The Children’s Commission is offering reimbursement scholarships to judges and attorneys to attend the National Association of Counsel for Children (NACC) 46th National Child Welfare Law Conference on August 10-12, 2023 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Additionally, a second virtual conference will take place on September 20-22, 2023. Registration to the in-person conference includes access to the virtual event. Details and agendas for the conference are available on the NACC website.

Applications for the scholarship will be accepted until midnight on Friday, May 26, 2023.

Attorney applicants must currently represent the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) or currently receive appointments on a child welfare docket and be in good standing with the State Bar of Texas and with their primary or appointing judge. Judicial applicants must primarily handle child welfare cases and preference may be given to judicial applicants who have a greater percentage of child welfare cases on their docket. Preference may also be given to applicants who have not received a scholarship from the Children’s Commission within the past 2 years.

All scholarship recipients must commit to timely completion of a post-event survey from the Children’s Commission. Scholarships will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis to applicants who meet the scholarship criteria. Early applications are strongly encouraged due to the limited number of scholarships.

Judicial applicants may visit the Judicial Scholarships webpage for more information and a link to apply. Attorney applicants may visit the Attorney Scholarships webpage for more information and a link to apply. The scholarship application period for the NACC Conference will close at midnight on Friday, May 26, 2023.



The Children’s Commission will host “Overview of Treatment Foster Family Care,” a 90-minute webinar designed for judges and attorneys on Wednesday, May 17, 2023 from 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.

This webinar will provide an overview of the Treatment Foster Family Care (TFFC) model, goals and benefits, what makes a TFFC home different than a traditional foster home, the placement process, eligibility criteria, and how it all relates to judges, attorneys, and other child advocates.

Panelists include:

• Dr. Valerie Jackson, Monarch Family Services Owner and Administrator
• Lauren Morgan, Department of Family and Protective Services Program Lead
• Michael Scrivner, CK Family Services Senior Director of Family Services
• Caroline Sinha, Department of Family and Protective Services Systems Improvement Analyst

This presentation is approved for 1.5 hours of MCLE credit.