Children and Families
Governors and state leaders play a critical role in the protection and support of vulnerable children, families, and individuals. The Children and Families (C&F) team provides timely and individualized state-focused technical assistance to Governors, their human services policy advisors, and state agency leadership so they can improve policies and systems that will allow children, families, and communities to reach their full potential. With an emphasis on helping States develop opportunities and policies that support all communities, the C&F team aids Governors to advance and fulfill their vision for the children and families in their states.
Our Focus Areas
- Whole-family Approaches to Serving Children and Families
- Early Childhood Education and Care
- Juvenile Justice
- Human Services Data and Delivery Systems
- Housing and Homelessness
- Food Insecurity and Hunger
- Family Economic Security
- Anti-Poverty Solutions
- Foster Care, Kinship Care, and Adoption
- Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment
- Empowering Families and Communities
- Reducing Barriers to Opportunity and Equity
Meet The Team
- Jordan Hynes
Program Director - Jess Kirchner
Senior Policy Analyst - Eli McCabe
Policy Analyst - Ekaan Ahmad
Policy Coordinator
Children and Families Library
Governors Meet with Dolly Parton at the NGA Summer Meeting
Governors met with Dolly Parton for a discussion about early child literacy efforts, including Parton’s Imagination Library program that mails free books to children. Dolly Parton made a virtual appearance ...
Governor Murphy Introduces Chair’s Initiative: Strengthening Youth Mental Health Care
At the closing session of NGA’s Summer Meeting 2022, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy accepted the NGA Chair’s gavel from Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson and underlined the importance of Governors’ ...
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy Elected Chair of National Governors Association
Utah Governor Spencer Cox Elected Vice Chair Portland, Maine – New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy was elected chair of the National Governors Association (NGA) as the bipartisan association works alongside ...
NGA 2022 Summer Meeting
The National Governors Association's 2022 Annual Summer Meeting was held was July 13-15, 2022, in Portland, Maine. Governors met to collaborate on bipartisan solutions to leading policy issues including computer ...
Governors Urge Quick Action on the Bipartisan Keep Kids Fed Act
National Governors Association’s Community Renewal Task Force Co-Chairs Governors Mike Parson and Albert Bryan, Jr. released the following statement on the bipartisan Keep Kids Fed Act, introduced by Senate Agriculture ...
Briefing on Infant Formula Shortage
On Tuesday, May 17, 2022 NGA hosted a briefing for Governors’ offices with the White House, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ...
Human Services Policy Advisors Institute
The Human Services Policy Advisors Institute is a series of monthly calls that bring together governors’ policy advisors and state leaders from social services and children and family-serving agencies to ...
Help Wanted: Building a Pipeline to Address the Children’s Mental Health Provider Workforce Shortage
There is no silver bullet for the mental health crisis but reducing workforce shortages of these critical providers can go a long way to solving the problem. by Jessica Kirchner ...
Governors’ Top Priorities for Supporting Children and Families In 2022 State of the State Addresses
Across states, Governors’ cited their commitment to strengthening families and communities. By Isabella Cuneo In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Governors across the country are keenly focused on growth ...
National Governors Association Welcomes 10 States to Join Children and Families Core Advisory Board
The National Governors Association today announced its new Children and Families Core Advisory Board members for 2022. Each year, a small group of governors’ human services policy advisors and agency ...
Child and Family Well-Being Learning Cohort
The Child and Family Well-Being Learning Cohort was hosted by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and Casey Family Programs. The network joined governor’s office representatives, ...
2021 Child and Family Well-Being Governors’ Summit
The 2021 Child and Family Well-Being Governors’ Summit featured State presentations and a panel of Governors’ Policy Advisors on Governors’ plans and priorities to holistically improve the lives of children ...
