KVC is proud to work with a wide range of international, national and local partners. By collaborating, we can leverage the best ideas and maximize resources in order to enrich and enhance the lives of thousands more children and families.

Sesame Street in Communities 

Sesame Workshop, the non-profit educational organization behind Sesame Street, has announced that Kansas City, KS has been selected for Sesame Street in Communities (SSIC), a nationwide initiative to support parents, caregivers, and community providers in their efforts to give all children, especially the most vulnerable, a strong and healthy start. Sesame Street in Communities is partnering with the KVC Health Systems, Family Conservancy, and Project Eagle to support local families with young children under age 6, with a specific focus on resilience, health and wellness, traumatic experiences, and foster care.

Partner Agencies with Super Grover at the launch event

The expansion to Kansas City, Kansas builds on Sesame Street in Communities’ partnership with Kansas City, Missouri, which was selected as a pilot city in 2017 for the program. Over one-third (36.7%) of children in Wyandotte County live in poverty and nearly half experience one or more Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). Sesame Street in Communities, in close partnership with local providers, aims to give parents, caregivers, and community providers the tools they need to support young children.

KVC Health Systems will integrate Sesame Street in Communities into their programming, in-person events, and training. KVC Kansas, which is the lead agency for the Kansas Department for Children and Families, provides prevention, family reunification, foster care, and adoption services to children and families involved in the child welfare system. KVC Health Systems will embed Sesame Street in Communities resources into its programming around foster care, resilience, as well as the training that KVC provides to educators and administrators of the Kansas City, Kansas Public School system on trauma sensitivity.

Trauma Systems Therapy partnership with NYU

After significant and thorough research, KVC selected Trauma Systems Therapy (TST) as the treatment approach best suited to the populations and communities we serve. KVC’s adaptation of TST to child welfare, through a six-year partnership with its developer, Dr. Glenn Saxe, Chair of the NYU Department of Child Psychiatry and Director of the NYU Child Study Center, has been a ‘game changer’ for KVC. It has led to KVC’s expertise in adapting TST training, including the development of manuals to support training for therapists (inpatient and outpatient), direct care staff, case managers, foster families and community stakeholders. KVC’s expertise in addressing trauma experienced by children before they enter foster care is just one example of KVC providing leadership in its field.

Wayne Sims of KVC and Dr. Glenn Saxe of NYU at the NYU Child Study Center

TST is a key component of KVC’s model. KVC Health Systems’ leadership is routinely approached with requests for consultation from state agencies, private providers, and international child welfare representatives on how to improve their child welfare systems as well as for training in its proven practices, such as TST, to address long-term wellbeing. KVC’s CEO, Wayne Sims, is often asked to present in national forums, representing leadership from the field, to influence national policy.

In 2013, NYU Langone Medical Center and KVC Health Systems collaborated to create the NYU Langone Medical Center & KVC Midwest Trauma Training Center. The Center is designed to serve youth and families in the Midwest by training psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, early childhood program administrators, educators, counselors, therapists, law enforcement, juvenile justice staff, nurses and anyone serving individuals who have experienced traumatic events.

Partnership with Annie E. Casey Foundation

In 2008, the Annie E. Casey Foundation named KVC as a national “best practice” organization. The Annie E. Casey Foundation is one of the premier philanthropic organizations in the country whose mission is to help build better futures for disadvantaged children and families.

Wayne Sims of KVC and Dr. Patrick McCarthy of the Annie E. Casey Foundation

Currently, KVC is partnering with Dr. Saxe, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Child Trends to complete research on using Trauma Systems Therapy as a mechanism to reduce length of time in out-of-home care, increase placement stability and improve child and family wellbeing for children in the child welfare system.

There are dozens more organizations with which KVC partners to achieve its mission. Check back to see new partnership summaries as they are added.