January 15, 2027
Virtual interviews with top applicants: February 1-5, 2027
Selections announced: February 19, 2027

Apply here

If you have any questions, please contact Shalah Bottoms at sbottoms@gu.org.

The Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network is supported by the Administration for Community Living (ACL), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $4,000,000 with 75 percentage funded by ACL/HHS and $1,000,000 and 25 percentage funded by non-government source(s). The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by ACL/HHS, or the U.S. Government.