The Institute for Family Development (IFD) provides a range of innovative and
cost-effective in-home services to children and families, including
HOMEBUILDERS® Intensive Family Preservation and
Intensive Family Reunification Services (IFPS),
Parent Child Interaction Training (PCIT), and
Functional Family Therapy (FFT). The Institute's
Intensive
Family Preservation Services and Intensive Family Reunification Services, Parent Child
Interaction Training, and Functional Family Therapy, are all demonstrated to
effectively address the growing problems of family dissolution, child abuse and
neglect, juvenile delinquency and family conflict.
Founded in 1982, the Institute's mission is to develop, deliver and disseminate
evidence based child welfare programs to keep children safe, strengthen families, and reduce
the need for placing children into state-funded care.
In 2006, the Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP) conducted a meta-analysis of the research
about family preservation programs across the country, and concluded that programs with high fidelity to the
HOMEBUILDERS
® model significantly reduced out of home placement and produced $2.54 of benefits
for each dollar spent. Programs with low fidelity to the model produced no significant effect on placement and
no cost benefit.
The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare includes the Institute's HOMEBUILDERS
®
model as one of only five programs identified as being effective in reunifying families. The U.S. Surgeon General
has recognized HOMEBUILDERS
® as a model family strengthening program, the Office of
Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) has
designated HOMEBUILDERS
® as a model program for preventing juvenile delinquency, and the
program has been accepted into the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration National Registry
of Evidenced Based Programs and Practices to prevent or treat mental health or substance abuse disorders.
Research consistently shows that 70% to 90% of referred families remain safely together six months to a
year following services .
For over 20 years the Institute has provided training and technical assistance
nationally and internationally to public and private human service agency
professionals. In addition to training and site development for those who
wish to implement programs like HOMEBUILDERS
®
Intensive
Family Preservation Services,
the Institute offers a wide variety of other training topics.