2024 UNC Institute on Implementation Practice Virtual Series – Statewide Scale-Up Of High-Quality, Programming Using Implementation Best Practices And Cross-System Partnerships

***Due to unforeseen circumstances, this event has been postponed until the spring. A huge thanks to everyone who has already registered. We are holding onto those registration details and working closely with our incredible partners at the New Jersey Department of Children and Families to identify a new date!

Stay tuned for more information!***

While research points to the critical role of effective implementation and enabling contexts in ensuring services achieve their intended outcomes, many public systems have not integrated implementation best practices into their work.

In this virtual event, leaders from the New Jersey Department of Children and Families (DCF) will describe the systematic approach they took to scale up family and youth services through the building of implementation infrastructure and adoption of evidence-based strategies to improve service delivery and outcomes. They will spotlight investment in internal program development and research offices, implementation plans to improve services totaling over $300 million, and intentional partnership to facilitate evidence-based decision-making. Real-world examples of how these strategies were integrated into specific DCF programs will also be shared.

During this event, the speakers will specifically:

• Describe the benefits and challenges of internalizing implementation and research supports within a public system.
• Share breakthrough moments leading to individual and organizational uptake of implementation best practices in their work at the department.
• Describe the infrastructure, organizing framework, cross-system partnerships and evidence-based strategies adopted by DCF to enhance systems coordination and operations, resulting in programming that improves family and child wellbeing.
• Discuss lessons learned as funders and implementation support practitioners around increased trust-building among partners, shared values and vision for service delivery, capacity-building among staff and youth, and sustainability of high-quality programming.

Speakers

Katherine Stoehr, MPA, is the First Deputy Commissioner of the NJ Department of Children and Families. Her career spanning over two decades of work on child welfare reform across multiple U.S. jurisdictions has included diverse leadership roles in the nonprofit and public sector. Throughout her career, Katherine has held executive responsibility for management of direct services, strategic planning, policy development, performance monitoring, and implementation of revenue maximization strategies, and has served as a consultant for national and local philanthropies and consulting firms. Katherine earned a Master of Public Administration from the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, and a BA in Politics and Philosophy from the University of Pittsburgh. She is a proud Returned Peace Corps Volunteer. 

Nancy Gagliano, MSW, is the Director of the Office of Strategic Development at the NJ Department of Children and Families.  In this role, she oversees a team of implementation experts that focus on implementation best practices for program development, capacity building and strategic planning to enhance operations, improve service delivery, and increase the Department’s and providers’ performance. Prior to joining DCF, Nancy lived in Seattle and was the Director for the Washington State portfolio of early childhood, home visiting programs, and evidence-based prevention programs.  Nancy has presented at national, state, and local conferences on child abuse prevention, programming, and policy-practice alignment.  Nancy earned her undergraduate degree from Georgetown University and graduate degree from Hunter College, School of Social Work.

Pam Lilleston, PhD, MHS, is the Director of the Office of Applied Research & Evaluation, and Scientific Advisor at the NJ Department of Children and Families. In this role, she oversees a team of researchers that design, coordinate, and implement research and evaluation projects focused on the safety, health and wellbeing of children and families in New Jersey. Prior to this position, she served as a Social and Behavioral Scientist at the International Center for Research on Women, and an Evaluation Fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Lilleston earned her PhD and MHS from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and her BA from Georgetown University.

Michael Doyle is the Assistant Director of the Office of Strategic Development at the NJ Department of Children and Families.  In this role, he supports the office in carrying out its core functions of program development, capacity building, and strategic systems integration. He directly supervises a team of implementation specialists that focus on incorporating best practices to enhance Department operations and improve service quality. Throughout his 18 years with the Department, he has served in various direct service, supportive and supervisory roles.  He is currently an M.B.A. candidate at, and holds a B.S. from, West Chester University of Pennsylvania.