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KARA tracks current news about at risk children bringing transparency and attention to our youngest and most vulnerable citizens. Please note that what you see here is only a sampling of what should be reported – the great majority of child trauma & abuse never gets reported.
American states are struggling to find answers for saving at risk children and reversing the explosive growth of child abuse and neglect. Too many state ward children are the 4th and 5th generation of abused children raising their own families without parenting skills and with serious drug, alcohol and mental health issues.
37% of children overall and 57% of Black children are reported to child protection services in America by the time they turn 18. (American Journal of Public Health 1.17)
Sad Stories; 12 million children a year are reported to child protection services each year and in many states, 1/3 of foster children are required to take psychotropic medicines
ALL ADULTS ARE THE PROTECTORS OF ALL CHILDREN
Compilation of information and writing on this page is the hard work of David Vang, Mike Toronto, Jamar Weston, Adolf Nchanj and Blaz Zlate, Callie Benscoter, (student volunteers at Century College) Katie Frake, Boston College, Julie O, and KARA.
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CA: Event planned to celebrate children, ‘forever families’
Salina Journal – October 30, 2017
The celebration is in conjunction with National Adoption Day, which will be Nov. 18. Of the nearly 400,000 children in foster care nationwide, more than 110,000 are awaiting adoption. National Adoption Day, traditionally scheduled on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, helps raise awareness about the need for adoptive parents and honors those who welcome a child. Saint Francis serves about 215 children who have no identified adoptive family.
http://www.salina.com/news/20171030/event-planned-to-celebrate-children-forever-families
CA: State Tries – With Difficulty – to Implement 2 Major New Laws to Help Sex-Trafficked Kids
Youth Today – October 30, 2017
California is attempting to switch to a victim-centered approach for its sexually trafficked youngsters. But despite the passage of two important and well-intentioned new laws in the last two years, both of which affect youth who have been sexually exploited, change has not come easily or quickly.
Information Gateway resource: Preventing, Identifying, and Responding to Human Trafficking: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/trafficking/pir/
FL: Guest Column: Florida’s foster care system is working well
Florida Times-Union – October 31, 2017
In Florida, more than a decade ago, lawmakers set out to create a dynamic system of care. The goal was to have greater accountability, oversight and innovations in services and protections for children built around – community need, community input and providing safeguards through community and state oversight and accountability. It’s important to note, the Florida model is not a “privatized” model, rather a community-based approach to providing foster care services that allows local business and community leaders to view these vulnerable children as their own and develop more innovative responses to protect our children and youth.
MA: Wayne Children Services requests another $400k for residential treatment
Wooster Daily Record – October 30, 2017
Just as she predicted, the executive director of Wayne County Children Services requested additional funding to pay for more-than-anticipated residential treatment services for nearly 30 youth. This is the agency’s second request for $400,000 from its contingency funds, and Executive Director Deanna Nichols-Stika told the Wayne County commissioners there might be yet another request later this year.
MS: Second appeal asks high court to block Mississippi LGBT law (Includes video)
Hattiesburg American – October 30, 2017
The Monday appeal comes from the Campaign for Southern Equality, 20 days after Mississippi’s law took effect. Legal experts say it’s the broadest religious-objections law enacted by any state since the nation’s high court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide in 2015.
NH: Foster parents fight for rights in NH
Foster’s Daily Democrat – October 29, 2017
In the midst of a state Division of Children, Youth and Families overhaul, legislative efforts to establish a foster parent bill of rights have stirred conversations among agencies and the families they serve. In a final rewrite submitted to the state House of Representatives Friday, Rep. Sean Morrison, R-Epping, has penned a bill to delegate foster parents as a leading advocate for children in their care.
http://www.fosters.com/news/20171029/foster-parents-fight-for-rights-in-nh
NJ: Prosecutor creates safe place for child abuse victims
NJ.com – October 28, 2017
The Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office opened a Child Advocacy Center, where children believed to have been abused can be interviewed in a safe and child-friendly setting. The center, located on Cooper Street, is decorated throughout with art made by local school children, complete with brightly colored murals donning the hallway walls.
OH: Lorain County Children Services sued by former employee
Lorain Morning Journal – October 30, 2017
Lorain County Children Services is being sued by a former employee because of the circumstances that led to her firing, according to court filings. Tanas Wilcox filed the suit alleging she was fired for testifying in a lawsuit against Lorain County and reporting perceived wrongdoing in the agency.
OH: Summit County Children Services has full plate of events for National Adoption Awareness Month
Cleveland.com – October 30, 2017
Summit County Children Services is recognizing November as National Adoption Awareness Month as a means of drawing attention to the nearly 200 children in its permanent custody.
http://www.cleveland.com/akron/index.ssf/2017/10/summit_county_children_service_8.html
OH: The opioid crisis takes its toll on taxpayers
Tribune Chronicle – October 29, 2017
If you think the opioid crisis has nothing to do with you, consider this: You’re already paying for it. And that price is growing. Eleven counties across the state, including Mahoning County, have levies on the November ballot to support the social service agencies that have become overwhelmed by the epidemic.
Also: “Ohio is in crisis,” Ohio AG announces new plan to fight opioid epidemic: http://abc22now.com/news/local/ohio-ag-announces-new-initiatives-in-fight-against-opioids
Also: DeWine announces new 12-pronged plan to combat opioid epidemic: http://www.vindy.com/news/2017/oct/30/dewine-announces-new-12-pronged-plan-combat-opioid/
Also: DeWine: Drug manufacturers should pay for 12 point opioid solutions plan (Includes video): http://www.wfmj.com/story/36717746/dewine-drug-manufacturers-should-pay-for-12-point-opioid-solutions-plan
http://www.tribtoday.com/news/local-news/2017/10/the-opioid-crisis-takes-its-toll-on-taxpayers/
OK: What’s being done to lower Oklahoma’s high rate of female incarceration? (Includes video)
KOKH – October 30, 2017
For more than 25 years, Oklahoma has had the highest female incarceration rate in the nation. When mothers go to prison, their children often end up with relatives who don’t always want them or they go into foster care. Research also shows that children of incarcerated parents are actually five to seven times more likely than their peers to become incarcerated at some point in their lives.
http://okcfox.com/news/local/whats-being-done-to-lower-oklahomas-high-rate-of-female-incarceration
PA: Children’s Aid Society in celebrates National Adoption Month
Progress News – October 30, 2017
November was officially proclaimed National Adoption Month in 1990 to provide national awareness, to celebrate adoptive children and families, and to call the nation to action to ensure safety, permanency and well-being for every child. More specifically, it is meant to focus attention on the many children involved in the child welfare system who are waiting to be adopted.
PA: November is Adoption Awareness Month
Pocono Record – October 28, 2017
November is National Adoption Awareness Month, when adoptive families are honored and other families are invited to learn more about adoption. This is Monroe County’s fifth year observing Adoption Awareness Month.
http://www.poconorecord.com/news/20171028/november-is-adoption-awareness-month
WV: Youth Homelessness A Problem In Wheeling
Wheeling Intelligencer – October 31, 2017
“There are so many homeless children in our area that we don’t know about. Some of them get kicked out by their parents, while others don’t even have parents to go to,” Jackson said.
http://www.theintelligencer.net/news/top-headlines/2017/10/youth-homelessness-a-problem-in-wheeling/
US: Head Start Prevents Foster Care? To Be Decided
Chronicle of Social Change – October 30, 2017
The jury is decidedly out on the academic track record of Head Start, the education-oriented pre-school program for low-income families invented in the 1960s and federally proliferated in the early 1980s. Critics will point to large impact studies that show early academic gains fade by third grade. Proponents will say that those gains would stick if the students ended up in better public schools. But Youth Services Insider had never seen Head Start mentioned as a possible preventer of foster care, until a recent study authored by Sacha Klein, Lauren Fries and Mary Emmons.
https://chronicleofsocialchange.org/subscriber-content/head-start-foster-care-prevention-tbd/28557
US: Supreme Court won’t take up race-based challenge to Indian Child Welfare Act (Commentary)
Indianz – October 30, 2017
Another conservative attack on the Indian Child Welfare Act has been rebuffed by the nation’s highest court. Without comment, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a petition in S.S. v. Colorado River Indian Tribes. The action, which came in an order list on Monday morning, lets stand a decision from Arizona, where opponents of ICWA tried to undermine the landmark law by claiming it is based on “race.”
https://www.indianz.com/News/2017/10/30/supreme-court-wont-take-up-racebased-cha.asp
US: Trump’s opioid plan is not enough (Commentary)
Washington Post – October 28, 2017
Given the scale of the opioid epidemic, the nation should be mobilizing. More people are dying than at the peak of the HIV/AIDS scourge. In some places, overdose deaths are exceeding homicides, suicides and traffic deaths combined. President Trump offered useful actions and ideas at a White House ceremony Thursday, such as measures to prevent addiction with “really great advertising,” create nonaddictive painkillers and bolster law enforcement against illegal imports of the synthetic opioid fentanyl. But Mr. Trump’s announcements, including the designation of a public-health emergency, are not enough.
INTERNATIONAL
International: A Perilous Journey: The Plight of Unaccompanied Minors
Psychology Today – October 31, 2017
Far more often than we realize, children make the perilous journey of exile on their own, unaccompanied by any protective adult. In 2015, 90,000 unaccompanied children sought asylum in Europe, fleeing wars in Afghanistan, Syria and elsewhere for the imagined safety a continent deeply divided in its attitudes towards them. Across the Atlantic, more than 68,000 children arrived on their own in the United States, seeking safety from horrific gang-related violence in Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador.
Ireland: We must change system that makes abuse victims relive horrors – Zappone (Commentary)
Irish Independent – October 31, 2017
The way child abuse victims are treated by our legal system needs to be re-examined, Children’s Minister Katherine Zappone has said. In today’s Irish Independent the minister writes that young victims of sex crimes are being forced to retell and relive their trauma “over and over again” in a way that could cause further harm.
AK: Opinion: The drug crisis is drafting Alaska grandparents to raise children
Alaska Dispatch News – October 27, 2017
OCS, Alaska’s Office of Children’s Services, doesn’t keep records on how many grandparents, and other relatives, are caring for children. It doesn’t have reason to track kids who are safe and living with family, said Director Christy Lawton.
http://www.thebristolbaytimes.com/article/1743the_drug_crisis_is_drafting_alaska
CA: Legislative Update: New Immigration Laws Protect Undocumented Students
Lozano Smith – October 27, 2017
Assembly Bill (AB) 699 requires schools and school districts to provide an array of new supports for immigrant families and limits the assistance schools may provide with immigration enforcement activities. The bill’s major provisions are described below.
http://www.lozanosmith.com/news-clientnewsbriefdetail.php?news_id=2696
CO: Grant targets human trafficking
Pueblo Chieftain – October 30, 2017
The Colorado Department of Human Services announced this week that it has been awarded over $1.4 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs to combat human trafficking and to provide services to trafficking victims. CDHS said in a news release that the grant will help it and the Colorado Department of Public Safety develop a joint strategy to combat human trafficking in Colorado and provide services to work with the child victims and survivors in starting them on a path to recovery.
GU: Archdiocese adopts more stringent child protection policies
Catholic News Agency – October 29, 2017
The recently-installed Coadjutor Archbishop of Agaña, Michael Byrnes, adopted the children protection policy Oct. 18, along with a safe environment program and a policy for an independent review board. These policies “will help to instigate a change of culture in our Archdiocese,” Byrnes wrote. “We must now exercise the will, the effort, and the expense to implement completely the provisions set forth. Safe environments for our children must become a reality in our midst.”
IA: DHS child welfare workers by the numbers (Video)
Des Moines Register – October 27, 2017
With state resources unlikely to improve in the wake of continued budget shortfalls, questions are being raised about whether the agency tasked with attending to Iowa’s neediest children can keep pace with increased demands. Here’s a look at staff and caseloads over the last 15 years
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/videos/news/2017/10/26/dhs-child-welfare-workers-numbers/107034334/
IL: Child deaths spike after DCFS privatizes ‘intact family services’ (Includes video)
Chicago Tribune – October 23, 2017
And then 44-pound Verna became part of a growing pattern of similar fatalities: She was one of 15 Illinois children to die of abuse or neglect from 2012 through last year in homes receiving “intact family services” from organizations hired by DCFS, a Tribune investigation found.
IN: State in need of more foster parents, events planned for National Adoption Month (Includes video)
Fox 59 – October 27, 2017
Children around the state of Indiana are waiting for homes. Many of those kids face trauma after being removed from bad situations. But, there are not enough foster or adoptive parents to immediately fill the need. The Department of Child Services, along with other agencies it partners with, are preparing to put a spotlight on this issue during National Adoption Month starting November 1.
KS: State proposes work requirement in new version of Medicaid
Seymour Tribune – October 27, 2017
The KanCare 2.0 proposal also includes several pilot programs designed to improve care for individuals with disabilities, children in foster care and others.
http://www.tribtown.com/2017/10/27/us-kansas-medicaid-changes/
KS: Kinship Care backers plead for Kentucky to restore payments for relatives raising kids
Courier-Journal – October 26, 2017
Thursday, Williams and others in her situation watched as supporters made an impassioned plea to state lawmakers to restore a program known as Kinship Care that provides a monthly stipend to relatives who care for the growing number of children removed from parents because of abuse or neglect.
Also: State working out how to pay relatives who provide foster care under recent court decision: http://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/local/2017/10/17/state-pays-relatives-for-foster-care/769146001/
LA: To Stop The Cycle Of Poverty, We Need To Invest In Mothers (Commentary)
Huffington Post – October 29, 2017
The state of Louisiana and our nation must do more to provide economic security, not mere subsistence, to women often bearing the brunt of responsibility for keeping families afloat.
MD: New program aims to help men who age out of foster care, delinquency programs find success
Frederick News-Post – October 27, 2017
The interactions required for his new job as a sales representative with Complete Document Solutions in Frederick have forced him out of his comfort zone. But it was that discomfort that made the job so valuable – the best part of his experience with Manasseh House, he said.
MS: Judge allows new route to challenge Mississippi LGBT law
Associated Press – October 27, 2017
A gay rights group is getting another chance to challenge a Mississippi law that lets government workers and private business people cite their own religious beliefs to refuse services to LGBT people.
MT: Indian Caucus lawmakers warn budget cuts could hurt native communities
KTVQ – October 27, 2017
Lawmakers from the Montana Legislature’s Indian Caucus are raising concerns about the effects proposed state budget cuts could have on native communities. During a conference call Friday, Indian Caucus members said Montana’s native population would be particularly affected by the proposed cuts, especially those related to public schools or health and human services.
NY: Guest Essay: Child protective service workers are unsung heroes
Democrat & Chronicle – October 27, 2017
Child Protective Social Workers (CPS) are the unsung heroes in our community in the fight against child abuse and neglect. They are responsible for improving the life of a child who is in an unsafe environment. Every day CPS workers are asked to enter into the living situation of complete strangers because of concern for the safety of a child. They are rarely welcomed in. They risk their own safety for the sake of a child.
OH: Imagine leading with solutions to opioid epidemic (Commentary)
Cincinnati.com – October 29, 2017
As I talk with groups throughout Cincinnati, from neighborhood community councils to the Chamber of Commerce and the Fraternal Order of Police, I’m discussing the devastating impact the opioid epidemic is having on everything else. From public safety to child welfare, workforce development to poverty, crime and our justice system, as the Enquirer’s special report on heroin reveals.
OH: Lesser known Snow School in Berea provides services to children in crisis
Cleveland.com – October 29, 2017
OhioGuidestone, formerly known as the Berea Children’s Home, provides residential therapy and foster care to kids housed in its Berea facilities. Many people may not be aware, however, that the Berea City School District provides those children with academic services for the length of their stay.
http://www.cleveland.com/berea/index.ssf/2017/10/lesser_known_snow_school_in_be.html
OH: 19 children died after Ohio welfare agencies returned them to birth parents
WPXI – October 28, 2017
After a 2-year-old in Cincinnati was murdered just two months after being reunited with his parents in 2011, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine launched an exhaustive overhaul of Ohio’s child welfare system.
OH: Cuyahoga County Files Opioid Lawsuit Against Manufacturers and Distributors (Press release)
Cuyahoga County Department of Law – October 27, 2017
Cuyahoga County has been hit terribly hard by the opioid epidemic. In fact, we are on track to lose almost 800 people this year due to drug overdoses. This tragic epidemic is costing lives – our families are losing loved ones every day. In 2016, we lost more people to this epidemic than to deaths from homicides, suicides, and auto accidents combined. But it is also costing taxpayers. This year alone, we have had to bear the burden of increased costs to the Medical Examiner’s office, increased costs of supplying drugs like Narcan to save victims of overdose, and additional cost of children in the foster care system because of a parent’s death or drug addiction.
http://finance.minyanville.com/minyanville/news/read?GUID=35182406
OH: Targeting at-risk kids may be key to reducing child deaths
Springfield News-Sun – October 27, 2017
Reducing the number of deaths involving children is the main goal of a pilot program that is set to launch in two Ohio counties. The program, scheduled for an early 2018 launch in Hamilton and Franklin counties, could also spread to other counties in Ohio. It uses data and predictive analytics to identify cases where children are potentially most at risk.
OK: Outpatient services under threat in state legislature
Norman Transcript – October 29, 2017
Jane believes she and her husband might not be alive, working and paying taxes today if not for outpatient treatment and counseling. Before she found help through Norman Addiction Information and Counseling (NAIC), Jane was struggling emotionally and financially to deal with caring for a young child with special health needs while her husband was in prison on drug charges.
OR: Putting Oregon on the road to recovery (Guest opinion)
Oregonian – October 29, 2017
Oregon has long failed to adequately provide treatment and recovery support for its citizens who suffer from addiction. According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, Oregon ranks 4th in illicit drug use. This failure has broad societal consequences resulting in huge costs to the Oregon taxpayer. The annual cost of addiction in Oregon is $5.9 billion, according to a study cited by a 2014 Oregonian story. This is 3 times the size of the $1.8 billion budget gap that had lawmakers turning over couch cushions for loose change last session.
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2017/10/putting_oregon_on_the_road_to.html
OR: Let’s talk about sex, maybe: District ‘clarifies’ mandatory reporting guidelines
Keizertimes – October 27, 2017
Christy Perry, superintendent of Salem-Keizer Public Schools, told the Keizertimes that a state law requiring teachers to mandatory report if they have reasonable cause to believe that two students under the age of 18 are having sexual contact isn’t new.
SC: Pregnant at-risk teens turned away from S.C.’s only residential program after funding loss
Charleston Post and Courier – October 29, 2017
A DSS spokeswoman said the agency has been working with Florence Crittenton to mitigate the impact of the loss. DSS terminated the contract because the home was not specifically using the money to help young women in state custody, she said. “There’s only a set amount of money, of course, and we have lots of programs that have high needs. We try to be a good steward of all of our available funds,” DSS spokeswoman Chrysti Shain said. “Our first need is to serve our DSS clients.”
TX: Attorney general Ken Paxton sues feds, seeks to help family adopt Native American 2-year-old
Tyler Morning Telegraph – October 27, 2017
Paxton filed a lawsuit Wednesday in federal district court arguing that the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), which dates back to 1978, is unconstitutional and should be struck down. The lawsuit is on behalf of a non-Native American foster family from Texas that wants to adopt a Native American boy.
