Wayfinder's Kinnections Program
Wayfinder’s Kinnections Program (Kinnections) is a kinship navigator program that supports kinship families caring for a child in their home. “Kin” includes relatives (e.g., grandparents, aunts, uncles, or siblings) and trusted adults with a close relationship to the child, such as family friends, foster parents, or community members. Kinnections serves families in both formal arrangements through the child welfare system and informal, voluntary caregiving arrangements. The program aims to support caregivers in meeting children’s safety, permanency, and well-being needs by connecting families to community resources, strengthening natural support networks, and providing advocacy when services are difficult to access.
Kinnections offers four core services: support services, support groups, trauma-informed parenting education, and case management and planning. Support services are based on family needs and may include information and referrals, advocacy, and connections to resources such as counseling, legal assistance, respite, guardianship or adoption support, family activities, childcare, and help with basic needs. Support groups aim to provide a safe and supportive environment for sharing experiences, developing kinship-specific parenting skills, and learning about local supports. Trauma-informed parenting education includes trainings and workshops to enhance family functioning. Families with greater needs may also receive time-limited, in-home case management. Trained kinship navigators provide services, with support from parent partners who have personal experience as kinship caregivers. All services are voluntary and available to eligible kinship caregivers who reside in the county where services are offered and who are the primary caregivers for a kinship child.
The Prevention Services Clearinghouse’s independent systematic review of Kinnections found that at least one study achieved a rating of moderate or high on study design and execution and demonstrated a favorable effect on a target outcome.
As of December 2025, the ACF Assistant Secretary has final approval authority over the determination of the program or service rating. For more information, please visit the FAQ on the rating determination policy.
Date Last Reviewed by the Prevention Services Clearinghouse (Handbook Version 2.0): Sep 2026
Date Program or Service Description Last Updated: Sep 2026
Sources
The following sources informed the program or service description, target population, and program or service delivery and implementation information: the program or service manual, the program or service developer’s website, and the studies reviewed.
This information does not necessarily represent the views of the program or service developers. For more information on how this program or service was reviewed, download the Handbook of Standards and Procedures, Version 2.0
Target Population
Kinnections serves kinship families in both formal arrangements through the child welfare system and informal, voluntary caregiving arrangements.
Dosage
The length and intensity of Kinnections services depends on each family’s needs and can range from 3 months to 3 years or more. Average caseloads for kinship navigators range from 8–15 families. Case management services include at least monthly visits with the family in their home or in a community location convenient for the caregiver and generally last 3–6 months. Support groups are offered at least monthly. The frequency of parenting training and workshops varies based on local office capacity and caregiver needs.
Location/Delivery Setting
Recommended Locations/Delivery Settings
Kinnections is delivered in the home or community settings.
Location/Delivery Settings Observed in the Research
- Home
- Community Center (e.g., religious or recreational facility)
- School
- Online
Education, Certifications and Training
Kinnections staff include kinship navigators (Levels I and II), peer kinship parent partners who serve as mentors, a program assistant, and supervisory staff. Level I navigator staff must have a bachelor’s degree in social work or a related field; Level II and supervisory staff must have a master’s degree. Parent partners must have experience as a kinship caregiver. All staff must complete an onboarding checklist, including mandatory trainings, within 90 days of hire.
Program or Service Documentation
Book/Manual/Available documentation used for review
Wayfinder Family Services. (2025). Kinnections: A kinship support & navigation program implementation manual.
Available languages
The Kinnections manual is available in English.
For More Information
Website: https://www.wayfinderfamily.org/program/kinship-support-services-program
Phone: (707) 387-8340
Email: BDerrick@wayfinderfamily.org
Note: The details on Dosage; Location; Education, Certifications, and Training; Other Supporting Materials; and For More Information sections above are provided to website users for informational purposes only. This information is not exhaustive and may be subject to change.
| Results of Search and Review | Number of Studies Identified and Reviewed for Wayfinder's Kinnections Program |
|---|---|
| Identified in Search | 2 |
| Eligible for Review | 2 |
| Rated High | 0 |
| Rated Moderate | 1 |
| Rated Low | 1 |
| Reviewed Only for Risk of Harm | 0 |
| Outcome | Effect Size
|
95% Confidence Interval
|
Implied Percentile Effect
|
N of Studies (Findings) | N of Participants | Summary of Findings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult well-being: Parent/caregiver mental or emotional health | 0.13 | [-0.14, 0.39] | 5 | 1 (2) | 216 |
Favorable:
1 No Effect: 1 Unfavorable: 0 |
| Adult well-being: Family functioning | -0.12 | [-0.39, 0.14] | -4 | 1 (1) | 216 |
Favorable:
0 No Effect: 1 Unfavorable: 0 |
| Access to services | 0.16 | [-0.16, 0.48] | 6 | 1 (2) | 216 |
Favorable:
0 No Effect: 2 Unfavorable: 0 |
| Satisfaction with services | 0.33 | [0.04, 0.62] | 12 | 1 (1) | 186 |
Favorable:
1 No Effect: 0 Unfavorable: 0 |
Note: For the effect sizes and implied percentile effects reported in the table, a positive number favors the intervention condition and a negative number favors the comparison condition. A range of comparison conditions, including no intervention, minimal intervention, placebo or attention, treatment as usual, and head-to-head comparison conditions are eligible for review (see Section 4.1.7 of the Handbook Version 2.0). Different types of comparison conditions may affect the magnitude of the effect sizes across studies. For example, an intervention compared to a no treatment comparison condition may produce a larger effect size than the same intervention compared to another intervention because the other intervention may itself be effective. The effect sizes shown may be derived from samples that overlap across studies.
