Breakout Session

Supporting Families and Providers of Kansas through Kansas Family Support Center and Parent Empowerment Program

11-11:50 a.m. BEST 130

Presented by: Christopher Engler, MA, BCBA, University of Kansas Medical Center; Caity Hynson, Ed.D, University of Kansas Medical Center

Through generous grant funding, the Kansas Family Support Center (KFSC) was created to serve families with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and the providers who serve them. Based on our previous work within the Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training (KCART), KFSC was created to provide a tiered system of supports that includes broad education, behavior-analytic training, and individualized supports for system navigation, advocacy, and referral needs. 

In this presentation we will provide an in-depth breakdown of these supports and discuss their impact on families and their providers. Recently, we expanded upon our services to begin a Parent Empowerment Program (PEP) funded by Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF). The purpose of PEP is to develop an advocacy training program for Peer Support Specialists to support other caregivers during interactions with the child welfare system. 

We will discuss our efforts in developing and disseminating educational materials and resources for families with youth in foster care and the anticipated impact this will have on the primary goal of reunification.