Utah's Court Improvement Program

About Utah's Court Improvement Program

The Court Improvement Program (CIP) was created as part of the Omnibus and Reconciliation Act of 1993, Public Law 103-55. CIP is administered by the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children, Youth and Families. CIP provides funding and guidance to state court systems to develop and implement plans for improvement in the management of child welfare cases.

The Administrative Office of the Utah State Courts administers the CIP grant in accordance with federal guidelines and requirements. Utah's CIP's mission is to provide timely, tangible, and measurable improved outcomes for children and families in the child-welfare system relating to safety, permenency and well-being.  Utah's CIP is governed by the Court Improvement Program Committee and its executive committee, the Statewide Table of Six (CIP Steering Committee). From its inception, CIP has made measurable improvements in Utah's child welfare system, including:

  • Implementing NCJFCJ's model child welfare court programs
  • Creating an interface between Juvenile Court and DCFS case management systems (CARE/SAFE)
  • Statewide and regional multi-disciplinary trainings
  • Expedited child welfare appeals
  • Working With Dually-Involved Youth Toolkit
  • Implementing Juvenile Court's Education Court Report
  • Efforts to improve children and youth attending court hearings
  • Assessing and improving compliance with the Indian Child Welfare Act

 

Utah's Core Principles and Guiding Practices for Fully Integrated Child-Welfare System

  • January 2025 Updated Document - PDF

 

Training Resources

  • Hearing Quality Benchcard Final Evaluation Webinar (12/16/24) - Video 
  • Chafee Grant Training (6/27/24) - Video
  • Hearing Quality Bench Card Initial Analysis (3/13/24)  - Video
  • Dual-Adjudication Youth - PDF
  • Hearing Quality Training: Day 1 & Day 2   

 

Webinars

  • Active Efforts (5/30/25) - Video 
    • PowerPoint                              
    • Active Efforts Info for Utah                                                                                      
  • Post-Adoption, Permanent Custody & Guardianship (4/16/25) - Video 
  • Judges Panel - Open Q & A (3/11/25) - Video 
  • Improving Outcomes for TAL Youth (2/27/25) -Video 
  • Collaboration: Coming to the Table for the Benefit of Children & Families (1/24/25)  - Video 
  • Supporting Kinship Placement: Family-Finding & Licensing Considerations for Non-Citizen Families - Video
  • Kinship Providers Panel Discussion (5/24/24) - Video
  • Kinship & Native Families Panel Discussion (4/26/24) - Video
  • Kinship Assessment: Questions to Consider & Practical Tips (3/29/24) - Video
  • Judicial and Probation Considerations & Questions to Better Support Immigrant Children (2/23/24) - Video
  • Expert Panel Discussion: Kinship (1/26/2024) - Video
  • Immigration Building Blocks & Issue Spotting Immigration Relief for Survivors of Domestic Violence (12/08/2023) - Video
  • Resources and Strategies to Support Kinship Placements (10/20/2023) - Video
  • Supporting Children with Immigration Needs: Basic Terms & Considerations (9/22/2023) - Video
  • Utah Core Principles & Guiding Practices: Kinship Culture (8/26/2023) - Video

 

Court Improvement Summits

 

Indian Child Welfare Resources

  • Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 - PDF
  • ICWA Regulations - Final Rule, effective 12/12/2016
  • Solicitor's Memorandum: Implementation of the Indian Child Welfare Act by Legislative Rule, dated 06/08/2016. "This Memorandum identifies the authority for the promulgation of the Department of the Interior's ("Department's") Indian Child Welfare Act ("ICWA" or "the Act") final rule." - PDF
  • Guidelines for State Courts and Agencies in Indian Child Custody Proceedings, effective December 2016 - PDF
  • BIA Designated Tribal Agents for Service of Notice, effective March 22, 2023 
  • CIP ICWA Guide - PDF
  • 2017 NCJFCJ ICWA Judicial Benchbook - PDF
  • Supreme Court of the United States Decision: Haaland vs. Brackeen - PDF
  • 2021 NCJFCJ ICWA Assessment Compliance Report for the State of Utah - PDF
  • 2023 NCJFCJ Preliminary Examination of COVID-19 Impacts on ICWA Matters in Utah - PDF

Utah Indian Child Welfare Conferences

 

Parent Videos

These videos tell the story of three brave parents and how they overcame many obstacles to get their kids back. The goal of the videos is to show parents what to expect during their child welfare case in court. We also hope to inspire parents to reunify with their children.

Navigating Your Child Welfare Case

  • A Guide for Parents Involved in the Utah Juvenile Court System (English) - YouTube
  • Cómo actuar cuando se tiene un caso de bienestar de menores (Spanish subtitles) - YouTube
  • A Collaborative Approach in Court - YouTube
  • Kinship Placement - YouTube
  • Mediation - YouTube
  • The Child and Family Plan - YouTube

The videos were produced by the Court Improvement Program in partnership with the Parental Defense Alliance of Utah.

Navigating the Juvenile Court - Delinquencies

  • Navigating the Juvenile Court - Delinquencies - YouTube
  • Navigating the Juvenile Court - Delinquencies (Español) - YouTube

 

Contact Information

Annie ValDez

CIP Program Director
450 South State Street
Salt Lake City, UT 84111
(801) 578-3939

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