In addition to APHSA’s longstanding affinity groups, there are many opportunities for members to engage in various communities of practice, work groups, and peer communities with special focuses that help to strengthen the human services sector and further our collective mission to advance well-being. A list of current groups is included below. Click on any that interest you to learn more about its purpose and how to get involved. 

Child Support and TANF Community of Practice

Who We Are 
The Child Support and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Community of Practice emerged as a collaboration among APHSA, the National Council of Child Support Directors (NCCSD), and the National Child Support Engagement Association. The community of practice fosters communication and collaboration across child support and TANF programs.  

Purpose 
The community of practice is a space for directors in TANF and child support to share innovative practices and policies that support their shared participant population. The bi-monthly meeting cultivates opportunities for peer engagement and information sharing. 

Target membership 
Participation is limited to directors and administrators of TANF and/or child support.  

Get Involved
Contact Khristian Monterroso 

Economic and Concrete Supports Community of Practice

Who We Are 
The Economic and Concrete Supports Community of Practice launched in 2023 in partnership with Chapin Hall to examine how child welfare, economic assistance, and other human services programs can work collaboratively to move upstream and break the link between poverty and child welfare involvement. 

Purpose 
The community of practice members convene on a bi-monthly cadence to share work in their state or county and operationalize a shared child welfare and economic assistance strategy. 

Target Membership 
Members include state and county staff from senior leadership to frontline staff working across child welfare, economic assistance, and other human services programs. 

Get Involved 
Contact Kapria Lee 

Economic Supports for Refugee and Immigrant Families Community of Practice

Who We Are 
The Economic Supports for Refugee and Immigrant Families Community of Practice is led by a refugee health researcher and practitioner to enhance awareness of rapidly changing policy and provide a platform for members to share community needs, uplift best practices, and mobilize resources.  

Purpose 
The community of practice provides a forum for human services personnel from a variety of agencies and programs to strategize on advancing equity for immigrants qualified for ORR-funded programs or other public supports. 

Target Membership 
Membership includes State Refugee Coordinators and their offices, TANF Administrators, SNAP Directors, and representatives from other supportive programs. 

Get Involved 
Contact Alexandra Ramos 

Emerging Leaders 

Who We Are 
The Emerging Leaders Program was started by APHSA, in partnership with the Human Services Information Technology Advisory Group (HSITAG), to provide professional development for individuals in the public and private sector that are seen by their organizations as being destined for executive leadership roles in the next 3-5 years of their career. 

Purpose 
The program cohorts attend a conference-within-a-conference at the ISM + PHSA Annual Education Conference and Expo with exclusive sessions focused on leadership, in addition to participating in the broader conference sessions. The program provides peer networking opportunities during the conference and planned engagements with alumni throughout the year. 

Target Membership 
Each year the cohort is comprised of approximately 30 nominated individuals from state and local government and private sector. 

Get Involved 
Contact Tina Wright-Ervin and Trinka Landry-Bourne

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Peer Community

Who We Are 
The Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (EDIB) peer community is comprised of EDIB experts committed to tackling racism and marginalization in human services systems. To fully inform EDIB culture nationally, the EDIB Peer Community has recruited strategic leaders from multiple states and communities with extensive experience in advancing equity and justice. 

Purpose 
This community of leaders is charged with advancing racial equity outcomes and collectively informing EDIB practices in human services systems across the country, with a focus on policy and practice related to advancing racial equity at the state, local, and community levels. In addition, this community provides opportunities for sharing ideas, offering peer support, and developing innovation that will help transform the human services sector. 

Target Membership 
EDIB practitioners from across the local and state human services sector programs. 

Get Involved
Contact Alex Figueroa and Adrian Saldana 

Local Council

Who We Are 
The APHSA Local Council brings together local (city and county) human services leaders from across the nation who are working in communities to advance sound policy and practice solutions. 

Purpose 
The Local Council provides opportunities for local leaders to come together and share ideas, offer support, and generate solutions to build and sustain thriving communities. 

Target Membership 
The Council welcomes and encourages any local human services leaders 

Get Involved 
Contact Christine Johnson and Kim James  

Process Innovation Community of Practice

Who We Are 
The Process Innovation Community of Practice aims to generate and disseminate promising practices for designing person-centered systems, modernizing services, and improving customer experiences across economic supports. 

Purpose 
The community of practice explores how strategies, tools, and technology are being deployed to improve program administration in areas including but not limited to:

  • Business process change 
  • Customer centricity 
  • Process alignment 
  • Cross-program coordination 
  • Design frameworks 
  • Service delivery 
  • Across these areas, members share initiatives, uplift best practices, troubleshoot challenges, and identify opportunities to streamline processes and leverage technology for improved outcomes. 

Target Membership 
The Process Innovation Community of Practice convenes staff who work across economic assistance programs and functions—across technology, operations, program, and policy—that implement process change in the agency and influence customer experience with economic support programs. This community is only open to public agency staff and will be a safe, collaborative space for peers. 

Get Involved 
Contact Morgan McKinney 

SNAP Education and Outreach Workgroup

Who We Are 
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Education and Outreach Workgroup brings together state SNAP nutrition education and state SNAP outreach coordinators to learn from their peers about best practices in administering the programs. The group regularly brings in experts from specific parts of the programs, including our national partners at USDA. 

Purpose 
The workgroup serves as the only national space to bring together state agency leaders in SNAP Education and Outreach. The workgroup also discusses implementation challenges including regulations and guidance from FNS and coalesce around opportunities to strengthen programs across the country. 

Target Membership 
State agency staff responsible for administering SNAP nutrition education and/or outreach. 

Get Invovled 
Contact Chloe Green and Raneem Karboji 

SNAP E&T Workgroup 

Who We Are
The SNAP Employment & Training (E&T) Workgroup meets on a bi-monthly cadence and creates space for informal peer-sharing between states about SNAP E&T program implementation and related policy solutions. 

Purpose
On calls and with the network via email, the workgroup shares SNAP E&T-related resources, create opportunities for states to exchange in cross-region dialogue, and foster peer-sharing with administrators of similarly structured programs (e.g., county-administered versus state-administered, mandatory versus voluntary). 

Target Membership
Two to three leaders of each state’s SNAP E&T programs are invited to join the SNAP E&T workgroup.  

Get Involved
Contact Rebekah Sides

TANF Modernization Workgroup 3.0

Who We Are
The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Modernization Workgroup maintains the values of equity, inclusion, and the limitless possibility of human potential as a clear North Star and center our conversations on APHSA’s TANF Modernization Core Principles (link to 2021-04_Core-Principles-of-TANF-Modernization.pdf), which previous iterations of this workgroup drafted in 2020. 

Purpose
The workgroup exists to design and implement a long-term strategy to advance TANF reforms that connect families with the tools they need to increase their overall stability and well-being. To do this, the workgroup is organized into two subcommittees; one which is focused on lifting up our TANF Modernization Core Principles to our federal partners and policymakers, and the other which is focused on documenting and elevating best practices in state program modernization techniques. 

Target Membership
The workgroup welcomes any state or county leaders in APHSA’s affinity group, the National Association of State TANF Administrators (NASTA), to join this workgroup. 

Get Involved
Contact Rebekah Sides