VA: Grandparents forced to raise grandkids as opioid crisis worsens (Includes video)
WDBJ7 – October 27, 2017
Some grandparents are taking on a bigger role than just spoiling their grandkids, they’re becoming primary caregivers. Family therapy professionals call them Grandfamilies, formed by circumstances where biological parents can’t take care of their kids.
WA: No place for the children: A therapeutic group home closes while foster children sleep in hotels and offices (Commentary)
Child Welfare Watch – October 30, 2017
Nevertheless, group homes have been shuttered around the country. In Washington state, according to Investigate West, “stagnant reimbursement rates have forced many facilities that contract with the state to reduce capacity or shutter altogether.” The CEO of Navos, the mental health nonprofit running the Dykeman home, told KUOW that ending the contract for foster care was a source of great anguish to the leadership. But it was not financially sustainable. The nonprofit had been paying more than half the cost of running the home for years.
WA: Foster kids sleep in hotels and offices as 15 more beds disappear (Includes audio)
KUOW – October 27, 2017
Mental health care provider, Navos, was providing Behavior Rehabilitation Services (BRS), or round-the-clock care for foster kids with severe behavior problems and emotional needs, at the Ruth Dykeman Children’s Center in Burien. Navos ended its contract with the state to provide the services at the end of September and extended it to the end of October.
http://kuow.org/post/foster-kids-sleep-hotels-and-offices-15-more-beds-disappear
WI: Social worker shortage nothing new, but growing worse
Racine Journal Times – October 30, 2017
It’s all part of a common theme: a shortage of social workers in the public sector. It’s not a new problem, but it’s one that appears to be getting worse. “Particularly in Child Protective Services, the work is difficult. It’s emotionally draining. It requires one to take good care of oneself,” said Youth and Family Division manager, Kerry Milkie. “So when you’re ending up short-staffed in those areas, it adds more pressure to staff, which can result in additional turnover if you’re not watchful of that process.”
WV: Grandfamilies & The Opioid Crisis (Commentary)
Clarksburg Exponent Telegram – October 30, 2017
Many times, young children of the victims are left to be cared for by family members, who more often than not, are their grandparents, who not only are forced to deal with the death of their own children, but inherit the responsibility of raising their children’s children – their grandchildren – as well.
US: Buy-in From Child Welfare Agencies Needed to Combat Human Trafficking (Commentary)
Chronicle of Social Change – October 27, 2017
Due to their emotional vulnerability and lack of general stability, children involved with the child welfare system are more likely to be targeted by human traffickers, according to a recent report from the Children’s Bureau. This past July, the Children’s Bureau released a new guide for relevant agencies to improve responses to human trafficking.
Information Gateway resource: Children’s Bureau Anti-Trafficking Efforts: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/trafficking/acyf-strategy/cb-efforts/
US: Courts and child custody judgments from foreign countries that have sex-discriminatory custody rules (Commentary)
Washington Post – October 27, 2017
Coulibaly v. Stevance, decided Wednesday by the Indiana Court of Appeals, considers whether Indiana courts should honor a Malian child custody decree (involving Malian citizens). Indiana has adopted the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), under which state courts must enforce out-of-state and out-of-country custody decrees.
US: The Human Trafficking Battle Continues
Carmichael Times – October 27, 2017
Within the FBI Sacramento field office’s 34-county area of responsibility, the FBI and its law enforcement partners conducted operations in the four metropolitan areas: Chico, Fresno, Sacramento, and South Lake Tahoe.
Also: What you need to know about Operation Cross Country and child sex trafficking: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/what-you-need-to-know-about-operation-cross-country_us_59f3bd66e4b05f0ade1b5751
US: The Opioid Crisis Is the Life Issue Christians Must Address (Commentary)
Relevant – October 27, 2017
When public health officials tell you you’re living in the darkest drug era in American history, pay attention. Because opioid dependence in America doesn’t discriminate; it just infects. Transcending geography, class and religion, it’s ravaging a generation, claiming lives by way of both addiction and death.
https://relevantmagazine.com/article/the-opioid-crisis-is-the-life-issue-christians-must-address/
US: DC Circuit Ruling Fuels Class Action Against HHS Abortion Policy for Immigrant Minors
Law.com – October 26, 2017
The D.C. Circuit’s blockbuster ruling that allowed an undocumented immigrant to leave federal custody to have an abortion marked the court’s rare foray into hot-button social issues. It’s an open question just how far-reaching the ruling will be either to the underlying purported class of pregnant undocumented minors or to immigration litigation at large. Judge Brett Kavanaugh, writing in dissent, said any precedential value of the court’s decision will be debated.
Also: Undocumented Teenager Gets Abortion in Texas After Month-Long Court Battle: https://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/undocumented-teenager-abortion/
INTERNATIONAL
Canada: Canada seeks to compensate indigenous taken from families
Republic – October 30, 2017
Colleen Cardinal often wondered why her parents turned bright red in the sun but she grew dark along with her sisters. The puzzle was solved when she was a young teen, and the woman she had thought of as her mother disclosed that she had been picked out of a catalog of native children available for adoption.
http://www.therepublic.com/2017/10/30/cn-canada-stolen-indigenous-children/
Canada: Former rep for First Nations child welfare lashes back at MP’s criticism of $437K contract
CBC News – October 27, 2017
The former federal ministerial representative on First Nation child welfare reform is lashing out at an NDP MP for suggesting the nearly half-million dollar contract she received would have been better spent on the system she was appointed to study. Cynthia Wesley-Esquimaux, a former federal Liberal candidate in 2011, was appointed by the Trudeau government in August 2016 to conduct cross-country consultations on reforming on-reserve First Nation child welfare services.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/federal-rep-criticism-mp-1.4376048?cmp=rss
Canada: Media Advisory – Ontario College of Teachers Issues Advisory about Responding to the Bullying of Students
Ontario College of Teachers – October 27, 2017
The licensing body for Ontario teachers is issuing professional advice to its 238,000 members about responding to the bullying of students.
International: Why #Adoptee Activists Are Reclaiming National Adoption Awareness Month (NAAM 2017) #AdopteeRightsAwareness! (Commentary)
Huffington Post – October 29, 2017
It’s that time of year again, National Adoption Awareness Month, where you will hear emotive catch cries via glossy marketing campaigns in the mainstream media by lobbyists. You will see celebrities spruiking the word permanency which appears to be the new euphemism for adoption. You will hear dire accounts of children being shifted around foster care and how permanency (including adoption), will be the panacea. Further, and inexplicably, what you may not hear throughout this month is the voice of adult adoptee activists who speak about a range of issues.
United Kingdom: Child maintenance bank account loophole to be closed
BBC News – October 29, 2017
Earlier this year, figures from the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire programme showed a UK backlog of more than £3.8bn in uncollected child maintenance payments. About 1.2 million people were owed child maintenance, the figures showed.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-41792997
IA: At Iowa DHS, staffing has dropped while caseloads have risen (Includes video)
Des Moines Register – October 26, 2017
The number of front-line child abuse staffers at Iowa’s Department of Human Services has declined in the past 15 years, caseloads have risen and state funding has failed to keep pace with inflation, a Des Moines Register review of state data shows.
Also: DHS child welfare workers by the numbers (Video): http://www.desmoinesregister.com/videos/news/2017/10/26/dhs-child-welfare-workers-numbers/107034334/
KY: Conditions are dire within Kentucky’s child welfare system. It was re-accredited anyway (Includes video)
Louisville Courier-Journal – October 26, 2017
Conditions are dire within Kentucky’s child welfare agency, with caseloads soaring beyond acceptable national standards, according to a recent report by a legislative committee.
Information Gateway resource: Governance Boards: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/management/administration/governance/
KY: Kentucky judge who refused to hear same-sex adoption cases resigns (Includes video)
Louisville Courier-Journal – October 26, 2017
A Kentucky Family Court judge who refuses to hear adoption cases involving gays and lesbians will resign amid an ethics and misconduct inquiry.
KY: Kinship Care backers plead for Kentucky to restore payments for relatives raising kids
Louisville Courier-Journal – October 26, 2017
“Kinship Care is not about bailing out the grandparents,” said Norma Hatfield, an Elizabethtown grandmother who took in two young girls and has led a drive to restore the program the state suspended in 2013 because of a budget shortfall. “The bottom line is that we have to step up and provide for these children no matter where they live.”
NE: State Department of Health and Human Services seeks $38 million increase in child welfare funding
Omaha World-Herald – October 26, 2017
The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services is seeking $38 million more for child welfare services in the current fiscal year and $23 million more for the year following.
NH: Another View — Dylan Remenar: Why foster parents need a Bill of Rights (Commentary)
Union Leader – October 27, 2017
The members of the newly formed Fostering Change: Alliance for NH Foster Parents are committed to collaboration and stand behind the name of this organization to foster change. We anticipate that we will be able to work together with DCYF, its collateral agencies, and any other foster parent support groups around the state.
NH: Workshops to Aid in Preventing Teen Suicide (Includes audio)
Public News Service – October 27, 2017
Two workshops offering training in teen suicide prevention are coming up next month in the Portsmouth area. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among teens in New Hampshire, after accidental death. Exeter Hospital is funding the workshops as part of a four-year initiative to address the problem of teen suicide and its underlying causes. According to Meme Wheeler, director of the Chase Home for Children, it’s important to be aware of early warnings that young people are at risk.
OH: 2-year-old’s death led to overhaul of Ohio’s system to protect kids. Why didn’t it work? (Includes video)(Commentary)
Louisville Courier-Journal – October 26, 2017
After a Cincinnati two-year-old was murdered just two months after being reunified with his parents in 2011, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine launched an exhaustive overhaul of Ohio’s child welfare system.
Also: Who is protecting our children? Since 2009, adults with a history of abuse have killed hundreds of Ohio kids (Includes video): http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/crime–law/who-protecting-our-children-since-2009-adults-with-history-abuse-have-killed-hundreds-ohio-kids/Kzlzdb4bkDFyse9s7smjgM/
RI: Rhode Island Kids Count says state relies too heavily on group homes
Providence Journal – October 05, 2017
Rhode Island Kids Count, a policy group that tracks numerically how children in the child-welfare system are faring, released numbers Thursday showing what it said were grim ramifications of a state shortage of qualified foster families.
TX: Attorney general sues feds, seeks to help family adopt Native American 2-year-old
Texas Tribune – October 26, 2017
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the federal government over a law that seeks to keep Native American children from being separated from their families. Paxton filed a lawsuit Wednesday in federal district court arguing that the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), which dates back to 1978, is unconstitutional and should be struck down. The lawsuit is on behalf of a non-Native American foster family from Texas that wants to adopt a Native American boy.
TX: Governor Abbott Announces $4.6 Million Supplemental Grant For Texas Child Advocacy Centers (Press release)
U.S. Governor of Texas – October 26, 2017
Governor Greg Abbott announced today that his Criminal Justice Division has awarded a supplemental grant of $4.6 million to Child Advocacy Centers of Texas. This grant is in addition to a current grant of $56.3 million awarded to the organization in October 2016. This supplemental grant will allow for a more aggressive effort to address gaps in services to child abuse victims in Texas.
UT: Division of Child and Family Services names new director
Deseret News – October 26, 2017
Diane Moore, a 25-year veteran of the Utah Department of Human Services, has been tapped to lead the Division of Child and Family Services.
VA: Opioid crisis and Methamphetamine continue to affect Bedford County’s foster care system (Includes video)
WDBJ – October 26, 2017
Last month we learned that from August to September, 19 children entered the foster care system in Bedford County all coming from homes with substance abuse related issues. So far in October, nine additional children have come into care.
WA: Options for foster kids disappear as program in Burien closes
KUOW – October 27, 2017
Mental health care provider, Navos, was providing Behavior Rehabilitation Services (BRS), or round-the-clock care for foster kids with severe behavior problems and emotional needs, at the Ruth Dykeman Children’s Center in Burien. Navos ended its contract with the state to provide the services at the end of September and extended it to the end of October.
http://kuow.org/post/options-foster-kids-disappear-program-burien-closes
WA: Sex Abuse Lawsuit Filed Against Catholic Diocese of Yakima
Associated Press – October 26, 2017
The Yakima Herald-Republic reports the lawsuit was filed Tuesday on behalf of a young man who says Rev. Gustavo Gomez Santos abused him at St. Juan Diego Catholic Church in Cowiche in 2012 when the alleged victim was 16 or 17 years old.
US: HHS looks into removing barriers to program funding for religious groups
Catholic News Service – October 26, 2017
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Oct. 25 that it is looking for ways to ensure that faith-based and religious groups are not blocked from receiving HHS funding for their programs.
https://www.thecompassnews.org/2017/10/hhs-looks-removing-barriers-program-funding-religious-groups/
US: ICE agents are trying to deport parents of children who flee dangerous countries
Dallas Morning News – October 26, 2017
“Regardless of the desires for family reunification, or conditions in other countries, the smuggling or trafficking of alien children is intolerable,” then-Homeland Security chief John Kelly said in a February implementing memo on the executive order calling for a broad border crackdown.
US: Trump Declares Opioid Abuse a Public Health Emergency. It’s a Crisis for Schools, Too
Education Week – October 26, 2017
The epidemic, which has strained resources for public services and law enforcement agencies, has also created challenges for schools, Education Week has reported. Those include supporting the children of addicted parents who’ve been placed in foster care, stocking overdose medications in school nurses offices, and rethinking drug prevention programs to address prescription medications and synthetic drugs like fentanyl.
INTERNATIONAL
Argentina: Clerical sex abuse disclosures skyrocket in pope’s Argentina
Associated Press – October 26, 2017
The allegations are part of a growing trend: While Pope Francis struggles to make good on his “zero tolerance” pledge to fight clerical sex abuse worldwide, victims in his native Argentina are denouncing abuses in unprecedented numbers. An analysis by The Associated Press shows that the number of clerics publicly identified as alleged sexual abusers has increased dramatically in the last two years.
International: Photography Exhibit Highlights Human Trafficking
Voice of America – October 26, 2017
The Bought and Sold exhibit is part of ArtWorks for Freedom, a grassroots effort to raise awareness of a problem that seems unreal in the 21st century. The U.S. Department of State estimates between 600,000 and 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year. Millions more are enslaved within national borders.
https://www.voanews.com/a/artworks-for-freedom-highlights-human-trafficking/4086914.html
Ireland: In Ireland, another 76 children became homeless just in time for the new school year
TheJournal.ie – October 27, 2017
The number of homeless people in Ireland continues to rise, according to the government’s latest figures.
Also: Over A Third Of Homeless Population Are Children: http://www.98fm.com/Progress-On-Homelessness-Too-Slow
http://www.thejournal.ie/homeless-figures-september-2-3666565-Oct2017/
Japan: Foster family and adoption system needs greater support to expand
Japan News – October 26, 2017
The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry has decided on new numerical targets for places that accept children who cannot be raised by their parents. The ministry will, in principle, prohibit placing preschool-age children in welfare facilities, and will raise the percentage of these children placed in foster homes to 75 percent within five to seven years.
AK: ‘Historic day’ as state partners with Tribes to provide child services (Commentary)
Alaska Journal of Commerce – October 25, 2017
Alaska could save millions of dollars by transferring services through a “historic compact” signed by Gov. Bill Walker and tribes to provide child welfare services. The new compact recognizes the authority of Alaska Tribes to provide services previously only delivered through the Office of Children’s Services. Lauded as the first of its kind in the U.S., it was signed at the 51st annual Alaska Federation of Natives Convention Oct. 19.
AK: Meet the former foster children who went back and changed the system (Commentary) (Pt. 2 of 3)
Alaska Dispatch News – October 25, 2017
At 19, Metivier founded her own group to lobby for changes at OCS. The group, now called Facing Foster Care, obtained a court order for each foster child member to be allowed to speak to legislators. Then Rep. Les Gara, D-Anchorage, got an attorney general’s review that overturned the OCS gag order.
Pt. 1: The drug crisis is drafting Alaska grandparents back to raising children again: https://www.adn.com/opinions/2017/10/23/the-drug-crisis-is-drafting-alaska-grandparents-back-to-raising-children-again/
AL: Review finds language bias at Alabama child-welfare agency
Associated Press – October 25, 2017
Alabama’s child-welfare system wrongly denied services to people who couldn’t speak proficient English and has agreed to make changes, the Department of Health and Human Services said Wednesday.
Also: OCR Addresses National Origin Discrimination in Alabama Child Welfare Programs: https://article.wn.com/view/2017/10/25/OCR_Addresses_National_Origin_Discrimination_in_Alabama_Chil/
HHS Press Release: http://www.publicnow.com/view/8008EAB988380FF115A4A5C267B68764E2F13AF0?2017-10-25-16:00:09+01:00-xxx7332
http://www.sacbee.com/news/business/article180848696.html
CA: LA County explores longer-term funding for relatives caring for foster children
Antelope Valley Times – October 25, 2017
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to try and find a way to offer longer-term funding to relatives caring for foster children and awaiting state approvals under a new system. The county’s child welfare agency has pushed hard to find relatives to care for children removed from their parents’ homes after reports of abuse or neglect, aiming to minimize upset and maximize consistency for those kids.
CA: School on San Francisco’s Treasure Island Offers Troubled Youth a Safe Harbor
Chronicle of Social Change – October 25, 2017
Delane said every week starts off a little tense, but by midweek, the students have mellowed out. She said that teenagers crave the structure and respond well to the small classes and caring staff at the school. Even with a population of kids often classified as high risk and volatile, the staff said the students never get violent.
CO: Foster care system in desperate need of foster homes (Includes video)
KRDO – October 25, 2017
According to the El Paso County Department of Human Services, the State of Colorado is in desperate need of foster care homes. “Probably the last five years we’ve really kind of been in a crisis in finding and keeping good foster homes,” Children, Youth and Family Services Deputy Director, Marian Percy said.
Also: More foster families need locally, statewide (Includes video): http://www.kjct8.com/content/news/Mesa-County-and-Colorado-need-more-foster-families-452906173.html
Also: Colorado desperately seeking foster parents: The state needs 1,200 more certified foster families to care for kids: http://www.denverpost.com/2017/10/25/colorado-foster-care-family-shortage/
Information Gateway resource: Recruitment Strategies and Tools: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/permanency/recruiting/recruitment-tools/
http://www.krdo.com/news/colorado-foster-care-system-in-desperate-need-of-foster-homes/645797887
CT: Justices Reaffirm Decision Curbing Child Welfare Agency’s Power to Vaccinate
Connecticut Law Tribune – October 24, 2017
For the second time since August, the state’s high court has ruled that the Department of Children and Families cannot vaccinate children in their custody without the parents approval.
IL: Child welfare agency to take back some cases
Seymour Tribune – October 25, 2017
The Illinois agency responsible for child welfare is taking back from contractors control of some high-risk cases after a newspaper investigation revealed a surge in child deaths since it privatized some services.
http://www.tribtown.com/2017/10/25/il-abuse-child-deaths-illinois-2/
IN: State of Indiana’s foster care system in crisis (Includes video)
WTVW – October 25, 2017
Everyone wants to belong, but for roughly 500 Tri-State children, after being placed in foster care, they have nowhere to go.
