Dr. Joan Blakey, PhD, MSW, LMSW, and director of the School of Social Work at the University of Minnesota, recently posted her thoughts on the importance of the Minnesota African American Family Preservation and Child Welfare Disproportionality Act (MAAFPACWDA).

"At its core, the act strengthens expectations for family preservation and reunification," Dr. Blakey writes. "It requires active efforts—meaning meaningful, culturally responsive actions—to keep children safely with their families whenever possible and to reunify families when removal does occur. The law shifts the focus from surveillance and punishment to prevention, partnership, and support."

Read Dr. Blakey's full message in the Burton Brief from the University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development.