The Family Research Unit (FRU) provides research, technical expertise and human capacity to Fairfax County’s Department of Family Services Child Protective Services (CPS), Foster Care and Adoptions (FC&A), and the Fairfax/Falls Church Children's Services Act (CSA) Programs. The FRU team, with a 23+ year history, is comprised of research faculty and staff, with vast expertise in revenue maximization for children and youth being served by the above-mentioned programs.

The Institute is working with the Roanoke City and Alleghany Health Districts (RCAHD) on a three-year process to improve the health department's community engagement strategies and data collection, and to make these strategies part of ongoing operations with the goal of continually assessing and refining service delivery.

The SAMHSA Evaluation Team has provided grant performance evaluation, needs and outcome assessments for several Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grants for two southwest Virginia community services boards: Mount Rogers Community Services and New River Valley Community Services. The purpose of these grants is to expand services to un- and under-insured adults and youth with serious mental illness, substance use disorders, or co-occurring disorders.

In collaboration with the Roanoke Valley Collective Response to the Opioid and Addiction Crisis (RVCR), the Virginia Tech Institute for Policy and Governance (VT IPG) has taken on the process of updating the asset mapping of the recovery ecosystem in the region’s served by these organizations.

The behavioral health interpreter training program aims to equip individuals with the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively interpret in mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) settings.

In order to better understand the Housing First model and to provide more information about Housing First to developers and operators of recovery housing, the C2C team developed a Housing First toolkit. The toolkit includes information from interviews with existing Housing First programs run by Virginia Supportive Housing, REAL LIFE, and DESC, in addition to budgets, program policies, and other resources.

VTIPG assessed Loudoun County’s foster care caseload and the efficacy of Loudoun County staff to maximize revenues, as well as identify funding alternatives for children in foster care.

VTIPG conducted an assessment to support and inform considerations for restructuring Loudoun County’s nonprofit grant program, overseen by the Loudoun County Department of Management and Budget and a steering committee representing county human services offices and the nonprofit community.

VTIPG conducted an assessment for Montgomery County, VA, child services leadership to better understand how the county’s CSA process and structure operated in comparison to peer localities.

VTIPG worked with five Local Departments of Social Services (LDSS) in the New River Valley, collectively known as the Partners for Self-Sufficiency (PSS), to provide tailored wrap around services to address employment barriers and service needs for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) clients.

This project will include a thorough review, expansion, and updating of the Blueprint for Action previously written in 2020, within the given timeframe in four phases: orientation, data gathering, analysis and planning, and reporting.

The C2C project is a novel multi-stakeholder intervention using referral, crisis response resources, case management capacities, and backpacks equipped with potentially life-saving tools to address goals of: 1) timely referral of persons experiencing or at-risk of overdose or other substance use health-related consequence; 2) reduction in overdose and relapse; and 3) connecting consumers to appropriate harm reduction, treatment and recovery programs.

VTIPG led the SSI Advocacy for Employment Options (SAFE) initiative to develop and deliver a training and technical assistance model for disability assessment and SSI advocacy for the TANF and VIEW programs.

TAP's Pathway Home program helps people in jails, prisons and Community Corrections Facilities (CCFs) return to their communities, find jobs, and avoid re-incarceration. Pathway Home supports participants every step of the way, from before release to a year of follow-up.

The Re-Employment, Support, and Training for the Opioid Related Epidemic (RESTORE) program provided by Total Action for Progress (TAP) has assisted women directly and indirectly impacted by the opioid epidemic by providing career services and job training. VTIPG conducted a program evaluation of RESTORE analyzing administrative data and findings from surveys and interviews with participants, RESTORE staff and training providers.

The Peer Empowered Addiction Recovery Living (PEARL) program of Piedmont Community Services (PCS) provides a 6-12 month residential stay in safe, supportive recovery housing, including access to counseling, case management, office-based opioid treatment (OBOT), and pregnancy and postpartum-specific care coordination. VTIPG provided technical assistance, photovoice program evaluation, and grant proposal support to assist Piedmont Community Services with the launch and maintenance of the PEARL program.

This research project aims to enhance language access within the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) and Community Services Boards (CSBs) for Limited English Proficient (LEP) individuals across Virginia.

VTIPG provided assessment and mapping of early child development risk and protective factors for United Way of Southwest Virginia through Smart Beginnings Southwest. The research informed strategic planning and programming for early child initiatives in the service region.

Mount Rogers Community Services (MRCS) received USDA Emergency Rural Health Care grant funding to expand and optimize their Smyth County mental health and recovery campus. A team of VT faculty and graduate students is evaluating health outcomes, the construction process, health economics, the partnership network, and the trauma-informed design components of the project.

VTIPG, StreamLines, LLC, and collaborative partners conducted research at the request of the Virginia Community College System - Workforce Development Services (VCCS-WDS) for the Virginia Veterans Demonstration Project funded by the U.S. Department of Labor. The Demonstration Project intended to improve educational and employment opportunities for Virginia’s Transitioning Service Members (TSMs) and veterans.

VTIPG assisted the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) in assessing the strengths, weaknesses and gaps in utilization of the Women, Infants and Children’s Special Supplemental Nutrition (WIC) program among foster care parents of eligible children and young women.

Informed by community roundtable discussions, VTIPG collaborated with the Virginia Rural Health Association (VRHA) to develop issue briefs on the status and health needs of veterans in rural areas.