LA: Our Views: Work harder for children at risk
Advocate – October 19, 2017
If Louisiana is not alone, it is still far from a great distinction to have children spending nights at a social worker’s office, because there is no place for a child in state supervision to go.
NM: CYFD seeks $26M budget increase
Santa Fe New Mexican – October 25, 2017
The request follows a year in which most state agencies saw a series of budget cuts as lawmakers and the governor wrangled with a fiscal crisis. The most recent revenue outlook for state government was slightly more optimistic than in the past, with legislative aides forecasting about $25 million in new money for the fiscal year that starts July 1. The budget increase sought by Children, Youth and Families Secretary Monique Jacobson – to $275 million in state funds for fiscal year 2019 from $249 million in the current year – would take all of it.
NY: Grant Program Aims to Strengthen Families, Reduce Entries into Foster Care
Chronicle of Social Change – October 25, 2017
In a bid to maintain the pace of reforms that have seen New York City’s foster care population plummet, the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) is seeking local nonprofit agencies to submit applications for its Community Partnership Program. The $11 million initiative is focused on child maltreatment prevention.
OH: Not protected: These 19 children died after welfare agencies returned them to their birth parents (Includes video)
Dayton Daily News – October 25, 2017
A months-long investigation by this news organization found Ohio’s system often fails to protect children, with some suffering painful deaths just weeks or even days after being reunited with their birth parents.
OK: DHS director: ‘Heaven help us’ if budget deal isn’t made (Includes video)
KOCO – October 25, 2017
Many of the recent budget cuts to state agencies keep Oklahoma’s most vulnerable in their homes and help their families maintain a normal life. Cuts to the Department of Human Services are coming, and director Ed Lake spoke about the $69 million in cuts coming to his department.
http://www.koco.com/article/dhs-director-heaven-help-us-if-budget-deal-isn-t-made/13095519
PA: Lower Nazareth Township will amend its policy on background checks for sports volunteers
Morning Call – October 25, 2017
Lower Nazareth Township will amend its policy on background checks for volunteers working with children in its sports programs to bring it in line with state law. The township conducted criminal background checks for all volunteers working with children prior to amendments to the Commonwealth’s Child Protective Services Law in 2015, township Manager Timm Tenges said during a Board of Supervisors meeting Wednesday.
http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-nws-lower-nazareth-township-20171025-story.html
SD: Promoting foster care and adoption in Fall River County
Rapid City Journal – October 25, 2017
The need is great. There is currently the need for approximately 90 homes for foster care and yet there are only 60 in our region. Approximately 30 homes are needed. Foster care is needed for all age groups but there is a particular need for homes for teens and family groups.
TX: How Harvey-affected kids in jail or on probation are getting help in Houston
Texas Tribune – October 26, 2017
Dozens of minors in jail or on probation in Harris County are facing new hurdles after Hurricane Harvey. A local nonprofit is expanding to help youth in the criminal justice system who’ve lost everything in the storm.
TX: Dallas ISD considers proposal to help house homeless students
North Dallas Gazette – October 25, 2017
The Dallas ISD Trustee Board discussed a proposal to partner with the organization After8toEducate to house unsheltered students in the district at their board briefing Thursday, Oct. 12 and will vote on the measure this Thursday at the next board meeting. The district has received an estimate of more than 100 unsheltered students currently sleeping on park benches or in abandoned buildings who can’t go to homeless shelters, because they are not yet adults.
WI: Foster care system bogged down because of drug addiction (Includes video)
WBAY – October 25, 2017
Action 2 News first reported the creation of the Foster Care Task Force in July, after lawmakers saw the number of Wisconsin kids removed from their homes rise to 7,400 in 2016.
http://www.wbay.com/content/news/Foster-care-system-bogged-down-by–453174283.html
US: How 10 States Are Reforming Medicaid Payment and Delivery
Commonwealth Fund – October 25, 2017
Most states are focusing efforts to improve and coordinate services on adults with chronic physical and mental health conditions, people with addiction and substance use disorders, and homeless individuals – not surprising, since the expansion brought many such individuals into the program. Children served through the child welfare system remain a universal and intense area of focus.
Information Gateway resource: Health Insurance: Medicaid, CHIP, and the Affordable Care Act: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/service-array/health/insurance/#medicaid
US: Immigrant teenager at center of U.S. legal fight has abortion
Reuters – October 25, 2017
The 17-year-old illegal immigrant at the center of a high-profile legal fight over abortion underwent the procedure on Wednesday, a day after a U.S. appeals court overruled the Trump administration’s objections, her lawyers said.
Also: Forced childbirth isn’t the American way – yet (Commentary): http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chapman/ct-perspec-chapman-immigrant-teen-abortion-20171025-story.html
INTERNATIONAL
Australia: DFAT Child Protection Policy – October 2017
Government of Australia – October 26, 2017
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has a zero tolerance approach to child exploitation or abuse. DFAT recognises that it is the shared responsibility of all adults to prevent child exploitation and abuse. In Australia, there is recognition that organisations that work with children also have a role in protecting them, and need policies and procedures to enable them to do so. The Child Protection Policy is part of DFAT’s child protection framework.
https://reliefweb.int/report/world/dfat-child-protection-policy-october-2017
Israel: Education Ministry Committee Discusses Children’s Rights And The Chareidi Sector
Yeshiva World – October 25, 2017
During a discussion in the Knesset Committee on Children’s Rights, which dealt with the helplessness of the authorities in supervising educational institutions in the chareidi sector, various cases were presented, including refusal by institutions to accept students for various reasons, including severe abuse led by an educator and an inappropriate school structure with hazards in which students are injured almost every day. Ministry of Education: “In some of the authorities, the response to the chareidi population is at the margins of the order of priorities.”
CA: LADCFS, Foster Youth Advocates Reach Landmark Settlement; Statewide Implications Predicted (Press release)
Advokids – October 24, 2017
On October 19, the Los Angeles Superior Court finalized a settlement in a milestone lawsuit filed by three former foster parents and Advokids, a Bay Area legal advocacy non-profit for California foster children. Filed in August 2014, the suit alleges that the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (LADCSF) regularly failed to provide foster parents and relative caregivers with written notices of court hearings concerning children in their care, as required by law. This includes written notice and an opportunity to object and be heard when foster children are removed from their homes.
CA: The county and city of Los Angeles have pension problems (Opinion)
Los Angeles Daily News – October 24, 2017
Since 2002-03, L.A. County pension expenditures have grown from $326 million to about $1.5 billion this year. Proportionally, as a share of operating expenditures, this translates to an increase from 3 percent to 8.9 percent this year. Much of this came at the expense of “Public Assistance,” the category that includes In-Home Supportive Services and foster care, according to the report, that saw its share of the budget reduced from 37.6 percent in 2002-03 to 32.7 percent in 2015-16.
http://www.dailynews.com/2017/10/24/the-county-and-city-of-los-angeles-have-pension-problems/
CO: Did South High administrators fail to report sex assault allegations?
KUSA – October 24, 2017
A judge has signed off on the Denver District Attorney’s request for a special prosecutor in an alleged groping case out of South High School. Last Friday, a Denver Public Schools administrator announced in a letter to parents that South’s principal, Jen Hanson, and student advisor, Lynette Lucero, had been placed on leave but did not disclose what led to that decision.
Also: A review of what’s been happening at Denver Public School (Includes video): http://www.9news.com/news/local/next/a-review-of-whats-been-happening-at-denver-public-schools/485795311
CO: Mesa County and Colorado need more foster families (Includes video)
KKCO/KJCT – October 24, 2017
The State of Colorado’s foster care system needs about a thousand new foster homes within the next two years.
Also: Colorado recruiting more than 1k new foster parents to fill shortage: http://www.azfamily.com/story/36672194/colorado-recruiting-more-than-1k-new-foster-parents-to-fill-shortage
http://www.kjct8.com/content/news/Mesa-County-and-Colorado-need-more-foster-families-452906173.html
ID: New research explores student opportunity gaps (Commentary)
Idaho Education News – October 24, 2017
Idaho lags behind most other states in providing opportunity for white and Hispanic students – the state’s two largest student populations. In its latest KIDS COUNT data released Tuesday, the Annie E. Casey Foundation rates the states on a dozen milestones – from infant health and access to pre-K to test scores and college graduation rates – then breaks down the scores by ethnic group.
Also: Annie E. Casey Foundation Report: Race for Results: Building a Path to Opportunity for All Children: http://idahoednews-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/AECF-Race-For-Results-October-2017.pdf
https://www.idahoednews.org/news/new-research-explores-student-opportunity-gaps/
IL: DCFS vows change to program that saw surge of child deaths (Includes video)
Chicago Tribune – October 24, 2017
Following a Tribune report on deaths of children in a privatized child welfare program, a state Department of Children and Family Services official said Tuesday that the agency has started taking back some of those cases from contract agencies and will handle them in-house.
Also: Child deaths spike after DCFS privatizes ‘intact family services’: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/watchdog/ct-dcfs-verna-intact-family-services-met-20171022-story.html
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/watchdog/ct-dcfs-hearing-met-20171024-story.html
KS: Public health, poverty intertwined (Opinion)
Great Bend Tribune – October 24, 2017
When Shelly Schneider started four years as Barton County health director, state health officials made the comment that problems related to health were “siloed.” “I didn’t understand what ‘siloed’ meant.” Now, four years later, she gets it. Those tackling the various health-related issues, from public health to family planning, were working independent of on another, in their own “silos.” “Nobody ever talked to each other,” Schneider said.
http://www.gbtribune.com/section/69/article/109087/
MI: Female Genital Mutilation is not a ‘nick’ – Don’t let spin hide brutal reality as Michigan trial starts (Opinion)
Fox News – October 25, 2017
As an attorney in the child welfare system where every imaginable child abuse injury crossed my desk, the genital mutilation and physical abuse inflicted on Dr. Nagarwala’s victims would be evidence that the defendant engaged in “torture” and “sexual penetration with a foreign object” under most state child welfare laws. Torture is not a mere nicking.
MN: New Initiative Seeks Solutions in Minnesota’s Child Welfare System (Includes video)
KSTP 5 – October 24, 2017
Thirteen Minnesota organizations, including AspireMN and St. David’s Center for Child and Family Development, pooled together to bring the Quality Parenting Initiative to Minnesota. It’s a movement aimed to increase the number of foster parents in communities and reduce the number of re-entries into the system.
http://kstp.com/news/new-initiative-seeks-solutions-in-minnesota-child-welfare-system/4645808/?cat=1
NY: HRC to Host Webinar on Youth Advocate’s Role in Finding Affirming Families for LGBTQ Foster Youth (Press release)
Human Rights Campaign – October 24, 2017
One challenge many agencies face is finding affirming, permanent families for older LGBTQ youth in foster care. That is why we’re hosting a new webinar, “The Role of Youth Advocates in Developing Affirming Families for LGBTQ Youth,” on Wednesday, October 25 at 1 p.m. ET. We’ll be showcasing New York City adoption agency, You Gotta Believe and its innovative model for engaging youth advocates in finding families for LGBTQ youth in care.
http://www.hrc.org/blog/hrc-to-host-webinar-on-youth-advocates-role-in-finding-affirming-families-f
NY: What de Blasio’s ‘Paying the Homeless to Leave Town’ Program Is Really About (Commentary)
Village Voice – October 18, 2017
DHS acknowledges the problem. Roughly 40,000 people in families with children live in the shelters, a spokesperson says, and more than one-third of families “include a parent that is earning income but cannot make ends meet – underscoring the economic factors, namely rents rising far faster than wages or incomes, driving homelessness.” On that basis, the spokesperson adds, if even one family participates in the relocation program, “it is a successful tool for that family.”
OH: College of Social Work receives $3 million grant – one of the largest in the college’s history
Lantern (Ohio State University) – October 25, 2017
Ohio State’s College of Social Work recently received a $3 million grant aimed not only at helping those struggling with substance abuse, but also the families that have a loved one struggling with addiction. The grant – one of the largest ever given to the College of Social Work – was funded by the Administration for Children and Families’ Children’s Bureau at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to combat the prominent substance abuse epidemic in Ohio.
PA: Philly activists raising money to bail poor defendants out of jail
WHYY – October 23, 2017
All such funds are intended as temporary, stopgap measures until authorities can reform longstanding cash bail systems, where pre-trial inmates who can’t afford even low bail can get trapped for months, or even years, behind bars. That can cost them jobs, housing, and even custody of their children. And defendants who spend time in jail before trial also tend to have to have higher conviction rates, longer sentences, and an increased likelihood to reoffend, reformers say.
https://whyy.org/articles/philly-activists-raising-money-bail-poor-defendants-jail/
PR: Re-Opening Puerto Rico’s Schools Takes a Back Seat to Island’s Basic Needs (Commentary)
Education Week – September 27, 2017
As a territory, Puerto Rico has less access to many federal education funds and programs, though its children are U.S. citizens. For example, while more than half of school-age children on the island live in poverty, its federal Title I funding for disadvantaged students is capped, as is its funding for Title III grants for English-language learners, grants for homeless student supports, and even supplemental food support, according to a 2016 report by a Congressional task force on Puerto Rico. Child welfare programs, such as child-related tax credits and utilities supports, are also limited.
https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2017/09/27/re-opening-puerto-ricos-schools-takes-a-back.html
TX: Foster care reform is critical (Opinion)
San Antonio Express-News – October 24, 2017
Experiences in Texas and other states that have attempted significant foster care reform show the state is at the beginning of a long, rocky implementation process. As reform bill co-sponsor Rep. James Frank (Wichita Falls) said, “Passing community-based care is just the start. Implementation is key. Results are what matter.” Meanwhile, emboldened by past success, the same critics who reversed reform in 2006 wait to use the first tragedy to claw back state control.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/commentary/article/Foster-care-reform-is-critical-12303205.php
TX: Generation in Crisis: Taylor County needs more foster families (Includes video)
Big Country – October 24, 2017
More foster families are needed in Taylor County as a result of the amount of child protective services cases piling up.
VA: 30 Days of Hope: Finding homes for hundreds of children
WSLS – October 25, 2017
There are more than 800 children who are legally available to be adopted in Virginia. Many are older children who are in danger or aging out of the foster care system without a family to support them in their adult years. Others are sibling sets.
https://www.wsls.com/news/30-days-of-hope-contacting-connecting-hearts
VA: Full Text of Allegations re: Rockbridge Area Social Services Board
Rockbridge News-Gazette – October 24, 2017
Editor’s note: We are posting here the complete list of allegations by area resident Mark Reed regarding the Rockbridge area’s social services board. Reed presented this list last month to the state Board of Social Services, which voted last week to take the unprecedented step of launching an investigation into the local board and its activities. This post is a supplement to our coverage of the state board’s action, printed in the Oct. 25 News-Gazette. We have edited Reed’s original text slightly for spelling and formatting.
Also: Report: http://www.roanoke.com/rockbridge-county-special-grand-jury-report/pdf_95693a1a-438f-5996-bc66-331ea56549ce.html
US: A Classically Sad Tale of Adoption Pressuring Vulnerable Mothers-to-Be (Opinion)
Huffington Post – October 25, 2017
Adoption too often exploits expectant mothers – many of whom consider adoption because they have no familial and/or financial support. Women considering adoption are totally naïve and unaware of laws and what is acceptable procedure and what is not.
US: Kids Pay the Price: Watch the ad, rejected by Fox News as “too powerful,” showing how kids pay the price when child service agencies are allowed to discriminate. (Opinion)(Includes video)
Movement Advancement Project – October 25, 2017
“Kids Pay the Price” is new TV ad that depicts the kinds of harms children can face when adoption agencies and workers are exempted from following key child welfare laws based on individual beliefs.
Also: Information Gateway resource: Adoptions by Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and/or Questioning Families: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/adoption/adopt-ethics/types/lgbt/
http://www.kidspaytheprice.org/
US: U.S. Must Let Undocumented Teenager Get an Abortion, Appeals Court Say
New York Times – October 24, 2017
On Tuesday, a federal appeals court in Washington sided with the girl, sending the case back to a lower court, which immediately ordered the Trump administration to allow the girl to obtain an abortion “promptly and without delay.” The ruling may be only one of many legal chapters to come if the Justice Department decides to appeal to the Supreme Court.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/24/us/undocumented-immigrant-abortion.html
INTERNATIONAL
Canada: ‘Unfortunate’ provinces, territories not part of Indigenous child welfare ruling: Philpott
Canadian Press – October 24, 2017
Indigenous Services Minister Jane Philpott says provinces and territories have not been at the table to the extent they need to be – up until now – to address issues with First Nations child welfare. In an interview, Philpott calls it “unfortunate” that they were also not part of the landmark human rights ruling handed down in 2016 from The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal — a source of ongoing friction for the federal government.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/unfortunate-provinces-indigenous-welfare-1.4369832
France: Calls for urgent action as situation for children worsens a year on from Calais camp closure
UNICEF – October 23, 2017
One year on from the demolition of ‘the jungle’ in Calais, the situation remains bleak. Living conditions have worsened for hundreds of children with little access to shelter and clean drinking water, and heightened exposure to exploitation. Collaboration between France and Britain is urgently needed to fulfil promises made to protect children a year ago.
https://www.unicef.org/eca/media_31493.html
Ghana: Child Trafficking, The Social And Economic Loss (Commentary)
Modern Ghana – October 24, 2017
Children need special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth reiterates the 1924 declaration pledge that mankind owes to the child to the best it has to give and specifically calls upon voluntary organization and local authorities to strive for the observance of children’s right.
https://www.modernghana.com/news/811498/child-trafficking-the-social-and-economic-loss.html
India: Sherin Mathews tragedy: Does India follow up on kids adopted by parents abroad? (Commentary)
News Minute – October 23, 2017
The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) set up in 2003 under the Women and Child Development Ministry, is the statutory body that functions as a nodal body for adoption of Indian children and is mandated to monitor and regulate in-country and inter-country adoptions. It’s been more than a year since Sherin was adopted and taken away from India, what has CARA done to follow up on the child? Does CARA’s responsibilities end after an adoption is through and the child is flown out of the country?
Also: CARA’s International Adoption Guidelines: Adoption Procedure For Non-Resident Indian, Overseas Citizen Of India And Foreign Prospective Adoptive Parents: http://cara.nic.in/Parents/Guidelines_living_Abroad.html
Also: Body of Missing Texas Toddler Found: Father Arrested on $1 Million Bond, ‘Mother Under Investigation’, Say Police: http://www.indiawest.com/news/global_indian/body-of-missing-texas-toddler-found-father-arrested-on-million/article_5efcf58c-b90c-11e7-a6b8-e3ef0b4c0e29.html
https://in.news.yahoo.com/sherin-mathews-tragedy-does-india-154554130.html
United Kingdom: ‘Damning’ report finds police failed Britain’s modern slaves, dropping cases early and even prosecuting victims
Evening Standard – October 24, 2017
Police have failed to adequately tackle cases of slavery and human trafficking, sometimes even prosecuting victims, according to a watchdog. HM Inspector of Constabulary Wendy Williams, who led the probe, said police have a “crucial role” to play in protecting thousands of men, women and children being “degraded and dehumanised” every day.
