Community In-Site

Proximity Design Studio & 14th Street Studios

Community In-site is about the family well-being movement. Hosts Tecoria Jones and Elliott Hinkle bring their lived expertise with the child welfare system as well as their professional insights to each episode. We'll be talking to leaders, advocates, and community members who are working from the grassroots to the grasstops on strategies to invest in the well-being of families and communities in order to prevent child welfare involvement.  The show will feature stories and lessons from community sites (featuring Thriving Families, Safer Children sites) that make the family well-being movement real and personal. Each episode will unpack a specific topic (e.g. racial equity or community partnerships) and what can be learned from the challenges and successes. The hosts hope to leave listeners with something they can take into their own work to help grow the movement in their community. For more information about the family well-being movement and Thriving Families, Safer Children initiative you can visit, Thriving Families 

  1. 20h ago

    How Do We Build Public Assistance Programs So Families Grow Beyond Them with Commissioner Clarence Carter

    What happens when a public-systems leader with more than 30 years of experience is asked to move from a sweeping vision for reform to the realities families experience when they seek help? In this episode of Community In-Site, host Valerie Frost speaks with Tennessee Department of Human Services Commissioner Clarence Carter, author of Our Net Has Holes in It. Carter argues that America does not lack programs, funding, or the desire to help. It lacks a coherent design for helping people move from crisis toward lasting stability, dignity, and agency. Commissioner Carter offers a blueprint for redesigning public support around outcomes rather than transactions. But a blueprint is only as useful as our ability to translate it into daily practice, relationships, and decisions that families can actually experience. Together, Valerie and Commissioner Carter explore what it takes to move beyond what exists on paper, how leaders can connect policy intention to implementation, and whether systems can help families move from surviving to thriving and flourishing while preserving what matters most: their dignity, agency, and ability to define when support has truly worked. Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families Here is a link to Commissioner Carter's new book. Our Net Has Holes In It: Carter, Clarence H: 9798895761267: Amazon.com: BooksWe appreciate you spreading awareness by sharing this episode with your friends, family, and colleagues who care about family well-being. Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. comminsite@gmail.com

  2. Jul 23

    Is Our Definition of Prevention Right for What Families Need with Zach Laris

    Prevention is one of the most common words in child welfare and family well-being conversations. But what are we actually trying to prevent? Are we trying to prevent foster care entry, family crisis, poverty, surveillance, or are we trying to build the conditions families need to thrive? In this episode of Community In-Site, host Valerie Frost speaks with Zach Laris, founder of Bolder Horizons and author of Child Welfare Wonk, about the Family First Prevention Services Act, federal financing, evidence standards, implementation, and the limits of the current prevention frame. Family First was meant to help move child welfare upstream by allowing federal dollars to be used for prevention services. But early data raises bigger questions about what prevention is designed to do, what states are incentivized to build, and whether a child welfare financing policy can carry the weight of a much larger family well-being vision. Together, Valerie and Zach explore whether Family First has exposed an implementation problem, a policy design problem, or something deeper: a vision problem. This conversation sits in the tension between policy possibility and family reality. Policy can create flexibility on paper, but families experience systems through implementation, trust, culture, and whether help feels safe enough to use. So the question is not only whether Family First is working. It is whether prevention is big enough for the family well-being vision we keep placing on it. Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families Here are a few resources that Zach wanted to share with you. Weekly Wonk: Family First, Light on FamiliesBeing an Architect in a Firefighter Era - by Zach LarisWonkCast: People Power Policy | Zach Laris | SubstackChild Welfare Wonk | Zach Laris | SubstackWe appreciate you spreading awareness by sharing this episode with your friends, family, and colleagues who care about family well-being. Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. comminsite@gmail.com

  3. Jul 9

    How Hip Hop Culture Can Be a Cornerstone of Family Support with William Feggins and Camille Sledge

