When we hear the word "think tank" we might picture a well-oiled machine whose analysts take in policy, churn it around, digest it, and spit out ideas and solutions that we, as members of the general public are to then process ourselves. However, think tanks can be as different as apples and oranges when it comes to what issues they focus on and how policy information is assessed and disseminated.
CPPP: Center for Public Policy Priorities
http://www.cppp.org/index.php
http://www.cppp.org/index.php
CPPP is a "…is a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) policy institute committed to improving public policies to better the economic and social conditions of low- and moderate-income Texans."[i] The 17-member staff achieves its goals through "independent research, policy analysis and development, public education, advocacy, coalition-building and technical assistance," and has identified six major policy areas.[ii] "Enhancing child-well being and child protection" is one of them.[iii]
It is clear that researching, monitoring, and speaking out about the state of child welfare in Texas
Please see links to Jen's articles for recent child-welfare related CPPP publications.
· http://slippingthroughthecracksintexas.blogspot.com/2011/03/putting-families-on-chopping-block.html
TPPF is also a nonprofit 501(c)(3) policy research institute. The mission of the TPPF is "… to promote and defend liberty, personal responsibility, and free enterprise in Texas and the nation by educating and affecting policymakers and the Texas public policy debate with academically sound research and outreach."[iv] Unlike the CPPP, TPPF is a larger organization, whose 26 staff members complete their analyses through eight different policy centers.
"Child welfare" or "child protection" are not specifically listed topics housed within a policy center. Instead, potential child welfare related issues are interspersed throughout the various centers at TPPF. Examples include CHIP (Center for Health Care Policy), juvenile probation (Center for Effective Justice), and school funding (Center for Education Policy). Child welfare is not a policy priority for the TPPF.
Links to recent child welfare related TPPF publications:[v]
· TANF Policy Brief: http://www.texaspolicy.com/pdf/2011-TANF-CHC.pdf
· Early Childhood Education Policy Brief: http://www.texaspolicy.com/pdf/2011-EarlyChildhoodEducation-CEP.pdf
· "Using the Children: Grotesque health care politics in Texas
Bottom Line:
CPPP processes policy through the lens of what is important to low and moderate income Texans. Child welfare is a clearly identified legislative goal. TPPF focuses on the " the need for conservative, free-market-based solutions" and child welfare is not an explicitly stated part of the TPPF research agenda.
Rebecca Lengnick-Hall
MSSW & MPA Candidate
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