AR: Awareness is Shedding Light on Child Abuse in Northwest Arkansas (Includes video)
Northwest Arkansas News – October 23, 2017
The Children’s Advocacy Center in Benton County said it’s received a startling number of child abuse over the last couple weeks. In less than two weeks, close to 50 cases have been reported in Benton County to the child abuse hotline.
AR: Recovery coaches special ingredient to Restore Hope Arkansas Inc.
Southwest Town Record – October 22, 2017
According to both Abbie Cox of the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund and University of Arkansas at Fort Smith Chancellor Paul Beran, education coupled with “recovery coaches” to guide people coming out of jail are the special ingredient in a growing sense of optimism that the Restore Hope Arkansas Inc. initiative will cut down on not just drug addiction relapses, overdoses and deaths, but also cut the rate of people returning to jail, and the number of children in foster care.
CA: Finding a way to help: New organization, Options Collaborative, aims to aid homeless, LGBTQ, others in Lompoc and Nipomo
Santa Marta Times – October 21, 2017
Those initial street-side conversations resulted in Options Collaborative, a project founded by Stuart through the Social Good Fund platform. Options Collaborative aims to leverage relationships with other organizations to bring a range of services to Lompoc and Nipomo – communities that Stuart felt were often overlooked – to aid people in need, whether they’re homeless, single parents, members of the LGBTQ community or people struggling with identity.
CO: State gets $1.4 million fed grant to help combat human trafficking
Denver Post – October 23, 2017
The grant will help human services and the Colorado Department of Public Safety to develop a joint, comprehensive strategy to battle human trafficking in the state, according to the Department of Human Services. The $1,413,747 grant will also help provide recovery services to child victims and survivors.
http://www.denverpost.com/2017/10/23/state-gets-1-4-million-fed-grant-combat-human-trafficking/
GU: Guam’s day of reckoning after decades of sex abuse
National Catholic Reporter – October 04, 2017
B.J. is one of more than 100 men and women who have filed lawsuits against the Archdiocese of Agana on Guam alleging abuses that occurred between the 1950s and 1980s. Sex abuse scandals have roiled archdioceses throughout North America for the last two decades. But only in recent years has the church in this small, intensely Catholic U.S. territory begun confronting its own legacy of abuse.
https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/guams-day-reckoning-after-decades-sex-abuse
IL: Child deaths spike in Illinois after DCFS privatizes program
Associated Press – October 23, 2017
A newspaper investigation found 15 children died of abuse or neglect from 2012 to 2016 while their families received “intact family services” from organizations hired by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.
Information Gateway Resource: Child Abuse & Neglect Fatalities: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/can/fatalities/
Information Gateway Resource: Privatization: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/management/funding/fiscal-reform/privatization/
http://www.bnd.com/news/state/illinois/article180409076.html
KS: Report: Minority children more likely to live in low income areas despite poverty decline
Topeka Capital-Journal – October 23, 2017
Minority children in Kansas are more likely to live in low-income areas and have limited educational attainment than their white peers, according to a report released Monday.
Report: 2017 Race for Results: http://www.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-2017raceforresults-2017.pdf
MI: Lawmaker wants no repeat of Sanilac County rapist and child custody case (Includes video)
Detroit Free Press – October 21, 2017
A mid-Michigan lawmaker wants to make sure the controversial case of a man getting and then losing custody of the child that was conceived when he raped a 12-year old never happens again. State Rep. Pam Faris, D-Clio, introduced a bill last week that would prohibit people who are convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct from getting custody of a child that is the product of an assault.
MS: Report: Inequity in Mississippi as clear as black and white (Includes video)
Clarion-Ledger – October 24, 2017
A stark contrast in opportunities for children of different races is illustrated in the latest Annie E. Casey Foundation KIDS COUNT policy report released Tuesday.
Also: 2017 Mississippi Kids Count Fact Book: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3uadljm9intzcgx/Web%20Ready%20Factbook.pdf?dl=0
NH: Willard: Direct drug epidemic funds to help protect kids
New Hampshire Union Leader – October 23, 2017
Police Chief Nick Willard told a social welfare organization last week that he’d rather see funding for the drug epidemic directed to child protection efforts than to law enforcement.
OH: Bill mandating police report suspected child abuse stalled on the OH House floor
WDTN – October 23, 2017
House Bill 137 would make it mandatory for those officers to notify child services so the organization can check on the children to make sure they were not being abused.
OK: DHS admits mistakes in girl’s death
Oklahoman – October 23, 2017
The Oklahoma Department of Human Services made policy changes and disciplined five employees after a 10-year-old girl died in April from an asthma attack, records show.
http://newsok.com/oklahoma-dhs-admits-mistakes-in-girls-death/article/5569055?custom_click=rss
PA: Column Was Based on Incorrect Pennsylvania Statistics About Child Abuse Investigations (Commentary)
Youth Today – October 24, 2017
Instead of striving to create hysteria, Wexler should have raised a legitimate question about how often (and why) those who champion and those who critique child welfare regularly build their advocacy upon data that is unreliable and almost always politically charged.
PA: Child Advocacy Center moves to East Brown Street
Pocono Record – October 23, 2017
The Monroe County CAC relocated Oct. 6 to a new facility in East Stroudsburg. It now serves from an office at 175 East Brown Street. A child can endure ten or more interviews over the life of an investigation. Children’s Advocacy Center of Monroe County tries to make it just one.
http://www.poconorecord.com/news/20171023/child-advocacy-center-moves-to-east-brown-street
TX: Lawmakers to study border issues, Harvey fallout
Corpus Christi Caller-Times – October 23, 2017
Patrick asked Senate panels to study the longterm impact of the storm on the state’s economy and how it might have affected the capacity of placements for children in the juvenile justice and child welfare systems, among other directives.
UT: Opioid crisis leads to more child abuse in Utah (Includes video)
KUTV – October 23, 2017
The Utah Division of Child and Family Services is keeping track of how opioid addiction affects the number of children removed from their homes and put into foster care.
http://kutv.com/news/local/opioid-crisis-leads-to-more-child-abuse-in-utah
US: Kaiser Family Foundation 50-State Budget Survey Provides Key Insights on Role of Medicaid
Georgetown University Center for Childen and Families – October 23, 2017
States developed their 2018 budgets amidst much uncertainty at the federal level – ACA repeal and replace, cutting and capping Medicaid, and delays in extending CHIP funding – along with slow and volatile state revenues. These circumstances make it difficult to predict trends in enrollment and spending in 2018, but states generally project slower enrollment growth even as the rate of growth in spending increases.
INTERNATIONAL
Canada: Ending homelessness means targeting youth early: Researcher
Metro – October 22, 2017
Cities are still putting most of their resources into emergency response and moving people out of homelessness instead of preventing it in the first place, said Stephen Gaetz.
India: The threat posed by global child-rights conventions
Sunday Guardian – October 21, 2017
Norway, whose child welfare agency is notorious for snatching children unreasonably, especially of immigrants, is already using the Hague Convention to force back children leaving Norway with their parents when its child welfare services come knocking on the door. Recently I submitted a report to the Indian government on the wrongful confiscation of children of newly arrived Indian IT professionals by US Child Protection Services (CPS).Parents had proven themselves innocent, but not until after their children had been traumatised for months in foster care with strangers. Parents spoke of racism in the US child-care system. US lawyers, academics, and even child protection officials have said that CPS often wrongly removes children.
http://www.sundayguardianlive.com/culture/11301-threat-posed-global-child-rights-conventions
AK: State Attorney General says all 229 Alaska tribes are sovereign
Alaska Public Media – October 20, 2017
Delegates were told of a major new decision by the state Attorney General’s office, which seeks to resolve decades of legal battles by concluding that Alaska’s 229 tribes are fully sovereign entities. The move is a win for tribal and indigenous advocates who have long-contended they have equal jurisdiction and standing with the State of Alaska. The news came just one day after the governor signed an unprecedented compact with tribal entities that gives them potential control over child welfare policies.
AR: Fort Smith Baptist Church Tackling Foster Care Crisis
KNWA – October 22, 2017
More than five hundred foster care children are without a home in Sebastian County. Arkansas Baptist in Fort Smith is now a privately licensed placement agency. The church has been caring for kids for more than a century — and hopes these new efforts will spark a change.
http://www.nwahomepage.com/news/fort-smith-baptist-church-tackling-foster-care-crisis/842559386
AZ: In Arizona, Foster Parents Can’t Hold Medical Marijuana Cards
Chronicle of Social Change – October 20, 2017
Rebecca Masterson wanted to become a licensed foster mom. Earlier this month, the Phoenix lawyer took in 16-year-old Johnny*, who she met while volunteering. Becoming licensed would help her pay for groceries, clothes and start a savings account for the teenager. But when Masterson applied to become Johnny’s foster mom, she was rejected by the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) for admitting to having a medical marijuana card.
CA: Social services director responds to opinion piece
Plumas County News – October 20, 2017
Children who come into the Child Welfare system do so because a parent or parents have created a living situation that is dangerous. Because no two child protective services cases are the same, drawing a conclusion from one or two cases really doesn’t do justice to the wonderful work that social workers, foster care providers and others do in the interest of trying to improve the lives of abused and neglected children.
Original Article: http://www.plumasnews.com/on-failing-all-our-children/
http://www.plumasnews.com/social-services-director-responds-opinion-piece/
IA: Safe and Together Program: A domestic violence victim-supportive child welfare approach in Iowa
Daily Nonpareil – October 21, 2017
It is reported that the vast majority of child welfare cases involve some form of domestic violence. Because of this, the state of Iowa began the implementation of the Safe and Together Program in August 2015. Safe and Together Program is an initiative by Iowa State University, funded by Iowa Department of Human Services, to bring focus on child welfare and safety in domestic violence cases. The Child Welfare Research and Training Project in Human Development and Family Studies partners with David Mandel and Associates, a child welfare consulting group, to deliver the Safe and Together Program to all child welfare professionals in Iowa.
IN: Transitional housing for young homeless in St. Joseph County
South Bend Tribune – October 20, 2017
Starting next month, young people ages 16 to 22 who are homeless or on the verge of it will be able to find refuge in a local apartment complex for up to 18 months. The nonprofit Youth Service Bureau of St. Joseph County will start the program with a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to be used over the next five years.
KS: Contractor Adds Short-Term Housing For Foster Care Children
Salina Post – October 22, 2017
KVC Kansas, the foster care contractor for eastern Kansas, opened its first short-term crisis center in September in Hays. The crisis center is attached to KVC Wheatland Hospital, a children’s psychiatric facility. It can accommodate 20 children, with two beds to a room plus common spaces with TVs, couches and beanbag chairs.
http://salinapost.com/2017/10/22/kansas-contractor-adds-short-term-housing-for-foster-care-children/
KY: Obligation is to serving kids (Editorial)
News-Enterprise – October 22, 2017
It is sweet news for families fostering a related child under the care of the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services. A refusal by the U.S. Supreme Court to hear an appeal from the cabinet means 114 foster children currently under the care of extended family members across the 16-county Salt River Trail region that includes Hardin County will receive the same state benefits of their displaced peers in foster care.
ME: Bangor center for homeless youth getting federal aid
Associated Press – October 22, 2017
A nonprofit group in Bangor that serves homeless and at-risk youth will receive nearly $150,000 from the federal government. Maine Sens. Susan Collins, a Republican, and Angus King, an independent, say the money is coming to Shaw House from the Administration for Children and Families. They say the money will support the Shaw House’s Basic Center Program for homeless and runaway youth and their families.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Bangor-center-for-homeless-youth-getting-federal-12297124.php
MO: Greitens announces reform for foster youth
Jefferson City News Tribune – October 20, 2017
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens says the state no longer will make children in foster care pay a $15 fee to get copies of their birth certificates. Greitens in a Friday statement said the change is aimed at making it easier for teenagers in foster care to get records needed to apply for a driver’s license and jobs.
Also: Missouri waives birth certificate fees for foster care kids: http://www.theolympian.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article180026796.html
Also: Foster care children to get birth certificate free of charge (Includes video): http://www.kfvs12.com/story/36646451/mo-foster-care-children-to-get-birth-certificate-free-of-charge
NE: Archdiocese in compliance with child protection policies
Catholic Voice – October 19, 2017
An on-site audit of the Archdiocese of Omaha’s child protection policies and procedures showed it was in compliance with the U.S. bishops’ 2002 Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People for the 14th consecutive year.
http://catholicvoiceomaha.com/news/archdiocese-compliance-child-protection-policies
NM: Las Cruces area maps out plan for early childhood education
KRWG – October 22, 2017
Charlie is an exception in the afternoon class of the state-funded New Mexico PreK at Alpha School, which is dedicated almost exclusively to children who haven’t had preschool, says Alpha School Director Ray Jaramillo. The school wanted to give more kids access to the purposeful play and learning that could affect the rest of their school careers.
http://krwg.org/post/las-cruces-area-maps-out-plan-early-childhood-education
NY: ‘It’s like a tsunami’: Opioid epidemic pushing kids into Erie County foster system
Buffalo News – October 22, 2017
The opioid epidemic is not just killing hundreds of local residents – it’s leaving hundreds of Erie County children without a home or at risk of being removed from one. They are orphaned children and they are the children of drug-addicted parents no longer able to care for them. Erie County Family Court Judge Lisa Bloch Rodwin has presided at thousands of child abuse and neglect cases since 2011. She can’t recall any cases related to opioid drug abuse four years ago, and only a handful three years ago.
http://buffalonews.com/2017/10/22/foster-care-crisis-erie-county-fueled-part-opioid-epidemic/
OH: Mahoning County Children Services desperately in need of foster parents (Includes video)
WKBN – October 22, 2017
“With the opiate epidemic, we are seeing an increase in children who are coming into care because of addiction issues with family members – we’re seeing more drug-exposed babies. So, there is a definite and great need, and right now we only have 41 licensed foster families for Mahoning County and we need about 30 to 35 more,” said Jennifer Kollar, Children Services’ public information officer.
http://wkbn.com/2017/10/22/mahoning-county-children-services-desperately-in-need-of-foster-parents/
OK: DHS cuts jeopardizing settlement involving child welfare system
Oklahoman – October 22, 2017
Pinnacle Plan addresses shortage of shelters, other issues for state system. The Oklahoma Department of Human Services faces up to $69 million in budget cuts this fiscal year, and the state’s ongoing budget crisis could jeopardize the Pinnacle Plan, a legal settlement aimed at reforming the state’s child welfare system.
PR: Long school break is no vacation for Puerto Rico’s kids
Washington Post – October 18, 2017
The novelty of an extended school break has worn off for many kids in Puerto Rico, where classes have been canceled since Hurricane Maria swept across the island last month. All 1,113 public schools are closed, although 167 are serving as community centers and 99 others are being used as shelters. About 70 schools are too damaged to reopen.
TX: Should Texas change law to keep 17-year-olds out of adult jails? (Includes video)
KXAN – October 20, 2017
The Texas Juvenile Justice Coalition wants lawmakers to raise the age of criminal responsibility from 17 to 18 in the 2019 legislative session. The ACLU of Texas, Texans Care for Children, Texas PTA, Texas Appleseed and Disability Rights Texas joined the coalition during a press conference inside the State Capitol Friday. State Rep. Gene Wu, D-Houston, is also pressing for this change.
http://kxan.com/2017/10/20/should-texas-change-law-to-keep-17-year-olds-out-of-adult-jails/
TX: Care Portal seeks to connect churches, families in crisis
Terrell Tribune – October 17, 2017
The Care Portal is seeking Kaufman County churches willing to help support families that find themselves dealing with Child Protective Services.
http://www.terrelltribune.com/community/article_ddab69c4-b351-11e7-8991-5f4b30777a74.html
WA: $600 for Overnight Foster Care? Time to Consider the alternatives (Commentary)
Fostering Reform – October 23, 2017
Washington State’s Children’s Administration (CA) is desperate. In order to avoid lodging abused and neglected children in hotel rooms or agency offices, it has increased to $600 per night the amount it is willing to pay foster parents to keep children in their homes for one night in emergency short-term situations, according to the independent news organization InvestigateWest.
https://fosteringreform.blogspot.com/2017/10/600-for-overnight-foster-care-time-to.html
WA: Melanie’s Bremerton Hustle: A profile of prostitution in Kitsap County
Kitsap Sun – October 20, 2017
Sixteen, living in foster care and waiting at a bus stop in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, Melanie met the man who would force her into prostitution. It begins like this: He climbs aboard the Metro bus ahead of her and as they walk to the back he drops a $100 bill. Melanie picks it up
US: Grandparents raising grandkids grapple with retirement and college costs at the same time
Washington Post – October 22, 2017
Among the thousands of families filling out financial aid applications and struggling to save for tuition, there are grandparents such as Bursch facing the same financial responsibilities but with limited resources. Their second run at parenting arrives as their earning potential winds down and retirement kicks in with a fixed income never meant to cover the cost of college. Every stitch of their clothing, all of their meals and day-to-day expenses have been her responsibility since 2003, when drug use by her daughter and son-in-law prompted the police to remove the children from their home.
US: Case Considers Unaccompanied Minor’s Right To Have An Abortion (Includes audio)
National Public Radio – October 20, 2017
In a case that pits the Trump administration against a 17-year-old Mexican girl in the U.S. illegally, a panel of federal judges said Friday that she has a right to an abortion – but she’s not being allowed to get the procedure yet.
Also: Federal Government Ordered To Find Sponsor For Unaccompanied Minor Seeking Abortion: http://keranews.org/post/federal-court-hears-case-unaccompanied-teenager-seeking-abortion-texas
Also: Detained immigrant teen asks full appeals court to let her get abortion: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/10/23/immigrant-teen-in-detention-asks-full-appeals-court-to-let-her-get-abortion
US: Grandparents raising grandkids: 3 things to know before taking on the new role (Includes video)
Today – October 20, 2017
As the opioid epidemic continues more grandparents find themselves in the unexpected position of raising their grandchildren. It’s become so common that for every child in foster care, 20 are being raised by a family member. This generosity saves the nation about $4 billion a year, according to the nonprofit Generations United, but there are unique challenges that come with the joy of raising a grandchild.
https://www.today.com/health/grandparents-raising-grandchildren-3-things-know-t117329
US: Monday Lead Letter: Privatizing foster care has failed nationwide
Florida Times-Union – October 20, 2017
When Sens. Orrin Hatch and Ron Wyden – the leading members of the U.S. Senate’s Finance Committee – released findings from a two-year investigation into foster care privatization, they did more than reveal “abuse, neglect and system failures at every level.”
