Staff
Paul Vincent, MSW, LCSW, Director
Paul Vincent is the Director of The Child Welfare Policy and Practice Group, which he created in 1997; a private, nonprofit technical assistance organization serving states and organizations involved in system improvement.
Paul has spent twenty-seven years in providing, managing and administering services to children and their families. His work has ranged from direct child welfare practice to administering numerous major programs in a state human services agency. Most recently, his work has involved reform of Alabama's child welfare system. During his eight year tenure as Director of Family and Children's Services in Alabama, significant improvement occurred in outcomes for families and children, including: significant reductions in the need to place children in out of home care, elimination of the misuse of psychiatric hospitalization for emotionally disturbed children in foster care, reductions in the use of congregate care, reductions in the separation of siblings and reductions in placement disruptions. Alabama also was the recipient of Edna McConnell Clark Foundation funding for development of family preservation services and was selected as an implementation site of the Annie E. Casey Foundation's Family-to-Family foster care reform initiative. Paul is the recipient of the National Association of Public Child Welfare Administrators 1994 Award for Excellence in Child Welfare Administration and served as a NAPCWA Board member. While director of Alabama's child welfare system Paul was frequently involved in national forums on child welfare reform and class action litigation.
Since leaving Alabama's system, Paul and The Child Welfare Group have provided consultation to almost a third of the child welfare systems in the country and are now working in 10 states.
Paul received his BA in 1969 from Huntingdon College and his Masters Degree in Social Work in 1972 from the University of Alabama.
June Hirst, Program Director
June Hirst worked for Alabama's Department of Human Resources for 26 years at both the county and state level. Prior to joining the Child Welfare Policy and Practice Group in 1998, she supervised the Office of Child Welfare Policy and Services, which included adoption, child welfare eligibility, finance and administration, policy and training. Her most recent experience there included supervision of the Office of Conversion and Compliance which was responsible for implementation of various components of the R.C. vs. Petelos Consent Decree (System of Care field support, resource development, policy, training and contracting).
While employed with The Child Welfare Policy and Practice Group, June has contributed to the development of the following curricula: Facilitating The Family Team Process, Supervisors: Developing Organizations and Developing Skills; and in the delivery of the training to child welfare agencies in various states and locations including St. Louis, Oklahoma, Maine, Georgia, Utah, and Iowa. She has coached and mentored child welfare staff after their classroom training in locations including Tennessee, New Jersey, Iowa, Maine, Indiana and Wyoming.
June has participated in Qualitative Consultations/Reviews in Utah, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Washington D.C., Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky and Florida; she has trained caseworkers in Oklahoma, Georgia, Missouri, Kentucky, Florida, Iowa, Utah and has conducted case record reviews in Ohio, Missouri and Georgia and has facilitated family team conferences in Georgia, Wyoming, Missouri, Iowa, Washington D.C., New Jersey, Kentucky and Florida.
Consultants
Supporting the organization's work is a skilled group of consultants who possess hands-on practice, evaluation and training skills. These professionals have direct experience in public child welfare and share the organization's individualized, needs-based approach to practice.
Board of Directors
Mary Lynn Porter, President
Thelma Braswell, Treasurer
Andy Hornsby, Secretary
John Davis
Kay Tolbert
Ron Marks