See the Individual Study Findings table for information about the specific comparison conditions used in each study and the Studies Reviewed section for information about any overlapping samples. The effect sizes presented here are provided for informational purposes only and are not used in determining a program or service rating.
| Outcome | Effect Size
|
Implied Percentile Effect
|
Months after treatment when outcome measured
|
Number of Participants | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult well-being: Parent/caregiver mental or emotional health | |||||
| Study 15782 - Kinnections vs. Usual Services (Rushovich, 2025) | |||||
| Perceived Stress Scale – 10 | 0.02 | 0 | 2 | 216 | |
| Protective Factors Survey, 2nd Edition: Social Emotional Support | 0.23 * | 9 | 2 | 216 | |
| Adult well-being: Family functioning | |||||
| Study 15782 - Kinnections vs. Usual Services (Rushovich, 2025) | |||||
| Protective Factors Survey, 2nd Edition: Family Functioning/Resiliency | -0.12 | -4 | 2 | 216 | |
| Access to services | |||||
| Study 15782 - Kinnections vs. Usual Services (Rushovich, 2025) | |||||
| Protective Factors Survey, 2nd Edition: Concrete Supports | -0.01 | 0 | 2 | 214 | |
| Services Wanted | 0.33 | 13 | 2 | 216 | |
| Satisfaction with services | |||||
| Study 15782 - Kinnections vs. Usual Services (Rushovich, 2025) | |||||
| Client Satisfaction Survey: Satisfaction with Services | 0.33 * | 12 | 2 | 186 | |
*p <.05
Note: For the effect sizes and implied percentile effects reported in the table, a positive number favors the intervention condition and a negative number favors the comparison condition. Effect sizes and implied percentile effects were calculated by the Prevention Services Clearinghouse as described in the Handbook of Standards and Procedures, Version 2.0, Sections 6.4 and 6.5 and may not align with effect sizes reported in individual publications. The Prevention Services Clearinghouse uses information reported in study documents and, when necessary, information provided by study authors in response to author queries to assign study ratings and calculate effect sizes (see Section 8.4.2 in the Handbook of Standards and Procedures, Version 2.0). The Prevention Services Clearinghouse typically relies on study-reported p-values to form the basis of the assessment of statistical significance for a finding, but will perform its own statistical test of a finding using any available information in study documents or author queries, as needed (see Section 6.3 in the Handbook of Standards and Procedures, Version 2.0). As a result, the effect sizes and statistical significance reported in the table may not align with the estimates as they are reported in study documents.
Only publications with eligible contrasts that met design and execution standards are included in the individual study findings table.
Full citations for the studies shown in the table are available in the "Studies Reviewed" section.
The participant characteristics display is an initial version. We encourage those interested in providing feedback to send suggestions to preventionservices@abtglobal.com.
The table below displays locations, the year, and participant demographics for studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution and that reported the information. Participant characteristics for studies with more than one intervention versus comparison group pair that received moderate or high ratings are shown separately in the table. Please note, the information presented here uses terminology directly from the study documents, when available. Studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution that did not include relevant participant demographic information would not be represented in this table.
For more information on how Clearinghouse reviewers record the information in the table, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings.
| Characteristics of the Participants in the Studies with Moderate or High Ratings | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Study Location
|
Study Year
|
Demographic Characteristics
|
Populations of Interest*
|
Household Socioeconomic Status
|
||
| Study 15782 - Kinnections vs. Usual Services | ||||||
| Characteristics of the Children and Youth | ||||||
| California, USA | 2021 |
32% At least 1 kin child in household over 12 years old
25% At least 1 kin child in household under 3 years old |
100% Child welfare system involved | -- | ||
| Characteristics of the Adults, Parents, or Caregivers | ||||||
| California, USA | 2021 |
19% Under 40 years, 17% 40-49 years, 23% 50-59 years, 25% over 60 years, 16% prefer not to answer
51% White, non-Hispanic
25% Hispanic (any race) 14% Other/Prefer not to answer 9% Black/African American, non-Hispanic
91% Female
9% Male |
100% Kinship caregivers |
43% Household income under $40,000 22% Household income $40,001-$60,000 25% Household income over $60,000 11% Household income - Prefer not to answer |
||
“--” indicates information not reported in the study.
* The information about disabilities is based on initial coding. For more information on how the Clearinghouse recorded disability information for the initial release, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings.
Note: Citations for the documents associated with each 5-digit study number shown in the table can be found in the “Studies Reviewed” section below. Study settings and participant demographics are recorded for all studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution and that reported the information. Studies that did not report any information about setting or participant demographics are not displayed. For more information on how participant characteristics are recorded, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings.
Studies Rated Moderate
Study 15782Rushovich B., Sepulveda Muñoz, K., Wilkinson, A., & Martinez, V. (2025). Wayfinder Kinnections kinship navigator evaluation: Final report. Child Trends. https://doi.org/10.56417/344u1896b
This study was conducted in a usual care or practice setting (Handbook Version 2.0, Section 7.2.2)In addition to full sample analyses, this study also reported analyses that included the following subgroups:
Dependency Status: Dependent Kin
Dependency Status: Non-dependent Kin
Studies Rated Low
Study 15783Alvord, K. E., Johnson, B. & Hancock, T. (2012a). Kinnections initiative family connection discretionary grant family‐finding/kinship navigator combination (October 1, 2009 - September 30, 2012). Lilliput Children's Services.
Alvord, K. E., Johnson, B. & Hancock, T. (2012b). Kinnections initiative family connection discretionary grant family‐finding/kinship navigator combination - appendices A thru I. Lilliput Children's Services.
This study received a low rating because it did not meet design confound standards.