The National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (NCWWI), through a cooperative agreement with the Children’s Bureau, developed a series of programs that supports the development of child welfare leaders with the goal of building the capacity of the nation’s child welfare workforce to promote positive change and improve outcomes for children, youth, and families. The Leadership Academy for Middle Managers (LAMM) is one of those programs. Based on a model of leadership that is a match for this new world, the NCWWI developed LAMM as a national training program for middle managers who work in public and tribal child welfare systems and in private agencies under contract with a state or county child welfare agency. This competency-based training prepares leaders for the environment of constant change and equips them with new information, skills, and hands-on opportunities to apply practices and principles based on an empirically informed Leadership Model. The purpose of this curriculum is to prepare middle managers to lead meaningful change in our nation’s ability to serve our most vulnerable children, youth, and families. This introduction gives an overview of the LAMM curriculum content and describes components of the LAMM program, as well as recommended delivery methods.
