CK Family Assessment Program

Family Assessment (also known as FAP) is a program of CK Family Services that performs Kinship Caregiver Home Assessment (KCHA), Foster/Adoptive Home Screening (FAD), and Health, Social, Educational and Genetic History Report (HSEGH) services through contract with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.  FAP began providing these services in 2009 in DFPS Regions 2, 3, and 4.  Over the years we have expanded our service area in response to DFPS needs; all the while ensuring development of sufficient capacity to deliver high quality services in a timely fashion.  Our service area currently includes DFPS Regions 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. (158 counties). The map below shows the size of our current service area by DFPS Region and with county names.

 

What We Do

Kinship Caregiver Home Assessments (KCHA)

Kinship Assessments are a study of a household (including caregiver and all household residents) that is completed to assist in making decisions relating to placing a specific child (and their siblings if applicable), who is in the conservatorship of of the Department of Family and Protective Services, in home that is the focus of the Kinship Assessment.  This type of placement is referred to as a “Kinship Placement”.  A unique characteristic of Kinship Placement is that the caregiver who is the focus of the Kinship Assessment is a relative or has a long-standing relationship with the child.  CK Family Assessment Program delivers a written report to the designated contact at DFPS at the conclusion of each Kinship Caregiver Home Assessment.

Foster/Adoptive Home Screening (FAD)

Foster/Adoptive Home Screenings, also known as “FADs”, are a study conducted of prospective foster and/or adoptive families to assess their past and present level of functioning and are used to assist in decision making relating to licensing the home for foster care or approval for adopting a child from foster care.  CK FAP produces four types of FADs: 1. Adoptive Home Study, 2. Foster Home Study, 3. Foster/Adoptive Home Study, and 4. Foster/Adoptive Home Study with Kinship.  FADs are performed to meet or exceed Residential Child-Care Licensing Minimum Standards for Child-Placing Agencies Sections 749.2447 and 749.3623.

Health, Social, Educational, and Genetic History Report (HSEGH)

Health, Social, Educational, and Genetic History Reports, also known as HSEGHs, are reports that summarize a thorough review of a child’s DFPS case record and any appropriate interviews with professional staff or family members.  HSEGH reports are written reports that meet or exceed Residential Child-Care Licensing Minimum Standards for Child Placing Agencies Section 749.3391 and Texas Family Code Sections 162.005 through 162.008.

FAP Service Area

We currently provide Family Assessment Program services in the following Texas Counties:

Anderson, Angelina, Archer, Baylor, Bowie, Brown, Callahan, Camp, Cass, Cherokee, Clay, Coleman, Collin, Comanche, Cooke, Cottle, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Eastland, Ellis, Erath, Fannin, Fisher, Foard, Franklin, Grayson, Gregg, Hardeman, Hardin, Harrison, Haskell, Henderson, Hood, Hopkins, Houston, Hunt, Jack, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Jones, Kaufman, Kent, Knox, Lamar, Marion, Mitchell, Montague, Morris, Nacogdoches, Navarro, Newton, Nolan, Orange, Palo Pinto, Panola, Parker, Polk, Rains, Red River, Rockwall, Runnels, Rusk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Scurry, Shackelford, Shelby, Smith, Somervell, Stephens, Stonewall, Tarrant, Taylor, Throckmorton, Titus, Trinity, Tyler, Upshur, Van Zandt, Wichita, Wilbarger, Wise, Wood, and Young Counties.

CK Family Assessment Program Service Area

How to Access FAP Services

At this time CK Family Assessment Program only accepts referrals to perform these services through our contracts with DFPS and/or SSCC entities like Our Community Our Kids and 2INgage.  If you are an employee of DFPS of an SSCC and would like to make a referral to CK FAP; we encourage you to speak with your supervisor for guidance on how to do so.

FAP Writer Frequently Asked Questions

How do I apply to be a Family Assessment Writer?

Please email a cover letter and a copy of your current resume to application@ckfamilyservices.org. It will be sent for approval. If approved, you will receive an email from us with the application paperwork.

I have questions about the application paperwork, who can help me?

You can email Kandace Martin at application@ckfamilyservices.org and ask your questions, or you can call Kandace Martin at 817-516-9100 ext. 112.

What area would the assessments be in?

We never know where the assessments are going to be. When we receive assessments, we assign them out per the location of the assessment. We try to assign them to a writer that either A) lives within 50 miles of the assessment home or B) has stated that they will work in that area. However, you may receive a call for an area outside of your specified range from time to time, it just depends on how busy we are. We do not reimburse mileage.

Do I have to take every referral that you call me for? What if I’m busy?

You may turn down an assessment if you know you will not have the time to do it when we call and give you the due date. However, if you start to turn down multiple in a row, we will talk to you about going on hold or terming your contract if you feel that you no longer have the time to complete assessments.

How do I get paid? Do you have direct deposit?

Please see your subcontractor agreement for information regarding payment. Writers will be paid the 20th of the month following the submission of a completed/approved assessment. For example, if you turn in a draft to your supervisor on the 15th of September and the final draft is submitted to CPS on the 17th of September, a check will be mailed to you the 20th of October. If you turn in a draft to your supervisor on the 30th of September and the final draft is submitted to CPS on the 2nd of October, then a check will be mailed to you on the 20th of November. At this time, direct deposit is not available for our subcontractors.

How many referrals can I have?

After successfully completing your first assessment, you and your supervisor will work to develop a plan for the appropriate number of assessments that may be assigned to you at one time. The most skilled and experienced writers usually max at 2-3 assessments to be submitted within one week. To request more work, contact your assigned supervisor.

How long does a typical Kinship Caregiver Assessment take to complete?

A Kinship assessment will take anywhere from two to five hours, depending on the size of the family, the interviews needed and the history involved. Please advise the family that the assessment will take several hours and plan accordingly.

Writing up the assessment will take several hours, depending on the amount of information attained, ease and/or difficulty in completing reference calls and your writing/typing skills.

How will this impact my full or part-time job? Can I meet with clients on evenings and weekends?

Many of our contract writers have full or part-time jobs and make appointments around their schedules. You can schedule in the evenings and on the weekends if it is convenient for the family, but make sure you start at an appropriate time so that you are able to conduct the full assessment (i.e. do not make plans to go to the home at 8:30 pm for a 2-5 hour interview). When you call the family to schedule, you will need to offer them a few times you are available. It is not possible to ONLY conduct assessments during the day or on the weekends.

Family Assessment Program Team Tools and Training

Family Assessment Program Tools

Current, active CK Family Assessment Program Employees and Subcontractors can access important tools to assist in completing assigned work by tapping the purple button below and logging in to our password protected tools page.  If you need assistance with this, please send an email to application@ckfamilyservices.org.

Family Assessment Program Training

Looking for Family Assessment Program training materials?  Tap the red button below and login to our password protected Training page.  If you need assistance with this, please send an email to application@ckfamilyservices.org.

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