Destination Future 2006 National Youth Leadership Conference: Improving the System through Youth Involvement
Join us August 11-13, 2006, at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center, in Chevy Chase, MD, for Destination Future 2006. Destination Future is a youth leadership conference aimed at achieving two primary goals:
- to increase the civic engagement capacity of youth and develop their leadership skill and
- to provide a mechanism for youth in care or recently emancipated from care to inform service providers and policy makers on the issues that impact children and youth in out-of-home care.
By attending this conference, you join other youth and adults from the United States, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia to discuss and address issues. We will discuss involving youth in Child and Family Services Reviews, case planning, stakeholder meetings, workforce preparation, and collaboration with state agencies. Youth learn and practice leadership skills. Youth who attend this conference not only make the system better for themselves, but they also pave the way for those to follow.
For more information visit the conference website.
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National Pathways to Adulthood: Conference Review
Taking place in Portland, OR, on May 17-19, 2006, the 12th annual Pathways to Adulthood National Independent Living/Transitional Living Conference 2006 provided child welfare professionals, advocates, and youth the opportunity to network, share information, and learn about promising programs and ground-breaking research from throughout the country. Sponsored by The University of Oklahoma National Child Welfare Resource Center for Youth Development, this year’s conference was attended by 684 people from 49 states, the District of Columbia, British Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands.
This year’s participants were challenged by keynote addresses from Elizabeth Seale, Scott Phelps, and Harry Wilson and were offered an emotional, yet uplifting, presentation from the FosterClub All-Stars. During the networking reception, provided by Casey Family Programs conference attendees were entertained by Native American drumming and dancing performed by the Bow and Arrow Culture Club from the conference’s host city. During the conclusion of the performance, several NCWRCYD representatives could be seen participating in a large native dance. This event was not to be missed.
Conference participants were offered over 40 workshops and could take part in site visits to several programs in the Portland area. New to this year’s conference, participants took part in a regional networking session. During this session, child welfare professionals were able to meet and network with other professionals in their region. Participants enjoyed a fast-paced networking activity that pointed out the value of collaborating with not only other professionals, but other agencies and organizations as well.
Prior to, and in conjunction with, the 2006 Pathways to Adulthood Conference, meetings were held among state Independent Living (IL) Coordinators and Transitional Living Program (TLP) Grantees. These meetings provide each group with a smaller arena in which to network and share information around specific programs and policy.
At the 2006 State Independent Living Coordinator’s Forum IL Coordinators were able to share information and participate in discussions around transitional housing efforts, supporting youth pursuing post-secondary education, and involving youth in the next round of the Child and Family Service Reviews (CFSR). Attendees also participated in an informative discussion, facilitated by North Carolina’s IL Coordinator, Joan McAllister, on mentoring and permanent connections for youth in care. There were 73 participants, representing 33 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. Pamela Johnson, Program Officer for the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program, was also on hand to answer questions, and Casey Family Programs offered an overview on online resources available on their website.
The 2006 Transitional Living Grantee’s Meeting provided 219 participants with the opportunity to learn what other TLPs are doing around a specific area of practice. Participants were able to choose one, two-part session around the topics of serving youth with mental health needs, serving youth with substance abuse issues, creative programs, serving youth with disabilities, TLP “Nuts and Bolts,” and aftercare and safe exits. Each session discussion was led by representatives from three different TLPs who demonstrated how their program addressed the issues listed above. After enjoying lunch with the State IL Coordinators, which included a discussion of the Oregon Independent/Transitional Living Collaboration, attendees rejoined their group and were invited to participate in a facilitated discussion around the struggles and successes they have experienced within their own program.
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Iowa Extends Medicaid for Former Foster Youth
Providing a model for other states to follow, Iowa recently passed a law that will extend services and assistance to youth aging out of foster care until their 21st birthday. With the passing of this law, Iowa joins only a handful of other states by extending Medicare to foster youth until their 21st birthday. Approximately 550 Iowa youth annually reach the age of 18 without being adopted or reunited with their birth family. The old Iowa law permitted young people to stay in foster care voluntarily past their 18th birthdays only if they were working toward a high school diploma or GED and if they met one of the following conditions: risk of imminent homelessness, lived with a foster family through age 18, or lived in a supervised apartment through age 19. “This new law sets an example for policymakers in every state to better serve the needs of these young people,” says Gary Stangler, executive director of the Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative, a national foundation that helps communities assist older youth in foster care make successful transitions to adulthood.
For more information regarding which states extend Medicaid for former foster youth contact Bobby Peck at (918) 660-3786
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Program Spotlight: New Jersey Foster Care (NJFC) Scholars Program Partners with the Center for Children and Families at Rutgers University
The NJFC Scholarship Program, which is in its third year, currently provides 350 youth with full scholarships to the state’s public schools and an annual award of $5,000 to youth attending any of the state’s private schools. Although the program provides many youth with the monetary means to pursue a post-secondary education, once the school year is over many of the youth are left wondering where they are going to live during the summer. Knowing that a newly renovated dormitory at Rutgers University was going to be kept open for the summer months, the Center for Children and Families stepped up and offered assistance and internships to the youth with no place to go. Of the 350 youth in the NJFC Scholarship Program, 14 are currently participating in the internship provided by the Center for Children and Families. The Center pays for their housing and awards the youth a weekly living expense. In order to participate in this program, the students must not only work but also attend sessions on career development and life skills throughout the summer.