Information Gateway Resource: Privatization: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/management/funding/fiscal-reform/privatization/
Also: Kids Are Dying in For-Profit Foster Care (Commentary): https://www.fatherly.com/love-money/kids-are-dying-in-for-profit-foster-care/
Also: Wyden And Hatch Push Bill To Make Foster Care System More Accountable: http://www.opb.org/news/article/foster-care-accountability-bill-oregon-ron-wyden/
US: Queer Youth Must Get Sexual Health Care While Incarcerated (Commentary)
Youth Today – October 20, 2017
The least we can do is demand that LGBTQ youth’s needs are concretely recognized in the agencies and systems created to serve young people. Does your local school district include LGBTQ-supportive sexual health literacy?
http://youthtoday.org/2017/10/queer-youth-must-get-sexual-health-care-while-incarcerated/
US: Trump picks Alaska Native corporate leader for top Indian Affairs job
Arctic Sounder – October 20, 2017
Tara Sweeney is executive vice president of external affairs for Arctic Slope Regional Corp. – the largest Alaska-owned business – and is a previous co-chair of the Alaska Federation of Natives, which is holding its annual convention in Anchorage this week. She’s from Utqia?vik, previously known as Barrow, and is Inupiaq. Specifically, she would oversee the bureaus of Indian Affairs and Indian Education. BIA manages a number of programs including tribal courts, tribal law enforcement, Indian child welfare and funding for roads in Native communities. BIA also oversees more than 55 million acres of land held in trust for Native Americans and tribes. BIE runs schools on reservations and provides support to tribal schools.
http://www.thearcticsounder.com/article/1742trump_picks_alaska_native_corporate_leader
INTERNATIONAL
Bangladesh: Protection of Rohingya children must be top priority (Commentary)
Relief Web – October 20, 2017
The majority of those arriving in Bangladesh from Myanmar are distressed and exhausted women and children. Plan International urges the Government of Bangladesh to facilitate unhindered access to the settlements in Cox’s Bazar so the child protection response can be scaled up.
Also: Protection of Rohingya children must be top priority: https://plan-international.org/news/2017-10-20-protection-rohingya-children-must-be-top-priority
Also: Bangladesh: Rohingya Camps a “Child Protection Disaster Waiting to Happen,” With More Than 450,000 Children Out of School: https://reliefweb.int/report/bangladesh/rohingya-camps-child-protection-disaster-waiting-happen-more-450000-children-out
https://reliefweb.int/report/bangladesh/protection-rohingya-children-must-be-top-priority
Canada: ‘It’s a tragedy’: How the flawed Motherisk hair test helped fracture families across Canada
Health Medicine Network – October 20, 2017
What the Motherisk lab determined to be chronic and frequent alcohol abuse, Whiteman says was alcohol in the hairspray she was using at the time. In a joint investigation with CBC Radio’s The Current and the Toronto Star, The Fifth Estate has talked with half a dozen families across Canada whose families were fractured in part due to faulty hair tests done by the Motherisk lab.
Europe: Migrant child brides put Europe in a spin
BBC News – September 30, 2017
Should a 14-year-old married girl who migrates to Europe be viewed as a child – or a spouse? The issue has put European governments in a spin: forcing a policy U-turn in Denmark, new legislation in the Netherlands and an agonised debate in Germany.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-37518289
Greece: Rapid Assessment of Mental Health, Psychosocial Needs and Services for Unaccompanied Children in Greece
Relief Web – October 20, 2017
In April 2017 UNICEF commissioned a rapid assessment of mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) needs and services for unaccompanied children (UAC) in Greece, in order to inform planning for expanded MHPSS services.
Guyana: State must act in best interest of the child (Commentary by Hasani Tinnie, Child Rights Alliance)
Guyana Chronicle Online – October 20, 2017
Recently, there have been alarming reports of the increase of sexual violence against boys. The case of the late Leonard Archibald, 13-year-old boy from East Berbice, demonstrated that certain members of the public did not report perpetrators of any form of child abuse.
http://guyanachronicle.com/2017/10/20/state-must-act-in-best-interest-of-the-child
Jordan: ‘Over 3000 unaccompanied, separated children entered Jordan since 2012’
Jordan Times – October 19, 2017
Defining UASC as “minors moving, voluntarily or involuntarily, for a variety of reasons, who become separated from their parents or other caregivers”, the report looked into the violations of those children’s rights, as set out in the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child.
AK: Alaska tribes and state sign historic document on tribal child welfare
Alaska Dispatch News – October 19, 2017
They hope the child welfare system will transform into something better if tribal services operate parallel to state services. That is what happened with health care when Alaska tribal organizations took over U.S. Indian Health Service hospitals and clinics. And the tribal organizations will be able to serve non-Native children too.
Also: Walker signs child welfare compact with Alaska tribes: http://www.newsminer.com/news/alaska_news/walker-signs-child-welfare-compact-with-alaska-tribes/article_9625848e-b542-11e7-a194-fbae0d9bdab6.html
Also: Alaska and its tribes sign child services compact: https://www.alaskapublic.org/2017/10/19/alaska-and-its-tribes-sign-child-services-compact/
AR: Cooper-Anthony advances justice and healing for children scarred by abuse
Catholic Health World – October 19, 2017
When a child walks through the door at Cooper-Anthony, he or she is greeted by an advocate who will assist the child and family with any questions or resources they may need. If an abuser is prosecuted, the advocate sometimes accompanies the family to court as support. Law enforcement investigators, medical providers, child advocates and mental health counselors come together at the center, so the abuse victim is spared the stress of having to go to an emergency room, police stations and other unfamiliar locations. The sensitive, centralized approach reduces the risk of further traumatizing the child, said Karen Wright, a licensed professional counselor who directs the center.
CA: & GA: Director who steered DFCS through crisis leaving for Calif. post
Georgia Health News – October 19, 2017
Bobby Cagle, who as DFCS director is credited with stabilizing the long-troubled state agency, is departing for a child welfare position in Los Angeles. He is being replaced by the agency’s chief of staff, Virginia Pryor, who will be interim DFCS director, the governor’s office announced this week. Cagle will depart to lead the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services on Nov. 10.
http://www.georgiahealthnews.com/2017/10/director-strengthened-dfcs-leaving-post-california/
CA: NorCal 6-year-old awarded $8.4M for unreported child abuse (Includes video)
KCRA – October 19, 2017
A paralyzed 6-year-old boy and his adoptive mother won an $8.4 million lawsuit in Amador County against multiple defendants, including Sutter Health and the boy’s biological family. A jury found that a doctor and other hospital staff failed to report child abuse when the boy came into the emergency room at Sutter Amador Hospital in Jackson when he was just 7-weeks-old.
Also: Record Multi-Million Verdict Awarded In Case Against California Hospital, Doctor And Nurse Practitioner For Failing To Report Reasonably Suspected Child Abuse: http://business.dailytimesleader.com/dailytimesleader/news/read?GUID=35132287
http://www.kcra.com/article/norcal-6-year-old-awarded-dollar84m-for-unreported-child-abuse/13056010
CO: DHS acknowledges problems with background checks for child welfare caseworkers
KUSA – October 19, 2017
A report from city auditor Timothy O’Brien states “Denver Human Services can’t show that all its child welfare caseworkers have passed background checks or prove that two new policies are effective.” In a sample of 60 caseworkers reviewed by the auditor’s team, 57 percent had “missing or incomplete” documentation of background checks, the report says.
Press Release: DHS Statement on Child Welfare Audit: http://www.denvergov.org/content/denvergov/en/denver-human-services/news/2017/dhs-statement-on-child-welfare-audit.html
Also: Child Welfare Division had Poor Documentation of Background Checks: http://www.denvergov.org/content/denvergov/en/denver-auditor/newsroom/2017/child-welfare-division-had-poor-documentation-of-background-chec.html
Also: More than half of Denver child-welfare workers couldn’t prove they passed background checks, audit finds: http://www.denverpost.com/2017/10/19/child-welfare-workers-couldnt-prove-passed-background-checks-audit-finds/
DC: Almost half of D.C. children have suffered a traumatic experience, according to federal survey
Washington Post – October 19, 2017
In the District, 47 percent of children and teens have experienced a traumatic event, such as the death or incarceration of a parent, witnessing or being a victim of violence, or living with someone who has been suicidal or who has a drug or alcohol problem, according to new federal data. In the Maryland and Virginia, the rate was 41 percent.
2016 National Survey of Children’s Health: Indicator 6.13: Children experienced one or more adverse childhood experiences from the list of 9 ACEs: http://childhealthdata.org/browse/survey/results?q=4783&r=1
FL: Opioid Crisis Forces Grandparents to Raise Their Grandkids (Includes video)
NBC News – October 20, 2017
As the opioid epidemic forces increasing numbers of children into foster care or otherwise out of their parents’ custody, grandparents like the Krietemeiers are stepping in. Those grandparents face the daunting task of caring for young, vulnerable children while navigating courtrooms and complex child welfare systems, often with little financial or social support – all while coping with their adult offspring’s addiction.
FL: Privatized foster care a failure in Florida (Commentary by H. Talenfeld, Florida’s Children First)
Miami Herald – October 20, 2017
When Sens. Orrin Hatch and Ron Wyden, the chairman and ranking member respectively of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, released findings from a two-year investigation into foster care privatization, it did more than reveal “abuse, neglect and system failures at every level.” It confirmed what Floridians have known for years, though Florida did not respond to senators’ request for information. As implemented in Florida, privatized foster care is an experiment that has failed.
http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/article179890486.html
IA: To prevent full-blown opioid crisis, Iowa needs overdose of vigilance (Includes video)
Des Moines Register – October 19, 2017
Drug overdoses reduce overall life expectancy in this country. They strain police departments, human services systems, hospitals and paramedics. And they devastate families. Iowa’s capital city is “definitely seeing a rise” in overdoses, said Lt. Tony Sposeto, with the Des Moines Fire Department’s emergency medical services team. In 2016, these first responders administered 191 doses of Narcan, a drug used to reverse an opioid overdose. The first nine months of this year, they used it 202 times.
IN: Legal yet controversial drug puts child’s custody in jeopardy (Includes video)
Tristate – October 19, 2017
Jaelah’s mom Lelah says Jaelah used to have upwards of 30 seizures per day, but when she took her in to get the condition checked out, the family doctor said nothing was wrong. After a trip to Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis, Jaelah was diagnosed with myoclonic seizures, but her new treatment, a drug with many known side effects called Keppra worried her parents almost as much as her condition itself. That’s when the family sought out a second opinion, and an unorthodox treatment called Charlotte’s Webb, an oil derived from hemp, but they say the hospital then took action, calling in child protection services.
ME: Our View: Keeping families together could help with Maine drug fight
Portland Press Herald – October 20, 2017
As opioid addiction reaches epidemic proportions in Maine, it’s forcing hundreds of children a year into state care. But what if there were a way to keep kids with their mothers and fathers in a safe environment while the adults stay clean and get an around-the-clock role model on good parenting? There is – it’s called “shared family care.”
WI: Corrections secretary: juvenile prison safe despite assault
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel – October 19, 2017
Wisconsin Corrections Secretary Jon Litscher declared the state’s juvenile prison complex safe Thursday, a week after a teacher there was knocked out by an inmate and days after another assault occurred. “I think Lincoln Hills-Copper Lake, with the training that’s involved and the type of the activities that we do with working with our youth, that it is a safe place for staff and offenders and we will continue to do the best in programming that will allow these young people to come back to their communities in a respectful and responsible manner,” Litscher told reporters.
US: Appeals court temporarily halts order allowing abortion for teen immigration detainee
Politico – October 19, 2017
Acting with unusual haste, D.C. Circuit panel sets oral arguments for Friday. A federal appeals court in Washington has temporarily halted a judge’s order requiring the federal government to allow a pregnant, 17-year-old immigration detainee in Texas to get an abortion. A three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order Thursday setting an unusually hastily scheduled oral argument session on the case for Friday morning. It also put on hold part of a lower court judge’s order that told officials to make arrangements for the teen to receive an abortion on either Friday or Saturday of this week.
Also: D.C. Appeals Court Temporarily Halts Order Allowing Abortion for Teenage Immigrant Detainee: http://freebeacon.com/issues/d-c-appeals-court-halts-order-allowing-abortion-teenage-immigrant-detainee/
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/19/teen-immigrant-detainee-appeals-court-243944
US: Inside the FBI operation to rescue kids from sex trafficking
WVNS – October 19, 2017
The FBI is cracking down on what it calls a national epidemic of kids caught up in sex trafficking. FBI agents and local police have been carrying out a nationwide sweep since last week to rescue children involving FBI field offices from all 50 states. It’s called Operation Cross Country – part of a national initiative called Innocence Lost. So far, 84 kids have been recovered and 120 alleged traffickers have been arrested this year. Among the areas being targeted is Baltimore, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues.
Also: 1 San Diegan Recovered in National FBI Sex Trafficking Bust: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/1-San-Diegan-Recovered-in-National-FBI-Sex-Trafficking-Bust-451752163.html
Also: FBI, Baltimore Police Join Forces To Combat Sex Trafficking: http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2017/10/19/fbi-baltimore-police-join-combat-sex-trafficking/
Also: Attorney General Applauds FBI’s Massive Sex Trafficking Crackdown: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/attorney-general-applauds-fbis-massive-sex-trafficking-crackdown-0
Information Gateway Resource: Human Trafficking: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/trafficking/
US: International Adoptions Drop to New Low as Evangelical Funding Spikes
Christianity Today – October 19, 2017
Americans adopted 5,372 children in the year ending September 2016, down from a 35-year low the 12 months before. The number of foreign adoptions annually has fallen to less than a quarter of the totals during peak years over a decade ago, with 22,884 adoptions recorded in 2004.
Information Gateway resource: Intercountry Adoption: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/adoption/adopt-ethics/types/intercountry/
US: Senate Finance Investigation A Possible Precursor to Renewed Family First Push
Chronicle of Social Change – October 19, 2017
The ultimate indictment of this system is there is so little oversight that the government can’t even confirm the gaps that caring advocates tell us are getting worse. What’s even more outrageous is that efforts to fix flaws in the system have been held up by stonewalling in the United States Senate.
US: Senate Foster Care Bill Would Incentivize Kin, Monitor Private Providers and Child Fatalities
Chronicle of Social Change – October 19, 2017
Leaders of the Senate Finance Committee introduced a bill Wednesday that would incentivize kinship placements in foster care, establish national child welfare standards on worker caseloads, and require better assessment of both child fatalities and the performance of private providers.
INTERNATIONAL
Australia: Private tutors, sports coaches face legal obligation to report child neglect
Melbourne Age – October 20, 2017
Private tutors, sports coaches and dance teachers could be placed under a legal obligation to report children feared at risk of neglect or abuse under an overhaul of the child protection system being considered by the NSW government.
United Kingdom: ‘The denial of austerity’s impact on social services is truly shocking’
Community Care – October 20, 2017
Ray Jones writes about how ministers and companies ignoring the impact of austerity is placing the blame on directors.
http://www.communitycare.co.uk/2017/10/20/denial-austeritys-impact-social-services-truly-shocking/
United Kingdom: Thousands of children ‘tormented’ with suicidal thoughts call helpline, NSPCC says
GetWestLondon – October 19, 2017
“I keep getting bad thoughts and hearing voices in my head. They tell me that I’m not good enough.” These were the words of a young girl who called NSPCC’s Childline service in a desperate plea for help.
AK: Alaska tribes and state sign historic document on tribal child welfare
Alaska Dispatch News – October 19, 2017
They hope the child welfare system will transform into something better if tribal services operate parallel to state services. That is what happened with health care when Alaska tribal organizations took over U.S. Indian Health Service hospitals and clinics. And the tribal organizations will be able to serve non-Native children too.
Also: Walker signs child welfare compact with Alaska tribes: http://www.newsminer.com/news/alaska_news/walker-signs-child-welfare-compact-with-alaska-tribes/article_9625848e-b542-11e7-a194-fbae0d9bdab6.html
Also: Alaska and its tribes sign child services compact: https://www.alaskapublic.org/2017/10/19/alaska-and-its-tribes-sign-child-services-compact/
AR: Cooper-Anthony advances justice and healing for children scarred by abuse
Catholic Health World – October 19, 2017
When a child walks through the door at Cooper-Anthony, he or she is greeted by an advocate who will assist the child and family with any questions or resources they may need. If an abuser is prosecuted, the advocate sometimes accompanies the family to court as support. Law enforcement investigators, medical providers, child advocates and mental health counselors come together at the center, so the abuse victim is spared the stress of having to go to an emergency room, police stations and other unfamiliar locations. The sensitive, centralized approach reduces the risk of further traumatizing the child, said Karen Wright, a licensed professional counselor who directs the center.
CA: & GA: Director who steered DFCS through crisis leaving for Calif. post
Georgia Health News – October 19, 2017
Bobby Cagle, who as DFCS director is credited with stabilizing the long-troubled state agency, is departing for a child welfare position in Los Angeles. He is being replaced by the agency’s chief of staff, Virginia Pryor, who will be interim DFCS director, the governor’s office announced this week. Cagle will depart to lead the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services on Nov. 10.
http://www.georgiahealthnews.com/2017/10/director-strengthened-dfcs-leaving-post-california/
CA: NorCal 6-year-old awarded $8.4M for unreported child abuse (Includes video)
KCRA – October 19, 2017
A paralyzed 6-year-old boy and his adoptive mother won an $8.4 million lawsuit in Amador County against multiple defendants, including Sutter Health and the boy’s biological family. A jury found that a doctor and other hospital staff failed to report child abuse when the boy came into the emergency room at Sutter Amador Hospital in Jackson when he was just 7-weeks-old.
Also: Record Multi-Million Verdict Awarded In Case Against California Hospital, Doctor And Nurse Practitioner For Failing To Report Reasonably Suspected Child Abuse: http://business.dailytimesleader.com/dailytimesleader/news/read?GUID=35132287
http://www.kcra.com/article/norcal-6-year-old-awarded-dollar84m-for-unreported-child-abuse/13056010
CO: DHS acknowledges problems with background checks for child welfare caseworkers
KUSA – October 19, 2017
A report from city auditor Timothy O’Brien states “Denver Human Services can’t show that all its child welfare caseworkers have passed background checks or prove that two new policies are effective.” In a sample of 60 caseworkers reviewed by the auditor’s team, 57 percent had “missing or incomplete” documentation of background checks, the report says.
Press Release: DHS Statement on Child Welfare Audit: http://www.denvergov.org/content/denvergov/en/denver-human-services/news/2017/dhs-statement-on-child-welfare-audit.html
Also: Child Welfare Division had Poor Documentation of Background Checks: http://www.denvergov.org/content/denvergov/en/denver-auditor/newsroom/2017/child-welfare-division-had-poor-documentation-of-background-chec.html
Also: More than half of Denver child-welfare workers couldn’t prove they passed background checks, audit finds: http://www.denverpost.com/2017/10/19/child-welfare-workers-couldnt-prove-passed-background-checks-audit-finds/
DC: Almost half of D.C. children have suffered a traumatic experience, according to federal survey
Washington Post – October 19, 2017
In the District, 47 percent of children and teens have experienced a traumatic event, such as the death or incarceration of a parent, witnessing or being a victim of violence, or living with someone who has been suicidal or who has a drug or alcohol problem, according to new federal data. In the Maryland and Virginia, the rate was 41 percent.
2016 National Survey of Children’s Health: Indicator 6.13: Children experienced one or more adverse childhood experiences from the list of 9 ACEs: http://childhealthdata.org/browse/survey/results?q=4783&r=1
FL: Opioid Crisis Forces Grandparents to Raise Their Grandkids (Includes video)
NBC News – October 20, 2017
As the opioid epidemic forces increasing numbers of children into foster care or otherwise out of their parents’ custody, grandparents like the Krietemeiers are stepping in. Those grandparents face the daunting task of caring for young, vulnerable children while navigating courtrooms and complex child welfare systems, often with little financial or social support – all while coping with their adult offspring’s addiction.
