Citizen Review Panels

Citizen Review Panels (CRPs) are federally mandated volunteer groups established under the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) to provide community-based oversight of state child protection agencies. CRPs are composed of volunteer community members with expertise (professional or lived) in the prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect.

CRPs evaluate the state’s effectiveness in fulfilling their child protection duties by examining policies and procedures. They can request data and information from local teams based on trends and concerns. CRPs provide recommendations for systemic improvements, which are made publicly available via quarterly and annual reports. The state agency provides a response to each annual report, which is also publicly available.

North Carolina previously utilized Community Child Protection Teams (CCPTs) as the state’s CRP panels. Legislation passed in 2023 shifted CCPTs into Local Teams under NCDHHS' new Office of Child Fatality Prevention (the “state agency”) and tasked the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Social Services (NC DSS) with the establishment of CRP panels, effective January 2025.  

Based on the new legislation, NC DSS solicited an independent contractor, Health Management Associates (HMA), to support the establishment of three CRPs across the state based on national best practices and stakeholder input.  

HMA will utilize the existing regional child welfare model to convene three geographic CRPs. Composition of the Panels will be shared after final approval of NC’s CRP model.

CRPs will meet no less than 12 times over three years (at least 36 total meetings across all three CRPs). The first orientation meeting of CRP members will be in-person and will meet no less than quarterly thereafter in-person or virtually. Locations will rotate to ease travel across the regions.

Online Application

Applications to serve on a Citizen Review Panel are open now and will remain open until October 25, 2025. Please go to the CRP Membership webpage for the membership selection process and expectations.

If you need an accommodation for completing the application, please email Jadie Baldwin-Hamm at jadie.baldwin@dhhs.nc.gov or Kathy Stone at kathy.stone@dhhs.nc.gov.

For general questions or inquiries, please email nccitizenreview@healthmanagement.com.    

Additional Resources

NC Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act State Plan 

Archived CCPT/CRP Annual Reports and Responses

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