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NORC at the University Chicago

Trauma-Informed Unaccompanied Children Workforce Initiative

Woman using laptop and making notes on notebook while sitting at table and working in an office
Evaluation of a trauma-informed training initiative for the Office of Refugee Resettlement Unaccompanied Children Bureau workforce
  • Client
    Administration for Children and Families, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
  • Dates
    November 2022 – March 2025

Problem

The Office of Refugee Resettlement’s (ORR) Unaccompanied Children (UC) Bureau is committed to training its staff to become more trauma-informed in their work. 

Traumatic experiences can have significant and longstanding effects for migrant children and adolescents. All UC Bureau staff play a critical role in helping youth recover and thrive. As part of this commitment, ORR has partnered with Duke University and experts from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) to develop a Trauma-Informed UC Workforce Initiative. The Trauma-Informed UC Workforce Initiative includes:

  • Virtual Trauma-Informed Training—A four-part virtual training in essential elements of trauma-informed care was administered to all UC Bureau staff and a more in-depth virtual training on advanced principles of trauma-informed care administered to clinicians and case managers.
  • Trauma-Informed Consultation—Clinical staff can participate in private trauma-informed consultation sessions with trauma experts to discuss trauma-related issues affecting UC, staff, and facilities.
  • Evidence-Based Treatment (EBT) for Child Trauma Training—A subset of ORR UC Bureau clinicians were trained in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), including online trainings and clinical consultations.
  • Additional Trauma Webinars and Resources

ORR and Duke needed a skilled partner to evaluate their efforts.

Solution

NORC is conducting a mixed-methods evaluation of the Trauma-Informed UC Workforce Initiative for Duke and ORR. 

NORC is carrying out a mixed-methods evaluation of the training initiative, including an assessment of the virtual trauma-informed trainings, trauma-informed consultation and EBT for Child Trauma training elements. 

Result

Data collection and analysis is currently underway. 

At the end of the project, NORC will provide the client with the following: 

  • An annual evaluation report outlining major activities, challenges, and accomplishments over the previous year, including cumulative evaluation findings
  • Analytic datasets for the trauma-informed trainings, including associated documentation for variables
  • A codebook for the qualitative analysis
  • Upon request by the client, NORC will prepare a slide deck and provide a final briefing highlighting the evaluation results

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