FL: Privatized foster care a failure in Florida (Commentary by H. Talenfeld, Florida’s Children First)
Miami Herald – October 20, 2017
When Sens. Orrin Hatch and Ron Wyden, the chairman and ranking member respectively of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, released findings from a two-year investigation into foster care privatization, it did more than reveal “abuse, neglect and system failures at every level.” It confirmed what Floridians have known for years, though Florida did not respond to senators’ request for information. As implemented in Florida, privatized foster care is an experiment that has failed.
http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/article179890486.html
IA: To prevent full-blown opioid crisis, Iowa needs overdose of vigilance (Includes video)
Des Moines Register – October 19, 2017
Drug overdoses reduce overall life expectancy in this country. They strain police departments, human services systems, hospitals and paramedics. And they devastate families. Iowa’s capital city is “definitely seeing a rise” in overdoses, said Lt. Tony Sposeto, with the Des Moines Fire Department’s emergency medical services team. In 2016, these first responders administered 191 doses of Narcan, a drug used to reverse an opioid overdose. The first nine months of this year, they used it 202 times.
IN: Legal yet controversial drug puts child’s custody in jeopardy (Includes video)
Tristate – October 19, 2017
Jaelah’s mom Lelah says Jaelah used to have upwards of 30 seizures per day, but when she took her in to get the condition checked out, the family doctor said nothing was wrong. After a trip to Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis, Jaelah was diagnosed with myoclonic seizures, but her new treatment, a drug with many known side effects called Keppra worried her parents almost as much as her condition itself. That’s when the family sought out a second opinion, and an unorthodox treatment called Charlotte’s Webb, an oil derived from hemp, but they say the hospital then took action, calling in child protection services.
ME: Our View: Keeping families together could help with Maine drug fight
Portland Press Herald – October 20, 2017
As opioid addiction reaches epidemic proportions in Maine, it’s forcing hundreds of children a year into state care. But what if there were a way to keep kids with their mothers and fathers in a safe environment while the adults stay clean and get an around-the-clock role model on good parenting? There is – it’s called “shared family care.”
WI: Corrections secretary: juvenile prison safe despite assault
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel – October 19, 2017
Wisconsin Corrections Secretary Jon Litscher declared the state’s juvenile prison complex safe Thursday, a week after a teacher there was knocked out by an inmate and days after another assault occurred. “I think Lincoln Hills-Copper Lake, with the training that’s involved and the type of the activities that we do with working with our youth, that it is a safe place for staff and offenders and we will continue to do the best in programming that will allow these young people to come back to their communities in a respectful and responsible manner,” Litscher told reporters.
US: Appeals court temporarily halts order allowing abortion for teen immigration detainee
Politico – October 19, 2017
Acting with unusual haste, D.C. Circuit panel sets oral arguments for Friday. A federal appeals court in Washington has temporarily halted a judge’s order requiring the federal government to allow a pregnant, 17-year-old immigration detainee in Texas to get an abortion. A three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order Thursday setting an unusually hastily scheduled oral argument session on the case for Friday morning. It also put on hold part of a lower court judge’s order that told officials to make arrangements for the teen to receive an abortion on either Friday or Saturday of this week.
Also: D.C. Appeals Court Temporarily Halts Order Allowing Abortion for Teenage Immigrant Detainee: http://freebeacon.com/issues/d-c-appeals-court-halts-order-allowing-abortion-teenage-immigrant-detainee/
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/19/teen-immigrant-detainee-appeals-court-243944
US: Inside the FBI operation to rescue kids from sex trafficking
WVNS – October 19, 2017
The FBI is cracking down on what it calls a national epidemic of kids caught up in sex trafficking. FBI agents and local police have been carrying out a nationwide sweep since last week to rescue children involving FBI field offices from all 50 states. It’s called Operation Cross Country – part of a national initiative called Innocence Lost. So far, 84 kids have been recovered and 120 alleged traffickers have been arrested this year. Among the areas being targeted is Baltimore, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues.
Also: 1 San Diegan Recovered in National FBI Sex Trafficking Bust: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/1-San-Diegan-Recovered-in-National-FBI-Sex-Trafficking-Bust-451752163.html
Also: FBI, Baltimore Police Join Forces To Combat Sex Trafficking: http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2017/10/19/fbi-baltimore-police-join-combat-sex-trafficking/
Also: Attorney General Applauds FBI’s Massive Sex Trafficking Crackdown: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/attorney-general-applauds-fbis-massive-sex-trafficking-crackdown-0
Information Gateway Resource: Human Trafficking: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/trafficking/
US: International Adoptions Drop to New Low as Evangelical Funding Spikes
Christianity Today – October 19, 2017
Americans adopted 5,372 children in the year ending September 2016, down from a 35-year low the 12 months before. The number of foreign adoptions annually has fallen to less than a quarter of the totals during peak years over a decade ago, with 22,884 adoptions recorded in 2004.
Information Gateway resource: Intercountry Adoption: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/adoption/adopt-ethics/types/intercountry/
US: Senate Finance Investigation A Possible Precursor to Renewed Family First Push
Chronicle of Social Change – October 19, 2017
The ultimate indictment of this system is there is so little oversight that the government can’t even confirm the gaps that caring advocates tell us are getting worse. What’s even more outrageous is that efforts to fix flaws in the system have been held up by stonewalling in the United States Senate.
US: Senate Foster Care Bill Would Incentivize Kin, Monitor Private Providers and Child Fatalities
Chronicle of Social Change – October 19, 2017
Leaders of the Senate Finance Committee introduced a bill Wednesday that would incentivize kinship placements in foster care, establish national child welfare standards on worker caseloads, and require better assessment of both child fatalities and the performance of private providers.
INTERNATIONAL
Australia: Private tutors, sports coaches face legal obligation to report child neglect
Melbourne Age – October 20, 2017
Private tutors, sports coaches and dance teachers could be placed under a legal obligation to report children feared at risk of neglect or abuse under an overhaul of the child protection system being considered by the NSW government.
United Kingdom: ‘The denial of austerity’s impact on social services is truly shocking’
Community Care – October 20, 2017
Ray Jones writes about how ministers and companies ignoring the impact of austerity is placing the blame on directors.
http://www.communitycare.co.uk/2017/10/20/denial-austeritys-impact-social-services-truly-shocking/
United Kingdom: Thousands of children ‘tormented’ with suicidal thoughts call helpline, NSPCC says
GetWestLondon – October 19, 2017
“I keep getting bad thoughts and hearing voices in my head. They tell me that I’m not good enough.” These were the words of a young girl who called NSPCC’s Childline service in a desperate plea for help.
AK: State Native leaders say Tara Sweeney is well suited for Trump’s top Indian affairs job
Alaska Dispatch News – October 17, 2017
Tara Sweeney, 44 and an executive vice president of Arctic Slope Regional Corp., is being nominated by President Donald Trump to the nation’s top post with oversight over Native American matters. If the U.S. Senate confirms his pick, she’ll be the first Alaska Native and the second woman to hold the position of assistant secretary of Interior for Indian affairs.
CA: Here Are California’s Newest Child Welfare Laws
Chronicle of Social Change – October 17, 2017
This year, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed an unusually robust number of bills aimed at helping foster youth and other at-risk children and families. Last week, we noted several pieces of juvenile justice legislation signed into law in the state, including a ban on the practice of assessing administrative fees on children in the juvenile justice system and increased protections for children 15 years old and under during police interrogation. Gov. Brown also signed the following bills.
https://chronicleofsocialchange.org/analysis/here-are-californias-newest-child-welfare-laws/28451
CA: In rare move judge reverses jury verdict, rules county violated family’s rights
San Diego Union-Tribune – October 17, 2017
In a rare move, a San Diego federal judge reversed a jury verdict that had cleared county social workers of fault for their conduct in an investigation into child abuse allegations against a family. U.S. District Court Judge Roger Benitez also concluded that a longstanding county policy allowing investigators to interview children at their school without the consent of parents or a court order was at fault.
http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/courts/sd-me-judge-county-20171017-story.html
CO: Pueblo County needs foster parents, workers dispel myths on foster care (Includes video)
KOAA – October 17, 2017
Pueblo County Social Services wants to dispel some myths about foster care. County workers say there are several reasons why people don’t get involved in foster care and why they should. One myth about foster care is that you have to be married to be a foster parent. Another is that foster care costs money. A third myth is that foster kids are troublemakers.
CT: A Gun to His Head as a Child. In Prison as an Adult (Includes video)
New York Times – October 15, 2017
“Childhood trauma is a huge factor within the criminal justice system,” said Christopher Wildeman, a sociologist at Cornell University and co-director of the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect. “It is among the most important things that shapes addictive and criminal behavior in adulthood.”
Information Gateway resource: Long-Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/can/impact/long-term-consequences-of-child-abuse-and-neglect/
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/15/us/childhood-trauma-prison-addiction.html
GA: Deal appoints Division of Family and Children Services interim director (Press release)
Office of the Governor of the State of Georgia Nathan Deal – October 17, 2017
Gov. Nathan Deal today appointed Georgia Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) Chief of Staff Virginia Pryor to be the interim director of DFCS. Pryor will replace Director Bobby Cagle, who will depart to lead the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services on Nov. 10.
Also: Georgia governor appoints Cagle’s interim replacement: http://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article179349576.html
GA: Instability of poverty can cause children to struggle
Gainesville Times – October 17, 2017
Local officials who work with children say the lack of stability in a family living at or below the poverty line can challenge children in a variety of areas including mental and physical health, school performance, behavior and self-esteem. “What we know is children need stability in order to thrive,” said Kristen Green, an assistant professor of psychology at Brenau University and a certified clinical child and adolescent psychologist.
https://www.gainesvilletimes.com/news/instability-poverty-can-cause-children-struggle/
IL: DCFS director: Changes made after Semaj’s death will improve agency’s ‘line of sight’
Chicago Tribune – October 18, 2017
The director of the state Department of Children and Family Services said Tuesday that lessons learned from the Semaj Crosby case will improve the agency’s “line of sight” as it deals with the people it is charged to serve. Beverly “B.J.” Walker updated a group of about 30 people in Joliet about changes being made within DCFS in the wake of criticism following the death of the 17-month-old Joliet Township girl, who was found dead in April under a couch in her home after a 30-hour search.
KS: Editorial: State kids need more from their foster-care system
Wichita Eagle – October 17, 2017
The state’s foster-care system is competing for Kansans’ attention with a beleaguered prison system and an ongoing school-funding dilemma. It’s a competition in which the Kansas Department for Children and Families would rather not participate. All we’d like the agency to do is take care of our most neglected children – and that’s not happening like it should under secretary Phyllis Gilmore’s leadership.
http://www.kansas.com/opinion/editorials/article179299846.html
KS: Foster Care Crisis Centers to Open Across Kansas (Audio)
Kansas News Service – October 17, 2017
Amid revelations that children have been spending the night in agency offices, one of the two contractors managing cases in Kansas’s privatized foster care system is opening crisis centers across the state. From the Kansas News Service, Madeline Fox reports.
http://kansaspublicradio.org/kpr-news/foster-care-crisis-center-open-across-kansas
KY: State working out how to pay relatives who provide foster care under recent court decision
Courier-Journal – October 17, 2017
Kentucky’s top human services official said Tuesday that the state will comply with a court order to pay relatives who provide free foster care the same as they do licensed foster families. But Vickie Yates Brown Glisson, secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, said the cabinet is still analyzing how to apply the court decision.
LA: New Safe Haven Set to Reduce Newborn Abandonment
KEDM – October 17, 2017
The state Department of Children and Family Services has posted an online mapping tool called Safe Haven Facility Locator in an effort to prevent newborn abandonment. Child Protective Services Program Manager Mona Michelli says a mother can visit louisianasafehaven.com to find a place where they can give up a child less than 60 days old.
http://kedm.org/post/new-safe-haven-set-reduce-newborn-abandonment#stream/0
ME: LGBTQ rights group seeks report on conditions at Long Creek juvenile facility
Portland Press Herald – October 17, 2017
One year after a transgender teenager used a bedsheet and hanged himself at the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland, a group that advocates for LGBTQ rights has filed a Freedom of Access Act request for a report on conditions at the state-run correctional facility for juvenile offenders. Boston-based GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders, or GLAD, a nonprofit legal rights organization, filed the request Tuesday with the Maine Department of Corrections.
http://www.pressherald.com/2017/10/17/glad-seeks-report-on-conditions-at-long-creek/
MI: Judge rescinds order in sex offender custody case
Associated Press – October 17, 2017
A Michigan judge on Tuesday rescinded his order that gave a convicted sex offender joint legal custody of a child born to a woman who said the man raped her when she was 12. Sanilac County Judge Gregory Ross stressed that he was unaware of Christopher Mirasolo’s two previous criminal sexual conduct convictions – including one concerning the boy’s mother – when he issued the original ruling last month. The new order grants Mirasolo no parental rights.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/10/17/hearing-scheduled-in-michigan-on-sex-offender-custody-case.html
NC: New Guardians ad Litem
Outer Banks Sentinel – October 17, 2017
The Guardian ad Litem Program for the First Judicial District has sworn in seven new Guardian ad Litem Child Advocates. The volunteers received training on the role of government agencies in child welfare, child welfare law and the child protection system within the courts, developing cultural competence, and understanding families and children, plus practical instruction on communication, court report writing and appearing in court.
OK: Cherokee Nation, grappling with opioid crisis, takes legal action (Includes video)
CBS News – October 18, 2017
Oklahoma has one of the most severe opioid problems in the nation, and it’s especially bad in the 14 counties that make up the Cherokee Nation. “It’s devastating to our people,” said Todd Hembree, the Cherokee Nation’s attorney general. Earlier this year, he sued America’s three largest pharmacies — Walmart, Walgreens and CVS — and the three largest prescription drug distributors, AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson. “They know what they are doing is wrong and they need to be held accountable,” Hembree said.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cherokee-nation-opioid-crisis-legal-action/
OK: Family Speaks After Child Dies In Foster Care (Includes video)
News on 6 – October 17, 2017
“They took our baby to protect him from us and then failed miserably in protecting him themselves,” Matt said. “Sometimes we feel DHS oversteps their boundaries. Our kids were taken not because of any abuse directly to them,” he said. “We feel like should have gotten us family counseling as a family as a whole including the kids, instead of just ripping us apart.”
http://www.newson6.com/story/36620477/family-speaks-after-child-dies-in-foster-care
PA: Overdose cases taking toll on social workers, experts say
Tribune Democrat – October 18, 2017
Behind the scenes – and across Pennsylvania – that fallout from the opioid epidemic has created growing and complex challenges for the county caseworkers tasked with handling those cases, men and women “set up for failure” by the state’s broken child welfare system, according to Auditor General Eugene DePasquale.
SC: Communities are better because of kinship caregivers (Commentary)
Greenville Online – October 16, 2017
South Carolina has more than 130,000 children who are either temporarily or permanently living with a family member or those defined as “fictive” kin. Kinship caregivers are one of our state’s greatest resources. They are grandparents, aunts, uncles, neighbors, family friends, godparents and others who have a meaningful connection to the child that they are now caring for because the child cannot live with his or her parents.
WI: Eau Claire County joins opioid fight
Leader-Telegram – October 18, 2017
Eau Claire County is joining a potential lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies in an attempt to recover its costs for dealing with the opioid epidemic. County supervisors voted 24-1 Tuesday night to sign on with attorneys who intend to take legal action against several drugmakers that marketed opioid drugs for long-term use. Counties have been directly impacted by the opioid epidemic through increased foster care placements, court services, social work needs, medical and mental health issues, according to a memo to the County Board.
http://www.leadertelegram.com/News/Front-Page/2017/10/18/County-joins-opioid-fight.html
WV: State struggles with increase in foster children
Herald-Dispatch – October 18, 2017
More than 6,100 children are in the West Virginia foster care system as of October and the number keeps growing, according to the acting Bureau for Children and Families commissioner Linda Watts.
Also: Drug epidemic drives increase in foster care numbers, commissioner says: https://www.wvgazettemail.com/drug-epidemic-drives-increase-in-foster-care-numbers-commissioner-says/article_9c3ae89e-cc74-5979-8ef9-85dbd4afd6f9.html
US: Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Child and Family Services Plan (CFSP), Annual Progress and Services Review (APSR), and Annual Budget Expenses Request and Estimated Expenditures (CFS-101) (From U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families)
Federal Register – October 18, 2017
Under title IV-B, subparts 1 and 2, of the Social Security Act (the Act), States, Territories, and Tribes are required to submit a Child and Family Services Plan (CFSP). The CFSP lays the groundwork for a system of coordinated, integrated, and culturally relevant family services for the subsequent five years (45 CFR 1357.15(a)(1)).
Also: Report: https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2017-10-18/pdf/2017-22519.pdf
US: Adoption Benefits Come in All Sizes (Press release)
Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption – October 17, 2017
The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption is excited to announce its 2017 Best Adoption Friendly Workplaces by size. Each year the Foundation ranks the nation’s employers that offer the best adoption benefits to their employees.
US: Amid decline in international adoptions to U.S., boys outnumber girls for the first time
True Viral News – October 17, 2017
The number of children from outside the U.S. adopted by Americans continued its steady decline in 2016, according to data from the U.S. Department of State. And for the first time on record, males outnumbered females among adoptees from abroad, a trend driven by changing adoption patterns in China.
Also: Report: Amid decline in international adoptions to U.S., boys outnumber girls for the first time: http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/10/17/amid-decline-in-international-adoptions-to-u-s-boys-outnumber-girls-for-the-first-time/
US: Drug overdoses killed more Americans last year than the Vietnam War
CBS News – October 17, 2017
The opioid epidemic ravaging the United States is taking a grim and growing toll. The latest numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that 64,070 people died from drug overdoses in 2016. That’s a 21 percent increase over the year before. Approximately three-fourths of all drug overdose deaths are now caused by opioids – a class of drugs that includes prescription painkillers as well as heroin and potent synthetic versions like fentanyl. A new report from Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), an independent research organization that focuses on “critical issues in policing,” puts those numbers into context.
Also: Report: The Unprecedented Opioid Epidemic: As Overdoses Become a Leading Cause of Death, Police, Sherrifs, and Health Agencies Must Step Up Their Response: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/opioids2017.pdf
US: Hatch, Wyden Respond to Significant Need to Improve Government Oversight Following Foster Care Investigation (Press release)
U.S. Senate Committee on Finance – October 17, 2017
U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) today released a bipartisan report detailing their two-year investigation into foster care privatization and the increasing practice of states tasking private entities (for-profit and non-profit) with protecting our nation’s most vulnerable children. As a result of the investigation’s findings, Hatch and Wyden also introduced legislation, the Child Welfare Oversight and Accountability Act of 2017 (S. 1964), to address issues raised by the report.
