Thriving Families,
Safer Children

Overview

By bringing together state and local agencies, leaders and citizens, Bring Up Nebraska is helping to ensure that every community across Nebraska is working to increase the availability of critical supports and services, reduce unnecessary government system involvement, and improve the lives of Nebraska children and families. The United States Children’s Bureau recently selected Nebraska to participate in an opportunity called Thriving Families, Safer Children (“Thriving Families”) due to the progress that has been made by the community well-being collaboratives in the Bring Up Nebraska Initiative.

Bring Up Nebraska’s Community Well-Being (CWB) model is based on the belief that all individuals and families face challenges and that providing support early, before challenges turn to crises, improves outcomes for children, adults, and communities. Local communities are the foundation of our work because they are best situated to provide services and supports which build protective factors and resilience to future challenges, and because decision-making about what works to protect and promote well-being lies within communities and homes of our families, whose lived experiences are the true drivers of transformation.

Prior to the pandemic, Bring Up Nebraska partners had worked in partnership to establish 14 autonomous community collaboratives serving 62 of Nebraska’s counties. Now, we are working with 22 collaboratives. The First Round of Community Collaboratives involved in the Thriving Families opportunity include: Hall, Dakota, Douglas and Platte/Colfax counties.

Our Focus

Equality in opportunities and outcomes for every child in the State of Nebraska, regardless of race, ethnicity or economics, and elimination of disproportionality of children, youth, and families involved in the child welfare and justice systems.
Reshaping the current child welfare system to better support the CWB model by collaborating with other partners and providing aligned funding, supports, and services.
Ingraining of the CWB model within the state government and local communities so it continues as the operational norm regardless of political or administrative leadership changes over time.
Inclusion of families, youth, and other community members with lived experience in the leadership and decision-making process at both state-wide and community levels.

Bring Up Nebraska/Thriving Families Documents

Thriving Families One-Pager
Thriving Families Tribal Community One-Pager
Thriving Families Overview (Interactive PDF)

Must be opened in Adobe.
Thriving Families Overview (Document)

This version does not require Adobe Reader.

Thriving Families, Safer Children meetings are held the 4th Thursday of every month from 9-10 a.m. Contact rmiksch@columbusunitedway.com for the Zoom link.