    Family well-being is often discussed in terms of concrete resources and services. But what happens when family support is built from the cornerstone of community, culture, creativity, healing, and relationships? What if reimagined what’s possible for a family resource center.  In this episode of Community In-Site, host Valerie Frost speaks with William and Camille, founders of School of Hip Hop in Phoenix, Arizona. They use hip hop culture to engage young people and families in ways they believe traditional systems often miss. Through music, dance, visual art, mentorship, and business education kids and their parents get the benefits of a typical family resource center plus so much.   Drawing from their own lived experience with child welfare involvement, they reflect on why culturally grounded spaces matter, what it means to create community-centered support, and how relationships can become a form of prevention and healing. Their work eventually became connected to Arizona’s broader Family Resource Center movement through partnerships focused on prevention and community support. And while School of Hip Hop is not a traditional Family Resource Center, this conversation raises a broader question many communities are working through right now: If family well-being is truly about helping families thrive, what kinds of spaces actually help families feel safe enough to ask for help before a crisis happens? Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families Here are a few resources that William and Camille wanted to share with you. School of HipHopFind Your Village WALKTHEPLANK.mp4 - Google DriveSchool of HipHop Radio #Shorts - YouTubePhoenix School of HipHop’s Afro Grooves fundraiser lights up ArizonaWe appreciate you spreading awareness by sharing this episode with your friends, family, and colleagues who care about family well-being. Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. comminsite@gmail.com

  4. Jun 18

    Centering Fathers to Advance Justice with Carol Mitchell

    Today’s episode is a re-release of the recording with Carol Mitchell from Season Two on June 19, 2025. This is a great episode for both Father’s Day and Juneteenth.  In this episode, Valerie sits down with Carol Mitchell, a seasoned attorney, social justice advocate, and founder of the Institute for Black Justice (IBJ). With over 20 years of public sector leadership experience, Carol is dedicated to transforming how systems recognize and support Black fathers as essential caregivers and partners in family well-being. Based in Washington State, IBJ is committed to uplifting Black families by addressing systemic bias and promoting policies that center Black fathers’ dignity and leadership within family and community life. For example, the BABAS Program empowers dads to successfully navigate systemic challenges, achieve reunification with their children, and build healthy, enduring parent-child relationships. This episode explores the often-overlooked role of fathers, especially Black fathers, in caregiving and systems change. Carol and Valerie discuss the historical and cultural pressures shaping fatherhood, and why naming and centering fathers in child welfare and family support systems is critical for true justice and healing.  Tune in to hear powerful stories from Carol’s advocacy work and discover practical ways child welfare leaders and others can shift their approach to engage fathers authentically and respectfully. Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families Here are a few resources that Carol wanted to share with you. Institute for Black Justice - Social Justice, Family AdvocacyCarol Mitchell, M.A., J.D. | LinkedInFacebookWe appreciate you spreading awareness by sharing this episode with your friends, family, and colleagues who care about family well-being. Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. comminsite@gmail.com

  5. Jun 4

    Who Is Shaping AI in Child Welfare, and Who Should Be with Derrick Stephens

    AI is here and how it impacts our work and lives is only going to speed up. As AI becomes ubiquitous in child welfare and family well-being systems, an important question emerges: who is shaping the use of these tools, and whose experiences are reflected in their design? In this episode of Community In-Site, host Valerie Frost speaks with Derrick Stephens, a lived-experience leader and technology builder working on AI-informed tools for human services, about the opportunities and risks AI presents for families and young people. Drawing from both his lived experience and his work developing technology solutions, Derrick discusses why community involvement and co-design are essential if AI is going to support families rather than reinforce existing problems. He also shares the story behind Pathway Navigator, a tool designed with and for young people to help them navigate resources, organize next steps, and build toward long-term stability. The conversation explores how technology can support immediate needs while also creating pathways to employment, financial security, and opportunity. This conversation invites listeners to think more critically about how AI is already shaping the future of child welfare and family well-being, and what it will take to ensure communities help design that future rather than simply experience its consequences. Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families Here are a few resources that Derrick wanted to share with you. AIEYU - Where Technology and Humanity ConvergeCardinality.ai | Cardinality.ai's Train & Hire Program: Empowering Veterans for Success in TechLeading with Intelligence: A CEO’s Roadmap to AI Readiness & Co-designWe appreciate you spreading awareness by sharing this episode with your friends, family, and colleagues who care about family well-being. Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. comminsite@gmail.com

  6. May 21

    Can a System Built on Separation Become a System Built on Well-being with Sixto Cancel

