Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA)
Suggestions for Local Discussions

Suggestions for Discussion Groups:

• Attempt to include representatives from Protection and Safety workers, Early Development Network Services Coordinators and public school districts.
• Refer to the CAPTA Roles and Responsibility Chart and the Referral Flow Chart to clarify roles and responsibilities of the different groups in the CAPTA referral process.
• Planning Region Teams can provide leadership in facilitation of local discussions.
• Include families as presenters along with agency personnel.
• Utilize state video conferencing to link regional and/or state personnel and resources to local discussions.

Suggested Questions about Roles and Responsibilities  

• What is CAPTA and why are we doing it?
• When is a referral sent from the Protection and Safety worker?
• Is there any difference in the referral process for CAPTA and Early Intervention referrals? 
• What are the legal issues that regulate sharing of information between agencies?
• What sample cases illustrate issues of roles and responsibilities?
• How do we avoid role drift?
• How can we ensure communication among all groups involved?
• How do we strengthen communication between Protection and Safety and Early Development Network?

Issues of Parent Consent and the Role of the Foster Parent or Surrogate Parent
When a CAPTA referral is made for an infant or toddler who is in foster care, the school district must determine if a parent represents the child. After the school district has made reasonable efforts to obtain the informed consent from the parent per Rule 51 009.07A, the foster parent may act as the parent, or a surrogate parent may be appointed.

Suggested Questions about Surrogate Parents

• What circumstances determine when a surrogate parent should be appointed for a child?
• Who is eligible to serve as a surrogate parent for a child?
• How do you know if a surrogate parent has been appointed?
• When is the surrogate notification letter sent to a school district’s superintendent?
• When does the school notify the Early Development Network Services Coordinator that a foster parent will represent the child or that a surrogate parent has been appointed?

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