CEBC Overview

The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) provides leadership in targeted efforts to improve the lives of children and families served within the child welfare system. As part of their improvement strategies, CDSS selected the Chadwick Center for Children and Families - Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego, in cooperation with the Child and Adolescent Services Research Center (CASRC), to create the California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare (CEBC).

The CEBC helps to identify and disseminate information regarding evidence-based practices relevant to child welfare. Evidence-based practices are those that have empirical research supporting their efficacy. The CEBC provides guidance on evidence-based practices to statewide agencies, counties, public and private organizations, and individuals. This guidance is provided in simple straightforward formats reducing the user's need to conduct literature searches, review extensive literature, or understand and critique research methodology.

The CEBC is being guided by two main entities:

A statewide Advisory Committee comprised of state and local child welfare leaders, supporting organizations, and nationally respected authorities on child welfare.
A national Scientific Panel comprised of five core members who are nationally recognized as leaders in child welfare research and practice.

The CEBC is a critical tool for identifying, selecting, and implementing evidence-based child welfare practices that will improve child safety, increase permanency, increase family and community stability, and promote child and family well-being.

CEBC Review Process

A standardized process is used to identify and review child welfare programs and practices for inclusion on the CEBC. First, the statewide Advisory Committee selects an average of 10-12 topical areas per year. The CEBC staff then works closely with the Scientific Panel to identify the need for additional topical area expertise provided by leading child welfare authorities. Working with the Scientific Panel and the Topical Experts, the CEBC staff selects programs for inclusion on the website. These generally involve 5 to 15 discreet programs selected within a topical area that fit one of the following criteria:

Programs that have strong empirical support for their efficacy.
Programs that are in common use in California.
Programs that are being marketed in California.

Next, the CEBC staff works with the Topical Expert and directly with the developer of the program to identify all relevant literature. The CEBC staff reviews the existing research available on the programs. The information from these research reviews and the developers are synthesized to create the topical outline contained on this website. The CASRC staff and Topical Experts review the research supporting the program. The programs are rated by the following criteria:

The strength of the evidence supporting it.
The targeted child welfare outcomes.
The relevance to child welfare populations.