Pathways to Adulthood 2006 Conference
Don’t miss the opportunity to network with your colleagues and find out what is new in the field of Independent and Transitional Living. The Pathways to Adulthood conference, sponsored by the United States Department of Health and Human Services; Administration on Children, Youth and Families; Administration for Children and Families; Children’s Bureau; and Family and Youth Services Bureau, is scheduled for May 17-19, 2006, in Portland, OR. Transitional Living Program Grantee and Independent Living Coordinator meetings will occur prior to the conference.
Participants at the conference will hear stimulating keynote speakers, select from 55 workshops, hear the latest information from federal officials on IL/TL initiatives, and participate in local site visits of exemplary programs. This annual training conference is coordinated by The University of Oklahoma National Child Welfare Resource Center for Youth Development, a service of the USDHHS Children’s Bureau. The registration deadline for the Pathways conference is May 5, 2006. To register, or find out more about the conference, visit the Pathways website.
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Save the Date: Destination Future 2006: National Youth Leadership Conference
Taking place in Chevy Chase, Maryland on August 11-13, 2006, The Destination Future National Youth Leadership Conference brings together youth from across the country to learn what others are doing in the areas of independent living and transitional living programs. Youth will learn and practice leadership skills and become advocates for themselves and others. This conference provides participants the opportunity to discuss and address issues around national initiatives such as the Child and Family Services Reviews, the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program, Educational Training Vouchers, and Transitional Living Programs. Youth who participate in this conference not only make the system better for themselves, but they also pave the way for those to follow. To download the Destination Future 2006 National Leadership Conference Save the Date brochure click here. Registration information will be posted in early May.
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Youth Development Message Board
Come visit our message board to discuss issues regarding Educational Training Vouchers and Independent/Transitional Living Programs. Ask a question of your peers or find out about programs or promising practices from across the country. Everyone is invited to discuss.
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National Child and Youth Care Practitioner Certification Pilot Study to Begin
The movement in the development of a professional work force of child and youth care professionals across the country is preparing to take a major step. The Association for Child and Youth Care Practice (ACYCP) with the North American Certification Project (NACP), the Council of Canadian Child and Youth Care Associations (CCCYCA), and the International Leadership Coalition for Professional Child and Youth Care Work (ILCPCYCW) are preparing to initiate the pilot testing phase of a national professional level certification exam.
This system, for certifying that individual child and youth care practitioners meet defined standards for competence, is necessary to establish a positive, clear identity for our field. The project is guided by the current description of the field, (which can be found at www.acycp.org ) and is committed to the principles of inclusion of organizations and persons concerned with setting standards for child and youth care practitioners, credibility, generic standards applicable to the broad array of practice settings, reciprocity among governmental units and practice settings, and support for the ethical standards of the field.
The project is currently looking for agencies, from a variety of practice settings, interested in being part of this vital research in the field of child and youth care work. For additional information regarding the project and how to get your agency involved, contact Frank Eckles, Executive Director, Child & Youth Care Work Certification Institute of Texas at 979/764-7303 or passageh2h@aol.com or Jean Carpenter-Williams, Director of Training Development, The University of Oklahoma National Resource Center for Youth Services at 918/660-3700 or jcarpenter@ou.edu.
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Bush Hands Over Proposed Budget for FY2007
On February 6, 2006, President Bush handed over the Budget of the United States’ Government to Congress. For more information on Bush’s FY07 budget click here. To see how this budget impacts specific children’s programs click here.
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Program Spotlight: The V.O.I.C.E.S. Emancipation Center of Napa County
The V.O.I.C.E.S. (Voice Our Independent Choices for Emancipation Support) Emancipation Center of Napa County, California, opened it’s doors on Tuesday, November 22, 2005, and became the first-ever youth-led emancipation center in the United States. V.O.I.C.E.S. is a not-for-profit organization with the goal of creating comprehensive services and resources to support the successful transition of foster youth in Napa County to healthy, safe, productive, and independent adulthood. Ten dedicated emancipating/emancipated foster youth, and adult partners from On the Move and Progress Foundation, co-created V.O.I.C.E.S Emancipation Center to integrate systems and centralize resources and services in Napa County, build an intergenerational learning community, and develop holistic youth empowerment approaches to support emancipated foster youth to become independent and successful adults and community members.
On December 31, 2005, just over one month after V.O.I.C.E.S. opened its doors, the city of Napa was hit by a major thunderstorm. Despite the bravery of a few members, V.O.I.C.E.S. was left flooded with at least one foot of standing water. The next morning the youth showed up at 8:00 am to begin removing furniture and carpet, saving what they could, and taking items that could not be salvaged to the dump. The youth then began working to secure donations to replace the items that had been destroyed.
