Participants in the 2026 NCSEA U at Policy Forum program will benefit directly from NCSEA’s vision to advocate for and enhance professionalism in the child support workforce. Some of the topics to be addressed will be advocacy with stakeholders including developing policy initiatives and how to advocate for the initiatives.
You are eligible to apply if:
- You are interested in participating in a series of unique learning opportunities which focus on current trends in Child Support leadership and best practices initiatives that make a transformative impact on the IV-D program;
- You are a current or emerging leader in the child support community and play or hope to play, a role in shaping policy in your organization;
- You have requested approval from their supervisors to participate in the program, as well to travel to NCSEA U and Policy Forum 2025 (*strongly recommended to begin as soon as possible).
APPLICATION NOW OPEN
Virtual Pre-Conference Session
1) Pre-Conference Get Acquainted Webinar – DATE TBA
Participants will be asked to provide information about their child support experience and to identify some goals, innovations and projects they are involved in within their offices today. In addition, to begin understanding differences and similarities among the participants’ agencies, participants will be asked to describe how their programs are operated (state, county, or tribal). Finally, participants will be given a pre-conference assignment to interview one of their supervisors or mentors and to ask a list of questions about that person’s experience advocating or pushing a past initiative, as well and an overview of NCSEA Hill Tips.
On-site at JW Marriott in Washington DC
Tuesday, January 28th, 2025 9:00a.m. – 5:00p.m. ET
2) NCSEA U Session 101 – Look who’s talking…
Advocacy has many faces: Whether we are the advocate or the recipient of advocacy efforts a different strategy is required. Key attributes for success are a clear understanding of the topic, the advocate role, the recipient role, effective listening and clear communication. There will be an opportunity to discuss advocacy experience as shared during the meet & greet.
3) NCSEA U Session 102 – Was there a memo on that?
Advocacy is always more effective with a plan. What is the message? Who is the audience? How will the message be relayed? Is the method different based upon the audience(s). How does our message fit in with a broader overall department agenda? All these questions and more will be discussed during this session.
4) NCSEA U Session 103 – Best in show…We’ll examine recent NCSEA PGR work and discuss message clarity, target audience, outreach channels, duration, measurement of effectiveness, and other factors that led to success. (Choose those that were successful).
5) NCSEA U Session 104 – Tips of the Trade
Working with the legislature is a key component to the success of the message of our program. Discussion of the legislative process and many effective delivery methods for the message. To the same end, working with media inquiries can also be stressful. Key strategies for creating media messages and responding to inquiries will be discussed.
*Other inclusions – Breakfast and lunch
*Additional Activities – optional Cohort Dinner
Wednesday, January 29th, 2025 8:00am – 12:00pm ET
6) NCSEA U Hill Visit – 10:00am ET
*Other inclusions – Breakfast
Post-Conference Virtual Session
7) NCSEA U Session 105 (Post-event, Online Session) – Can you hear me now?
How can we identify if our intended message was received in the way we hoped? What are some tools that we can utilize to measure? How can we avoid some pitfalls in our measurement efforts? Why do we even want to measure the effect of our intended message?
2026 Instructors
NCSEA is excited to welcome Jim Fleming and Tanguler Gray as the 2026 NCSEA U instructors.
James C. Fleming – Director, North Dakota DHS, Child Support Enforcement Division
James C. Fleming is the director of the Child Support Section of the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the interim director of the Vocational Rehabilitation Section of HHS. Jim is a past president of both the National Child Support Engagement Association (NCSEA) and the National Council of Child Support Directors (NCCSD) and is a member of the Board of Directors for the Western Intergovernmental Child Support Engagement Council (WICSEC). He is co-chair of NCSEA’s Policy and Government Relations Committee and NCCSD’s Employer Collaboration Committee. Jim also serves as a member of the NCCSD Executive Committee, NCCSD’s Policy and Practice Committee, the editorial committee for the NCSEA Child Support CommuniQue, and the Finance Committees for both NCSEA and WICSEC.
Jim was named an Honorary Life Member of NCSEA in 2024 and has received a Partnership Award for Professional Excellence from the National Tribal Child Support Association and a Government Partner Award from PayOrg (formerly the American Payroll Association). He has also received the 2009 Family Support Council Program Awareness Award and the 2004 Freedom Award from the North Dakota Newspaper Association.
Tanguler Gray – Executive Vice President of Operations, SMI
Tanguler Gray serves as Executive Vice President of Operations at SMI, where she oversees day-to-day operations across government contracts, working closely with the leadership team to advance the company’s mission and long-term goals. Before joining SMI, Tanguler served as Commissioner for the Office of Child Support Services (OCSS) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from 2021 to 2025. In this role, she led federal child support programs, impacting millions of families nationwide. Tanguler was pivotal in advancing whole family initiatives, improving operational efficiencies, and driving policy changes across state, tribal, and local child support programs. Her experience in federal systems and systemic change aligns with SMI’s commitment to excellence in technology and service for government agencies.
Earlier in her career, Tanguler was Deputy Commissioner at the Georgia Department of Human Services and Director of the Division of Child Support Services. She also served as president of the National Child Support Engagement Association (NCSEA) and board member for the Eastern Regional Interstate Child Support Association (ERICSA). With over three decades of leadership in the field, she is a respected figure in child support services. Tanguler holds a degree from Valdosta State University and is the proud mother of two children.