For more information on the NJFC Scholars Program click here
Click here to view the Center for Children and Families at Rutgers University website.
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New Adoption Advertising Campaign Launched
On June 13, 2006, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the launch of a new series of public service advertisements (PSAs) designed to encourage the adoption of older children and teens from foster care. The PSAs were developed in collaboration with the Advertising Council, the Adoption Exchange Association, and the Collaboration to AdoptUsKids.
According to HHS Assistant Secretary for Children and Families Wade F. Horn, Ph.D., “This is the first federally-funded adoption effort that focuses specifically on finding homes for teens in foster care.” Currently, there are approximately 518,000 children in foster care; of these, about 118,000 are available for adoption. Nearly half (49%) of waiting children are age nine or older. In general, older children and teens stay longer in foster care and are at higher risk for drug use, poor school performance, or incarceration. Each year, some 19,000 of these children “age out” of the system without ever being placed into permanent homes.
"This ad campaign represents a significant step in our efforts to promote adoption of older children in foster care,” said HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt. “I am confident, as a result of this campaign, more Americans will step forward to provide loving homes to these older children waiting for adoption.” This campaign is an extension of the previous award-winning PSA campaign, launched in 2004, which focused on the adoption of children eight and older. During the first 18 months after the launch, more than 6,000 children featured on www.adoptuskids.org were placed into adoptive homes.
For more information on the PSAs, and an introduction by Dr. Wade F. Horn, Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, click here.
To view one of the television ads click here.
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Support Available for Disabled Youth Seeking a Non-Degree Post-Secondary Education
Through Vocational Rehabilitation, and if the Individual Learning Plan for Employment specifies the school, assistance is available to youth pursuing a non-degree post-secondary education. There is no dollar limit on the amount of money a vocational rehabilitation agency can spend on any one individual, although, there may be a share of cost requirement for this type of training. To better understand the rules and regulations contact the Client Assistance Program in your state.
For more information regarding employment among disabled youth click here.
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Know your Rights: A Guide for Youth in Substitute Care
Prepared by the Juvenile Law Center and KidsVoice, Know your Rights: A Guide for Youth in Substitute Care provides youth with information regarding their legal rights while in state custody. This guide not only educates youth on their rights, it also provides them with tips on how to better advocate for themselves and offers suggestions on how to prepare for exiting care. Though this guide is specific to Pennsylvania’s youth, this resource can be used to guide similar work being done in other states.
Click here to view this guide.
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Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessment (ACLSA) Trainers Certification Course Goes International
On June 6-8, 2006, The University of Oklahoma National Resource Center for Youth Services provided it’s ACLSA Training Certification Course to a number of international child welfare professionals. Not only were four representatives from Batshaw Youth and Family Services, in Montreal, Quebec, in attendance, the Resource Center also certified its first two Asian participants. Sin Bing Chiu and Li Cheuk Yan, from Zion Social Services in Hong Kong, offered participants insight around social services and how they are administered in Hong Kong.
Visit the NRCYS website for more information on their ACLSA Trainers Certification Course.
To find out more about the assessment visit www.caseylifeskills.org
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National Resource Center for Youth Services Online Catalog is Up and Running
On April 15th the National Resource Center for Youth Services launched its new online catalog. Shop for books and curriculum or register online for one of our nationally recognized training events — Residential Child and Youth Care Professional, Ansell-Casey Life Skills Training, Behavior Crisis Management, or Managing Aggressive Behavior.
Visit our online catalog, at ../../catalog, for all your youth care professional resources.
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National Alliance to End Homelessness 2006 Conference, “Ending Homelessness: Plan, Act, Succeed”
Coordinated by the National Alliance to End Homelessness, this annual conference offers the opportunity to attend a series of homeless youth workshops that will inform and inspire. Workshops, such as “Fundamental Issues,” “Prevention: Research and Intervention,” and “Programs for Young Mothers” will highlight studies on addressing the needs of youth and the intersection of homelessness and foster care. There will be discussions about general and specific policy and program elements at “State Government Addressing Youth Homelessness” and “Funding Innovations for Housing Youth.” Workshops such as “A Clear Vision: Ending Youth Homelessness” and “Promising Outcomes from Transitional Living Programs” will allow you to explore youth housing models and interact with experts who have been in the field for over 20 years.
The conference will be held July 17-19, 2006 at the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. For registration information and to view the complete conference agenda visit the conference website.
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Save the Date: 16th National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect
The Children’s Bureau’s Office on Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth and Families is pleased to announce that the 16th National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect will be held April 16-21, 2007, in Portland, Oregon. The conference theme, Protecting Children, Promoting Healthy Families, and Preserving Communities, reflects our resolve to ensure that every child enjoys a healthy family life in a nurturing community. It emphasizes our need to create safe havens for our children, enabling them to thrive at home and in their neighborhood. Further, the theme promotes the idea of communities joining to establish collaborative relationships and strategies to prevent child maltreatment and provide responsive treatment and services.
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