The services and programs at V.O.I.C.E.S. are continually growing and developing. In addition to supporting young people with housing, employment, transportation, education needs, and everything in between, they are currently launching three projects:
- Arts Project – Which is one way for youth to explore the community of Napa Valley by offering exposure to different forms of art.
- Community Service Project – A way for young people to identify a community need and design a meaningful service project to address this need.
- Youth Led Trainings – A way for youth members to train adults who interact with youth about different ways to work collaboratively with each other.
As well as everything mentioned above, V.O.I.C.E.S. is currently piloting an internal youth empowerment program to foster personal, interpersonal, and professional learning, skill building, and career development. Their goal is to create a sustainable employment model to address the need for youth participation in all levels of the operation and visioning of V.O.I.C.E.S.
To learn more about V.O.I.C.E.S., call (707) 251-9432 or send them an email.
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Charting a Course: Chapin Hall Web Conference Series
In the upcoming months Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago, in partnership with the National Conference of State Legislatures, will be holding a series of monthly web conferences to discuss child and family policy in the United States. The Charting the Course web conference series kicked off on March 1, 2006, with “Keeping Kids in the Child Welfare Systems after 18.” Items discussed included recent research identifying the advantages to keeping youth in care and what states are doing to allow youth to stay in care past the age of 18. This series, moderated by Martha Shirk, co-author of On Their Own: What Happens to Kids When They Age Out of the Foster Care System, will resume on April 5, 2006, with a web conference titled “Meeting the Special Education Needs of Foster Children.” This web seminar will examine the research on special education needs of children in out-of-home care and will discuss what this research suggests about the direction of state policy efforts to meet these needs more effectively. For registration information, subjects of upcoming web conferences, and archived recordings of the conferences in this series, visit http://www.about.chapinhall.org/conferences/conferences.html
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2006 Foster Care Month
The 2006 Foster Care Month will take place in May. For more information about state-by-state events and how to get involved, visit http://www.fostercaremonth.org/Home.
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EdRef.com
EdRef.com presents free detailed information on thousands of colleges, universities, and post-secondary trade schools in the United States. School information includes admission requirements, degrees and majors, contact information, test scores, student diversity, religious affiliations, athletics, tuition expenses, etc. You can browse schools by categories or use their very flexible EdRef Navigator College Search Tool where you can refine your search based on state, campus setting, number of full-time students, and affordability. EdRef.com provides a great starting point for any youth wanting to further their education.
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Scholarship Opportunity for Foster Youth
Casey Family Scholars (CFS) scholarships, administered by the Orphan Foundation of America (OFA), aim to help decrease the financial barriers to higher education and career training faced by foster youth in need, and to support their success through the provision of undergraduate and graduate scholarships. For more information, visit the OFA website.
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New Education Resource from Casey Family Programs
Recently, Casey Family Programs released another resource in their It’s My Life series. The new publication, titled It’s My Life: Postsecondary Education and Training, is a guide for professionals to help young people from foster care prepare academically, financially, and emotionally for postsecondary education and training success. This 172-page guide provides professionals with recommendations, strategies, and resources related to preparing and supporting youth for postsecondary success. Many resources pertaining to American Indian students are listed with active Web links. For more information on this FREE resource visit, Casey’s website.
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Program Spotlight: Educate Tomorrow, Miami, FL
Educate Tomorrow (Miami, FL) is a nonprofit organization whose primary mission is to provide one-on-one educational mentors to foster care children that are turning 18 and “aging out” of the system. Although the State provides these youth with financial aid for continuing education, many of them lack the necessary skills, guidance, and information needed to take advantage of these programs. Educate Tomorrow believes that education is the catalyst that will help these young adults reach their greatest potential, gain independence, and become a positive part of the community. For additional information, visit http://www.educatetomorrow.org.
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2005-2006 Student Guide to Higher Education
Created by former foster youth Anita Lacey at the Foster Education Resource Network in Michigan, the 2005-2006 Student Guide to Higher Education contains a great deal of helpful information for foster youth planning on continuing their education after high school graduation. It includes a college preparation checklist, a listing of higher education institutions, information on financial aid, and many other resources that are valuable for youth that are planning on going to college. The information in this guide is specific to the state of Michigan, but it could easily be adapted to fit for other states. To view a copy of the guide click here.
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