Also: Report: An Examination of Foster Care in the United States and the Use of Privatization: https://www.finance.senate.gov/download/an-examination-of-foster-care-in-the-united-states-and-the-use-of-privatization
Also: Wyden And Hatch Push Bill To Make Foster Care System More Accountable: http://kuow.org/post/wyden-and-hatch-push-bill-make-foster-care-system-more-accountable
Also: Wyden Introduces Bipartisan Child Welfare Act to Improve Government Oversight of Foster Care: https://www.wyden.senate.gov/news/press-releases/wyden-introduces-bipartisan-child-welfare-act-to-improve-government-oversight-of-foster-care
Also: Franken bill on child protection passes Senate; http://www.brainerddispatch.com/news/4345266-franken-bill-child-protection-passes-senate
US: One-Size-Fits-All Approach Isn’t Enough to Prevent Child Abuse in U.S. Army Families
PolicyLab – October 17, 2017
New research from PolicyLab gives us a better understanding of which U.S. Army families with a deployed soldier will need the Family Advocacy Program’s services and when they will need those services most. What we found suggests that a one-size-fits-all approach isn’t enough to prevent child abuse and neglect in Army families.
Study: Family Characteristics Associated With Child Maltreatment Across the Deployment Cycle of U.S. Army Soldiers: http://militarymedicine.amsus.org/doi/10.7205/MILMED-D-17-00031
Policy Brief: Improving Child Abuse Reporting and Treatment for Military Families: http://policylab.chop.edu/sites/default/files/pdf/publications/Improving_Child_Abuse_Reporting_Military_Families_Brief.pdf
US: Religious Exemptions: The Coordinated Attack on LGBT People, Women, Parents, Children, and Health Care (Opinion)
Huffington Post – October 17, 2017
Today, the Movement Advancement Project (MAP) released a new report, Tipping the Scales: The Coordinated Attack on LGBT People, Women, Parents, Children and Health Care, which examines this troubling shift towards religious exemption laws that promote a singular religious viewpoint and give businesses, organizations and individuals a license to discriminate against and harm others.
Report: Tipping the Scales: The Coordinated Attack on LGBT People, Women, Parents, Children, and Health Care: http://www.lgbtmap.org/religious-exemptions-license-to-discriminate
INTERNATIONAL
International: October 2017 Special Update – Open Debate on Children and Armed Conflict
Watchlist on Childrena and Armed Conflict – October 18, 2017
This United Nations (UN) Security Council Special Children and Armed Conflict Monthly Update provides recommendations to Member States ahead of the October 31 Security Council Open Debate on Children and Armed Conflict, to be held under the Presidency of France. At the Debate, the Secretary-General (SG) will present his annual report on CAC pursuant to Security Council Resolution 2225 (2015), covering the period from January 1 to December 31, 2016. France will take the opportunity of the Debate to encourage more endorsements and follow up to the Paris Principles and Paris Commitments, and plans to introduce a Presidential Statement for adoption.
Also: Report: http://watchlist.org/wp-content/uploads/october-2017-cac-open-debate-special-bulletin-watchlist.pdf
http://watchlist.org/publications/october-2017-special-update-open-debate-children-armed-conflict/
International: Six Leading Social Innovators Named GLG Social Impact Fellows (Press release)
GLG (Gerson Lehrman Group, Inc.) – October 17, 2017
GLG (Gerson Lehrman Group, Inc.), the world’s leading membership for one-on-one professional learning, today announced the fourth class of its Social Impact Fellowship (GLGSocialImpact.com). The 2017 GLG Social Impact Fellows group includes Josh MacAlister – Founder & CEO, Frontline; London, United Kingdom (social work and child welfare).
https://glg.it/news/six-leading-social-innovators-named-glg-social-impact-fellows/
United Kingdom: Government pledge £16 million to tackle drug dependency and support children in care (Press release)
U.K. Department for Culture, Media and Sport – October 18, 2017
Projects that combat drug and alcohol dependency and support children in care will receive more than £16 million, Minister for Sport and Civil Society Tracey Crouch announced today. The money is the first round of investment from the £80 million Life Chances Fund and will: provide specialist services for children in foster care and residential homes; help drug and alcohol dependent adults find full-time work, reduce addiction and cut unnecessary A&E admissions.
CA: Confronting a crisis of homeless youth in California (Commentary)
San Francisco Chronicle – October 16, 2017
In California, we see the dramatic effects of youth homelessness – and our failure to address it – everywhere. We have the highest number of homeless youth in the country, with a minimum of 12,000 young people living on our streets, 80 percent of whom were unsheltered as of 2015.
CA: Slow but steady progress being made against sex trafficking in San Diego
San Diego Union Tribune – October 14, 2017
As the director of programs for GenerateHope, an emergency shelter for victims of sex trafficking, part of Susan Munsey’s mission is telling people just how bad the problem is in San Diego. When she gets to the number of likely victims in the county – an average of 5,000 children and adults – “there is almost always an audible gasp,” she said.
http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/public-safety/sd-me-sex-trafficking-20171013-story.html
CO: Garfield County child welfare work wins high praise in national review
Glenwood Post Independent – October 14, 2017
Garfield County’s child welfare division got some big recognition recently when it was called out by a federal review team for setting the bar for the nation. Each year the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s Children’s Bureau has a team that reviews child welfare practices across the country. The team visits each state every six to seven years.
MA: State To Ensure Social Workers Set To Fight Opioids
WBUR – October 10, 2017
Gov. Charlie Baker has unveiled what he’s calling a “first-in-the-nation set of educational core principles” for social workers on the front lines of the battle against opioid abuse, which has claimed thousands of lives in Massachusetts. The Republican said Tuesday that nine schools of social work have agreed to use the principles in their curriculum.
http://www.wbur.org/commonhealth/2017/10/10/massachusetts-social-workers-opioids-principles
MI: Home for abused teen girls looks to open in Port Huron
Times Herald – October 14, 2017
A local woman has plans to open a shelter in Port Huron for teen girls that have been sexually, physically or emotionally abused. Christina Gallina-Flood said she has worked in ministry for nearly 20 years and said she has witnessed many young girls struggling with nowhere to turn.
NC: Loving Those Left Behind: Caring for Older Kids in Foster Care
Edge Media Network – October 14, 2017
“In my experience foster and adoptive parents typically want to work with and/or adopt babies and younger children,” said Nakia Batts, an 18-year veteran of family services agencies. This leaves older children who, “instead of rising up to their potential, they usually respond by behaving down to the preconceived notions.”
OK: State loses funding for some child abuse prevention programs (Includes video)
KOKI FOX 23 – October 17, 2017
The Oklahoma State Department of Health made cuts to programs due to budget issues. The department announced Monday they planned to end contracts for 25 Federally Qualified Health Centers and 9 Oklahoma Child Abuse Prevention Programs.
Information Gateway resource: Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/preventing/
Also: Department of Health ends funding for Oklahoma Child Abuse Prevention contractors: http://kfor.com/2017/10/16/department-of-health-ends-funding-for-oklahoma-child-abuse-prevention-contractors/
http://www.fox23.com/news/oklahoma-loses-funding-for-some-child-abuse-prevention-programs/625864875
OK: Matching foster kids with new homes
Pauls Valley Daily Democrat – October 14, 2017
Matching foster kids with the right home, here in Garvin County and across the state, is the goal of a nonprofit organization. Both Serena Randol and Amber Haley of DCCCA Tallgrass Family Services are now actively looking to recruit, train and support new foster families in this part of the world.
PA: Auditor general to meet with county caseworkers about state child welfare system
Tribune-Democrat – October 16, 2017
DePasquale’s scheduled visit at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown’s John P. Murtha Center for Public Service and National Competitiveness comes in the wake of a special report he released last month, saying the child welfare system is setting up children and the caseworkers that serve them for failure.
Report: http://www.paauditor.gov/Media/Default/Reports/RPT_CYS_091417_FINAL.pdf
PA: Children and Youth Services dilemma: ‘Do you take the child? Do you leave the child?’
Lebanon Daily News – October 12, 2017
“People see CYS in one of two ways,” Cathleen Palm, founder of The Center for Children’s Justice, said. “Either they see them rushing right into a home to take children out of the home with no due process or justification, and on the flip side people think, ‘We called and we called and they didn’t do anything.’ Sometimes you can have cases that are true on either end of that spectrum, but more often every time CYS is called they are called in on that middle ground where it’s not so black and white. Do you take the child? Do you leave the child?”
http://www.ldnews.com/story/news/2017/10/12/who-protects-children/754322001/
TX: State plans to hire private entity to manage foster care in Bexar County
San Antonio Express-News – October 16, 2017
Bexar County is set to be the third area statewide to get the new “community-based care” model, approved by the Legislature this year as a way to reform the embattled foster care system. In the new approach, state workers will continue investigating claims of abuse and neglect. But once children are removed from dangerous situations and put into foster care, the vendor would eventually take over, coordinating kids’ services, caseworker visits and court-related duties.
TX: How Abilene’s Hendrick Home for Children helps rebuild lives
Abilene Reporter-News – October 14, 2017
“I want all single moms to know that everybody has their story. With this program, it’s about rebuilding. It’s that solid ground,” Kilborn said.
VA: Roanoke Social Services working to educate public on foster care system (Includes video)
WDBJ7 – October 16, 2017
The South County library is one of several Roanoke libraries hosting Social Services to start a conversation about foster care. Local leaders want to give more people the chance to learn about the foster care system and how they can get involved.
INTERNATIONAL
India: Police chief wants all stations to adopt abandoned children
New Indian Express – October 17, 2017
The Kerala Police will soon chalk out a charity project proposal wherein all its stations adopt orphaned and abandoned children under a community policing scheme.
Japan: NPA: Child abuse victims top 30,000 in first half of 2017
Asahi Shimbun – October 17, 2017
The number of abused children found by police reached a record 30,262 in the first half of 2017, up 5,751, or 23.5 percent, from the same period last year, the National Police Agency said.
http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201710170009.html
United Kingdom: Children’s services should not be ‘blue light’ service (Commentary)
Locum Today – October 13, 2017
Children’s service should not be a ‘blue light’ service, the Association of Directors of Children’s Services has warned. In a position statement, the ADCS warned that The Children Acts of 1989 and 2004 aimed to improve services for children by promoting early help and multi-agency working to bring about positive outcomes for children and young people.
Also: Report: http://adcs.org.uk/assets/documentation/ADCS_A_country_that_works_for_all_children_FINAL.pdf
AZ: Social Workers Tackle the Tough Issues (Includes audio)
Public News Service – October 16, 2017
There are about 10,000 social workers in the state working to address behavioral, mental and emotional issues in various settings – child welfare agencies, hospitals, schools, mental health clinics and human services programs. Jeremy Arp, executive director of the Arizona chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, said the profession has no shortage of challenges.
CA: Youths at county’s emergency shelter for children constantly go AWOL – and have for years (Includes video)
San Diego Union Tribune – October 15, 2017
“They’ve had this problem for a decade or more at least,” he said. “They are removing these kids because they claim the kids are not safe in the parents’ home. Yet they are letting the kids walk out of the facility with no supervision, no idea where they are going, and when they will come back.”
http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/courts/sd-me-polinsky-awol-20171011-story.html
CA: New sex, labor trafficking law could make ‘huge difference’ in Salinas, advocates say (Includes video)
Salinas Californian – October 12, 2017
A new law requiring hotels and other lodgings to post information on resources for victims of human trafficking could greatly help combat it in Salinas, advocates say. “It really has the potential to make a huge difference,” said Deborah Pembrook, an outreach advocate at the Monterey County Rape Crisis Center who specializes in human trafficking.
CA: Women, children among spike in homeless coming to Rescue Mission (Includes video)
Record Searchlight – October 12, 2017
At the national level, one-night point-in-time counts tallied fewer homeless people than a year earlier, according to U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. While Shasta County followed that trend in this year’s count, HUD’s report on national trends from 2017 is due out next month. At the mission, Anderson and his team are putting finishing touches on the House of Hope, the women’s shelter with 80 beds and room for 35 more. The remodeled shelter should open next month.
DC: New bill proposes decriminalizing sex work in DC
Washington Post – October 13, 2017
She said too few people realize the scale of sex trafficking in D.C. and its suburbs. This year, Frundt has received about eight to 10 referrals a week about possible victims of trafficking from sources including police, parents and the foster care system.
http://www.standard.net/National/2017/10/13/New-bill-proposes-decriminalizing-sex-work-in-DC.html
GA: Opioid epidemic pushing more children into foster care
Brunswick News – October 14, 2017
The misuse of and addiction to opioids, including prescription pills, heroin and synthetic opioids like fentanyl, has become a national crisis. More than 2 million Americans are estimated to suffer from substance abuse disorders involving opioid pain reliever addiction, according to the National Institute for Drug Abuse.
IL: Their View: Saving DCFS. Saving kids. Honoring Joseph.
State Journal-Register – October 15, 2017
The death of 3-year-old Joseph Wallace in 1993 galvanized Illinois child welfare officials to overhaul the Department of Children and Family Services. The boy’s mentally ill mother had repeatedly regained custody of him, despite alarming indications she would harm him.
http://www.sj-r.com/opinion/20171015/their-view-saving-dcfs-saving-kids-honoring-joseph
IL: DCFS worker assaulted during child welfare check-UPDATE
KWQC – October 13, 2017
The special assistant to the director of the Department of Children and Family Services, Neil Skene, tells TV-6 that a meeting is scheduled for as soon as next week between the department and the union to discuss safety and other issues.
KS: DCF Secretary Gilmore under fire from some Republicans
Lawrence Journal-World – October 13, 2017
“Department of Children and Families Secretary Phyllis Gilmore has been in her position in the Brownback-Colyer administration for over five years, a tenure increasingly defined by a total lack of accountability and a near endless stream of failures affecting foster children, at-risk youth, and children facing abuse in their home environments,” Hutton said.
http://www2.ljworld.com/weblogs/capitol-report/2017/oct/13/dcf-secretary-gilmore-under-fire-from-so/
KS: Over 70 children ‘missing’ from state foster care & no one’s stopping it
Free Thought Project – October 13, 2017
A shocking report out of Kansas highlights an extreme disconnect between government – the Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF), which oversees foster care in the state, and the private foster care contractors that the state utilizes to place foster children and oversee their direct placement within foster homes.
Also: Is There An ‘Epidemic Of Child Abduction’ In Kansas’s Foster Care System With 70 Missing Children?: http://www.business2community.com/us-news/epidemic-child-abduction-kansass-foster-care-system-70-missing-children-01936084#v5cIzX8r6xHAdUQo.97
KS: State looks at alert system for missing foster children
Associated Press – October 13, 2017
A Kansas lawmaker is pushing for new procedures for responding when children in foster care go missing. Foster care contractors revealed this week that more than 70 foster children are currently missing in Kansas. The report was in response to question about the August disappearance of three sisters from a Tonganoxie foster home.
http://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article178710216.html
MI: A Broken System: Fostering Abusive Dysfunction
Huffington Post – October 15, 2017
Examining many of the situations that often play out where Family Courts intersect with Child Protective Services (CPS) and Foster Care – finds people caught in situations that would make for the type of story found in episodes of the series The Twilight Zone.
ND: Grand Forks social services leader denies misconduct in child protective services
Grand Forks Herald – October 15, 2017
Over the past summer, allegations of misconduct surfaced in local media reports after an unnamed whistleblower revealed that the local CPS office had seen 11 employees quit or transfer since spring 2016, a high rate of turnover relative to other CPS offices in North Dakota. That same source also alleged that workers in the Grand Forks office had been asked by their manager to destroy official documents outlining reports of abuse or neglect, a common form known as an SFN 960 Report. The source tied both the turnover and the reports to a common source-county CPS supervisor Tamara Boling.
ND: Couple sues Catholic Charities over adoption
Associated Press – October 13, 2017
A North Dakota couple is suing Catholic Charities for $6.5 million, alleging that the group didn’t allow them to adopt a girl because they were living together and hadn’t gotten married yet.
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/news/nation-world/national/article178678641.html
NE: New tool used to detect child abuse (Includes video)
WOWT News – October 11, 2017
When the mission centers on ending child abuse and neglect, the last thing one wants to do is re-victimize a victim. The latest tool for Project Harmony is a software program and camera allowing for a faster and smoother exam with clearer pictures for investigators.
http://www.wowt.com/content/news/New-tool-used-to-detect-child-abuse-450523803.html
NH: Legislature to examine NH foster care issues
New Hampshire Union Leader – October 15, 2017
A legislative committee has been appointed to examine foster care issues in New Hampshire, especially in the context of the state’s prolonged addiction crisis and problems within the Division for Children, Youth and Families.
NY: Grant to help Rexford foundation for children in foster care
Saratogian – October 15, 2017
A local charity that provides children in foster care with free, new, and next-to-new clothing has received a received a large financial grant to help with an increasing need. The Quest For Grace Foundation was established in 2005 by Rexford couple Dr. Louis Ianniello and his wife Michelle. The idea behind the Foundation was to help children in foster care and their foster families with many of the kids’ clothing needs. Michelle Ianniello is a Shenendehowa High School graduate and the Foundation’s director.
OH: Ohio State gets $3 million to combat drug-related child abuse (Requires free registration)
Columbus Dispatch – October 16, 2017
Freisthler, a professor and associate dean at Ohio State University’s College of Social Work, led a team that recently won a $3 million federal grant – one of the largest in the college’s history – to address drug-related child-abuse and neglect cases by working with central Ohio’s Fairfield and Pickaway counties.
http://www.dispatch.com/news/20171016/ohio-state-gets-3-million-to-combat-drug-related-child-abuse
OH: Montgomery County voters face $55M human services levy
Dayton Daily News – October 15, 2017
A levy that helps fund safety-net programs for children in crisis, the developmentally disabled, the frail elderly and indigent – as well as those whose lives were upended by opioids and other crises – comes before Montgomery County voters Nov. 7.
PR: Displaced by Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rican children trace new path in Central Florida (Includes video)
Orlando Sentinel – October 14, 2017
Tuesday, the children will join 36 other displaced Puerto Rican students who have enrolled in Volusia County schools since the storm hit the island, leaving most of its 1,112 public schools inoperable.
Also: Puerto Ricans fleeing disaster begin arriving in New Bedford: http://www.southcoasttoday.com/news/20171013/puerto-ricans-fleeing-disaster-begin-arriving-in-new-bedford
Also: Florida Expects Hundreds of Displaced Puerto Rican Students: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/florida/articles/2017-10-14/florida-expects-hundreds-of-displaced-puerto-rican-students
Also: After Hurricanes, Puerto Rican Children Welcomed to Mass. School: http://www.necn.com/news/new-england/After-Hurricanes-Puerto-Rican-Children-Welcomed-to-Massachusetts-High-School-Hurricane-Maria-Irma-Puerto-Rico-Leominster-450680183.html
Also: NYC schools preparing for influx of Puerto Rican evacuees: https://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/nyc-schools-expect-influx-of-puerto-rican-evacuees-1.14447686
SC: New partnership gives youth aging out of foster care a fighting chance
Moultrie News – October 13, 2017
Carolina Youth Development Center, a nonprofit serving vulnerable children and families, is partnering with Cummins, Inc. to develop an independent living transitional home that addresses the needs of youth aging out of foster care.
