A partnership between the University of Illinois Springfield and Illinois Department of Children and Family Services is the first of its kind in the country, a university official says.
The state agency and university announced last week the launch of its Child Protection Training Academy, held on the UIS campus.
Susan Evans, recently named director of the Child Protection Training Academy, said the academy will greatly improve training for child welfare investigators, which has been behind the curve.
“Historically, the training has been didactic,” Evans said. “There has been some job shadowing, online webinars and then three to four weeks in the classroom.”
Evans is a 24-year veteran of DCFS who spent 14 years in the field as a child protective investigator and 10 years in the Office of Professional Development.
The story was reported by The State Journal-Register on November 1, 2016.
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