    The child welfare field is increasingly focused on shifting toward a broader vision of family well-being, one that emphasizes prevention, stability, and keeping families together whenever possible. But a fundamental question remains: can the system we have today actually become a family well-being system? In this episode of Community In-Site, host Valerie Frost speaks with Sixto Cancel, founder and CEO of Think of Us, about what it would take to transform the current child welfare system into something fundamentally different. Drawing from both his lived experience in foster care and his national policy work, Sixto reflects on why he believes change can happen from within rather than starting over entirely. He explores how the system developed over time, why safety remains a central concern, and what it might look like to build a family well-being framework using the infrastructure that already exists. The conversation also touches on the broader conditions required for transformation, including government investment, community-based support, economic stability, and preparing young people for long-term success. This conversation doesn’t offer a simple answer. Instead, it invites listeners to think more critically about what transformation would actually require, and whether families would feel the difference. Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families Here are a few resources that Sixto wanted to share with you. Think of UsLinkedInWe appreciate you spreading awareness by sharing this episode with your friends, family, and colleagues who care about family well-being. Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. comminsite@gmail.com

  7. May 7

    Community is the Infrastructure: A Practical Case for Family Well-Being with Angela Burton

    The child welfare field is increasingly asking what it would take to fundamentally change how we support families, and whether the systems we have today are capable of evolving into what communities and families have been asking for. One of the ideas at the center of that conversation is abolition. For many, it has existed as a critique from outside the system. But as that conversation moves closer to positions of leadership, new questions are emerging about what it would actually look like in practice. In this episode of Community In-Site, host Valerie Frost speaks with Angela Burton, an attorney and advocate who was recently one of the final candidates to lead New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services. Drawing from her perspective, Angela outlines a practical approach for how to build the infrastructure that would support the needs of communities and families while preventing investigations and removals. She also explores how abolitionist ideas translate into leadership, what changes might be possible within existing systems, and how strategy, accountability, and decision-making would need to shift. This conversation doesn’t offer a simple answer. Instead, it invites listeners to think more critically about what it would take to move from critique to implementation, and what meaningful change would actually require. Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families Here are a few resources that Angela wanted to share with you. Reinvesting Upstream - NYC Family Policy ProjectNarrowing the Front DoorProposal for the Office of Family Well-Being_12.19.25What is the Child and Family Wellbeing Fund?  | Schuyler CenterWe appreciate you spreading awareness by sharing this episode with your friends, family, and colleagues who care about family well-being. Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. comminsite@gmail.com

  8. Apr 23

    What if Termination of Parental Rights Didn’t Exist with Toia Potts

    Termination of parental rights is often described as a last resort, something that happens only after every other option has been exhausted. But many families and advocates question how those outcomes are shaped long before a case reaches that point. In this episode, host Valerie Frost speaks with Toia Potts, a family advocate and organizer with Emancipate NC, about the role legal representation plays once families enter the system. Drawing from her experience and her work with Carolina Parent Defenders, Toia walks through what meaningful legal advocacy should look like in practice. She also describes the common gaps and how they can influence the trajectory of a case. This conversation doesn’t offer a simple answer. Instead, it invites listeners to look more closely at how decisions are made, what shapes those decisions, and what it actually takes to prioritize keeping families together. Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families Here are a few resources that Toia wanted to share with you. CPS Stole My Children - Toia Potts - InquestMotherhood Cannot Be Erased By The State | Toia Potts | TEDxLake AlfredHome | Black Mothers MarchHome - Emancipate North CarolinaWe appreciate you spreading awareness by sharing this episode with your friends, family, and colleagues who care about family well-being. Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. comminsite@gmail.com

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Trailer

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About

Community In-site is about the family well-being movement. Hosts Tecoria Jones and Elliott Hinkle bring their lived expertise with the child welfare system as well as their professional insights to each episode. We'll be talking to leaders, advocates, and community members who are working from the grassroots to the grasstops on strategies to invest in the well-being of families and communities in order to prevent child welfare involvement.  The show will feature stories and lessons from community sites (featuring Thriving Families, Safer Children sites) that make the family well-being movement real and personal. Each episode will unpack a specific topic (e.g. racial equity or community partnerships) and what can be learned from the challenges and successes. The hosts hope to leave listeners with something they can take into their own work to help grow the movement in their community. For more information about the family well-being movement and Thriving Families, Safer Children initiative you can visit, Thriving Families 

Information

  • Creator
    Proximity Design Studio & 14th Street Studios
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    58
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Community In-Site
  • Show Website
    Community In-Site

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