The Impact of COVID-19 and State Budget Cuts on Title IV-E Stipend Programs

Overview: COVID-19 has changed education on many levels (Ali, 2020); however, little is known about its impact of Title IV-E Stipend Programs. Results from a national survey administered in May 2021 regarding the impact of COVID-19 on the funding for Title IV-E Stipend Programs will be discussed.Proposal text:

Background:
Every child should have the basic human right for safety. Unfortunately, this is not always the case, which is why the field of child welfare exists. Research has found that child welfare programs like the Title IV-E Stipend Program employees stay longer on the job than employees who were not part of the Title IV-E Program (Leung et al., 2021; Leung et al., 2019). Title IV-E programs are the partnership between child welfare agencies and higher education have proven to be valuable to students, workers, agencies, children, and families (Bagdasaryan, 2012; Leung & Willis, 2012).

Purpose:
Title IV-E Programs provides comprehensive training for social work students about child welfare knowledge, values, and issues related to protecting children and families. Individuals who participate in Title IV-E Programs view their job not only as a means to protect children and families, but a contribution to child welfare as a whole (Leung et al., 2021). Thus, in an effort to support the well-being of children and families, we explored the nationwide impact of COVID-19 and budget cuts on Title IV-E Stipend Programs.

Method:
A survey was distributed to 219 programs within 89 schools in May 2021 to inquire about their stipend program funding. This survey included three sections: (1) Funding Changes, (2) Child Welfare Stipend Program Impact, and (3) Next Steps. Thirty schools responded; primarily schools with MSW programs, followed by BSW. The responses offered insight into how COVID-19 impacted the staff, students, and education of Title IV-E Education Stipend Programs.

Results:
Independent t-tests were used to examine if there were differences in funding changes, lower staff morale, lower student morale and self-esteem, decreased student graduates hired by the state, lower student enrollment, and significant decrease of external funding to the school between the following during COVID-19: (1) BSW and MSW programs; and (2) Programs participating in a consortium versus programs not in a consortium. The results of the independent t-tests show a statistical significant difference in lower student enrollment between Title IV-E programs participating in a consortium versus those who were not (t(df=10)= -2.53; p = 0.03). Title IV-E programs in a consortium reported lower student enrollment (mean=3.83) than those who were not in a consortium (mean=2.50); a mean difference of 1.33.

Implications:
Programs who were part of a consortium reported having significant decrease in student enrollment. This can impact the workforce and field of child welfare since workers from Title IV-E Stipend Programs tend to stay longer on the job than those who are not (Leung et al., 2021; Leung et al., 2019). Turnover in child welfare positions are correlated with children’s chances for positive outcomes in their well-being and safety (Falk, 2021).

Conclusion:
Results show that Title IV-E Stipend Programs were negatively impacted by COVID-19 and state budget cuts, which ultimately has an impact on the safety and well-being of children. Increased funding support for Title IV-E Stipend Programs to train social workers in child welfare is recommended to continue to promote the human rights of all children.