Also: Carolina Youth Development Center to open transitional living house for former foster children: https://www.postandcourier.com/business/carolina-youth-development-center-to-open-transitional-living-house-for/article_c83f9c08-b073-11e7-9f4c-fbcdb9b80087.html
TN: Born addicted: The number of opioid-addicted babies is soaring
NBC News – October 13, 2017
Nationally, the rate of American children born with neonatal abstinence syndrome, a set of symptoms experienced by babies exposed to drugs in the womb, has quadrupled over the past 15 years. In East Tennessee the number of infants born with NAS has skyrocketed, with some counties reporting rates eight times the national average.
TX: Silent horror: Cameron County Child Abuse Unit works to aid those in need
Valley Morning Star – October 15, 2017
Often, the person who sexually abuses a child is someone the child knows or trusts. When Cameron County Assistant District Attorney Patrick Rodriguez first started working for the Child Abuse Unit, he was surprised to find that many times, the sexual abuse is happening quietly.
Information Gateway resource: Perpetrators of Sexual Abuse: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/can/perpetrators/perp-sexabuse/
http://www.valleymorningstar.com/news/local_news/article_a3bd490c-b226-11e7-a6ee-e388b63311c7.html
WV: CKVF awards more than $560K in grant funding for 16 WV programs
Charleston Gazette-Mail – October 15, 2017
Mission West Virginia received $36,035 in collaboration with Clay County schools for its program, The Bridge, which academically supports and mentors children in foster care.
US: ‘They Told Me They Knew What Was Best for Him’: Stories From Inside the Child Welfare System
Jezebel and Rise Magazine – October 13, 2017
In 1997, the Federal Government passed the Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA), requiring foster care agencies to initiate court proceedings to terminate parental rights in most cases when a child has been in foster care for 15 of the most recent 22 months. This timeline is especially short for incarcerated parents, putting them at increased risk of losing their children forever.
https://jezebel.com/they-told-me-they-knew-what-was-best-for-him-stories-f-1819371919
US: National Children’s Advocacy Center in Huntsville Receives $2 Million in DOJ Grants (Press release)
U.S. Department of Justice – October 13, 2017
The Department of Justice has awarded grants totaling $2.1 million to the National Children’s Advocacy Center for the 2017 fiscal year, announced U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town and NCAC Executive Director Chris Newlin. The Huntsville Center is receiving the funding through the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention’s Victims of Child Abuse grant programs.
US: The ‘orphan’ I adopted from Uganda already had a family (Includes video)
CNN – October 13, 2017
It took a little over a year and a half to realize the things “our” child was telling us were not adding up to the stories told within the paperwork and provided to us by our adoption agency, European Adoption Consultants, Inc. (In December, the US State Department debarred the agency for three years, meaning it could no longer place children in homes. The State Department said it found “evidence of a pattern of serious, willful or grossly negligent failure to comply with the standards and of aggravating circumstances indicating that continued accreditation of EAC would not be in the best interests of the children and families concerned.”)
http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/13/opinions/adoption-uganda-opinion-davis/index.html
INTERNATIONAL
Canada: Number of foster homes plummets in Windsor-Essex
CBC News – October 16, 2017
Back in 2013, the Windsor-Essex Children’s Aid Society (CAS) had 241 foster homes. As of Monday, which marks the start of Foster Parent Appreciation Week, that’s plummeted by 29 per cent, to 171 foster homes.
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/number-foster-homes-plummets-windsor-100000779.html
Canada: Child Abuse May Alter Neurons in Brain
McGill University – October 14, 2017
Adults who were victims of child abuse tend to have thinner layers of myelin coating in the brain, according to a new study by McGill University in Canada.
https://psychcentral.com/news/2017/09/26/child-abuse-may-alter-brain-wiring/126537.html
Canada: $216K in funding to help child victims of sexual assault on P.E.I. ‘feel safe and secure’
CBC News – October 13, 2017
Child Protection Services on P.E.I. has received a federal grant of $216,350 to help children who are victims of sexual assault speak to the authorities – something that can be extremely difficult for a traumatized victim. Some of the money will provide a week of training for 15 police and 15 social workers who interview the children.
Canada: Improving Services to Child Victims of Sexual Assault in Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island – October 13, 2017
Sexual assault can have serious and traumatic effects on victims and survivors, particularly when the victims are children. The Government of Canada is providing victims and survivors of child sexual assault with the services they need to improve their recovery and reduce the risk of developing problems in others areas of their lives.
France: One step forward and two steps back for unaccompanied minors from Calais
European Council on Refugees and Exiles – October 13, 2017
During its fact-finding mission, Bar Human Rights Committee (BHRC) first witnessed the chaos of the dismantlement and found that in the rush to dismantle, the authorities had failed to provide unaccompanied minors with alternative housing solutions, or to provide them with sufficient information on the ground. Furthermore, the unaccompanied minors “were subjected to a chaotic and unlawful age verification and registration process, based in many cases on physical appearance alone”.
BHRC-Calais-Report: http://www.barhumanrights.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/BHRC-Calais-Report.pdf
https://www.ecre.org/one-step-forward-and-two-steps-back-for-unaccompanied-minors-from-calais/
Germany: Child abuse in the GDR – First taboo, then ignored
Deutsche Welle – October 12, 2017
“Officially, sexual abuse did not exist” in East Germany, Stefanie Knorr from Gegenwind, a counselling center for those who continue to suffer from the political trauma of the GDR dictatorship, said during Wednesday’s hearing into the findings. Speaking in Leipzig as part of the commission tasked with investigating child abuse in Germany, Knorr pointed out that there was no professional guidance or therapy for victims in East Germany. “The socialist personality had to be free of psychic abnormalities,” she added.
http://www.dw.com/en/child-abuse-in-the-gdr-first-taboo-then-ignored/a-40916934
United Kingdom: People in their 60s should be allowed to adopt kids aged five advises government child services boss
Daily Mail – October 14, 2017
Anthony Douglas, chief executive of Cafcass, the Government agency that represents children’s interests in family courts, said retirees should be encouraged to adopt to stem the huge rise of young people living in care. He said adoption services have been ‘too restrictive’ and urged them to take a ‘more creative’ approach to finding adoptive parents.
AZ: Bush Administration Adviser to Lead Ducey’s Office of Youth, Faith, and Family
Phoenix New Times – October 12, 2017
Governor Doug Ducey has appointed a new leader for the Governor’s Office of Youth, Faith, and Family, replacing his politics-minded friend who quit in June and is now running a congressional campaign. The new GOYFF director is Maria Fuentes, a former advisor in the Labor and Justice departments for the George W. Bush administration. She currently works in Washington for Casey Family Programs, a national child-welfare group.
CA: New Initiative Focuses on Reproductive Health of L.A. Foster Youth (Press release)
National Center for Youth Law – October 12, 2017
Teen pregnancy rates are at historic lows in the United States – but not for all youth. While the overall rate is down, young women in the foster care system are far more likely to experience teen and unintended pregnancy and childbirth. Although California has an important network of laws in place to ensure access to contraception and reproductive health services, foster youth often face barriers to making their reproductive rights a reality.
https://youthlaw.org/publication/new-initiative-focuses-reproductive-health-l-foster-youth/
CA: One-Third of California Foster Youth Leave Transitional Housing Involuntarily, Report Finds
Chronicle of Social Change – October 12, 2017
More than a third of older foster youth in transitional housing placements in California were involuntarily removed, according to a new report. A John Burton Advocates for Youth report looks at how youth in California used the Transitional Housing Placement-Plus (THP-Plus) and THP-Plus Foster Care (THP+FC) programs during the 2016-2017 year and how they fared upon exiting, in addition to other data.
Also: Report: THP+FC & THP-Plus Annual Report 2016-2017: http://www.jbaforyouth.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/2016-17-THPFC-THP-Plus-Annual-Report-2.pdf
CO: Families become victims
Vandenberg Air Force Base News – October 11, 2017
Shirley Crow, 21st Medical Group, domestic violence victim advocate at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, said these are uncomfortable topics that people often do not want to discuss. October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, having grown from a single day’s events into a nationally recognized month-long endeavor to bring the problem into the open. “Children are greatly impacted when they live in a house with increased levels of violence,” she said.
http://www.vandenberg.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1341441/families-become-victims/
CO: JCHS says alleged forgery had little impact
Columbine Courier – October 11, 2017
Jefferson County Human Services says the alleged forgery by its former employee had no negative implications for the children and families it serves. Richelle Schultz, 53, was indicted in September on 22 felony counts of attempt to influence a public servant and forgery and is accused of falsifying information in 12 child abuse and neglect complaints.
http://www.columbinecourier.com/content/jchs-says-alleged-forgery-had-little-impact
CT: Grace Farms to take on human trafficking
New Canaan News – October 12, 2017
According to the Department of Children and Families, there are 634 known cases of slavery in Connecticut. Tammy Sneed, director of gender-responsive adolescent services, said in the first two quarters of 2017, there have been 111 referrals to the department about suspected cases. “Looking back and collecting data from 2008, we’re probably at 800, if not more,” she said of reported cases. The Grace Farms Foundation has decided to do something.
DC: Human Trafficking is Still a Problem in D.C.-Area
Afro – October 12, 2017
Their faces are all too frequently Black and Brown. They are seemingly sheltered debutantes from Northwest Washington D.C.; troubled runaway teens from Laurel, Md; young Latinx women from Northern Virginia and vulnerable transgender youth from Southeast D.C. They are the faces of modern-day slavery and human trafficking epidemic. The International Labour Organization estimates that there are more than 20.9 million victims of human trafficking worldwide. More than half of all victims are women and girls, with 26 percent of all cases being children. Locally, 2,563 people have been reported missing in the District in 2017 alone, according to statistics released by the Metropolitan Police Department on Sept. 29. Of these, 1,637 were children, some who may be victims of human trafficking rings.
http://www.afro.com/human-trafficking-still-problem-d-c-area/
FL: ‘No Wrong Door’ Measure Making Headway But More Work To Do (Includes audio)
WUSF – October 11, 2017
State lawmakers were aiming at a no wrong door policy when they approved the Bill back in 2016. The idea is people who need help will get it-whether they walk into a clinic or get picked up by the police. Ute Gazioch heads up substance abuse and mental health at the Department of Children and Families. She says there’s still work to improve coordination for people getting back on their feet. “So none of these folks are talking to each other,” Gazioch says of different service providers. “And that really leads to folks dropping out, because I’ve seen cases literally where I’ve seen a person have so many different plans and so many different things that they have to do that I thought to myself-I could never do this.”
http://wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu/post/no-wrong-door-measure-making-headway-more-work-do#stream/0
IL: Letter: It takes all of Illinois working together to keep children safe (Commentary from former special counsel, Child Welfare Services)
Chicago Tribune – October 13, 2017
This is in response to the Oct. 8 editorial “Saving DCFS. Saving Kids. Honoring Joseph.” It has again proven true that “those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” So here is a quick history lesson.
Also: Editorial: Saving DCFS. Saving kids. Honoring Joseph. (Includes video): http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-edit-illinois-dcfs-children-abuse-20171005-story.html
IN: Police refuse to test 4-year-old’s sexual assault kit (Includes video)
Indianapolis Star – October 12, 2017
Although the case is unusual, because it involves such a young child, it sheds light on a national problem that prompted a National Institute of Justice report to recommend all sexual assault kits reported to law enforcement be submitted to a laboratory for DNA analysis.
Also: Report: National Best Practices for Sexual Assault Kits: A Multidisciplinary Approach: http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/250384.pdf
IN: In Search Of Foster Homes (Includes video)
My Wabash Valley – October 11, 2017
According to the group, Child Welfare Information Gateway, in 20-15, there were an estimated 427 thousand children in foster care in the U.S. In Indiana, just three years ago there were 12 thousand Hoosier kids in need of a home. Now that number has increased to 28 thousand.
http://www.mywabashvalley.com/news/in-search-of-foster-homes/832281189
KS: For Kansas foster care task force, report of missing children latest concern
Kansas News Service – October 13, 2017
The news that about 70 children are missing from the Kansas foster care system is the latest in a string of concerns for lawmakers and child welfare advocates. Concern for the safety of children, heavy caseloads for social workers and a lack of coordination in the system prompted lawmakers earlier this year to form the Child Welfare Task Force, which heard about the missing children during a meeting Tuesday in Topeka.
KS: Access to residential psychiatric treatment for foster kids is on the decline
Topeka Capital-Journal – October 12, 2017
The state’s dwindling number of psychiatric facilities for children has advocates and legislators concerned foster kids that need serious mental health care aren’t getting it.
KS: Lawmaker wants Amber Alert-type system for missing foster children
Lawrence Journal-World – October 12, 2017
Democratic state lawmaker is calling on the Department for Children and Families to come up with new procedures for responding when children in the state’s privatized foster care system go missing. Sen. Laura Kelly, D-Topeka, said Thursday that she remains shocked at reports that more than 70 Kansas foster children are listed as missing, and she said there needs to be a system similar to an Amber Alert that would prompt an immediate search.
http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2017/oct/12/lawmaker-wants-new-protocols-missing-foster-care-c/
KY: ‘No place to put that baby.’ State takes more kids away from parents than it can handle
Lexington Herald-Leader – October 12, 2017
Nearly all of the state’s child-welfare caseworkers say their workload is unmanageable – on average, it’s twice the recommended standard – even as the state of Kentucky removes more children from their parents every year because of abuse and neglect, according to a report released Thursday.
http://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article178547111.html
MI: ACLU Fights Faith-Based Child Placement Agencies (Commentary)
Aquila Report – October 13, 2017
When Michigan lawmakers began drafting the religious protection laws in 2013, faith-based groups made up about 25 percent of the state’s child welfare agencies. The same holds true in Texas. A loss of even half of those agencies would result in an immediate reduction in available foster families and the ability to recruit more, said Randy Daniels, vice president of Buckner Children and Family Services at Dallas-based Buckner International.
http://theaquilareport.com/aclu-fights-faith-based-child-placement-agencies/
MI: Methodist Children’s Home Society celebrating 100 years
Hometown Life (USA Today Network) – October 13, 2017
Founded in 1917, MCHS offers a comprehensive range of programs and services from its Redford facilities, including a 24-hour operating residential home and treatment facility for abused and neglected boys; foster care placement and adoption services for children throughout southeast Michigan; and transitional housing programs for young men who have aged out of the child welfare system. MCHS also provides critical therapies, educational services and life skills training for the children in its care.
MI: New study shows children in Head Start programs are 93% less likely to end up in foster care (Includes video)
WLNS – October 12, 2017
New research by Dr. Sacha Klein with Michigan State University shows an advantage for children in Head Start programs, who are also within the welfare system due to abuse or neglect. “Children who had experience in early head start program were 93% less likely to end up in foster care.”
MI: Judge Halts Order Granting Custody to Convicted Sex Offender
Associated Press – October 11, 2017
A judge on Tuesday put an order on hold that granted a convicted sex offender joint legal custody of a child born to a woman who said the man raped her, and she became pregnant, when she was 12. Sanilac County prosecutors said the case started when the now-21-year-old mother requested state assistance this summer for her 8-year-old son. As a condition of receiving that financial assistance, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services required her to cooperate with pursuing paternity and support for the child, prosecutors said.
MN: Foster care facility fined for pattern of safety violations
Mankato Free Press – October 12, 2017
A child foster care facility might close after the state put its license on probationary status for numerous violations, including children repeatedly going missing and not receiving their medication. The Minnesota Department of Human Services in late September levied two fines against REM Heartland, which operates dozens of group homes in south-central Minnesota.
MO: Foster Care Bill of Rights highlights importance of familial stability (Opinion)
Courier Tribune – October 12, 2017
Did you know there are more than 13,000 children in Missouri’s foster care system? While they may come from different backgrounds and have faced different challenges, they’ve all experienced the pain of being separated from their families. These children deserve to grow up in a safe, loving and nurturing home, and that’s exactly what foster care tries to provide while a child’s biological parents receive the help and services they need to regain custody.
ND: Fargo couple sues Catholic Charities for ‘marital discrimination’ after adoption falls through
Erie News Now – October 12, 2017
A Fargo couple is suing Catholic Charities for what they call “marital discrimination.” James and Tahnee Young decided this February they wanted to give their home and love to a teenager in the foster care system, but after finding their match their expectations took a turn for the worse.
NE: Archdiocese of Omaha is in compliance with child protection rules
Omaha World-Herald – October 12, 2017
For the 14th consecutive year, the Archdiocese of Omaha is in compliance with broader national child protection policies, according to a press release. In 2002, a comprehensive action plan was adopted by U.S. bishops that includes procedures for addressing allegations of sexual abuse of minors.
NY: How you can make a difference in the life of an at-risk child (Commentary)
Daily News – October 12, 2017
While the courts sort out the problems grown-ups get into, someone needs to look out for their children. That’s where Genesee Court Appointed Special Advocates come in. CASA volunteers – and they are all volunteers except for the program director – advocate for children, working to assure that every child lives in a safe place.
NY: Record number of homeless kids attend city schools this year, research shows
New York Daily News – October 11, 2017
A record 111,562 homeless students attended city schools in the 2016-17 year, up from 105,445 in the 2015-16 school year, according to data posted online Tuesday by the New York State Technical and Education Assistance Center for Homeless Students.
NY: ACS Commissioner Reflects On Reforming The Troubled Agency (Includes video)
CBS New York – October 10, 2017
The much-maligned Administration for Children’s Services is trying to change its troubled reputation. ACS Commissioner David Hansell has been implementing reforms since taking over the job in March.
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2017/10/10/acs-commissioner-david-hansell/
OH: Adapting a Program to Protect Children Caught in the Middle of the Opioid Epidemic (Commentary)
Route Fifty – October 12, 2017
Children are the silent victims of America’s opioid abuse epidemic, often suffering neglect, abuse or trauma as one or both of their parents sink into the pit of addiction. Ohio START-standing for Sobriety, Treatment and Reducing Trauma-is being launched this month by the office of state Attorney General Mike DeWine.
PA: Map Reveals Pollution Dangers to PA Kids (Includes audio)
Public News Service (PNS) – October 13, 2017
Does your child go to school or daycare near an active oil or gas well? A new interactive map can help you find out. The map was created using data from the Department of Education to show not only the location but the total enrollment of daycare centers, primary and secondary schools, colleges and universities within half a mile of active oil and gas wells and compressor stations. According to Alan Septoff, strategic communications director for the group Earthworks, studies have shown that the closer homes and schools are to these facilities, the greater the health risk.
PA: Pennsylvania County Has Wildly High Rate of Needless Child Abuse Investigations (Opinion)
Youth Today – October 12, 2017
It is child welfare’s equivalent of stop-and-frisk. It happens over and over again, it’s traumatic, it’s usually baseless and unnecessary, and it’s racially biased. It is a child abuse investigation. Increasingly, across America, this kind of state-inflicted trauma is becoming a routine part of growing up. Nationwide, a study suggests it happens to a majority of black children. And in one Pennsylvania county, there may be no child, or at least no impoverished child, who is spared.
TN: Opioid epidemic forcing Knox County grandparents to step back into parenting (Includes video)
WBIR – October 12, 2017
At the Knox County Juvenile Court, special care is taken to protect the tiniest Tennesseans. “We have close to 800 children in some kind of state custody right now. When I got on the bench we had 350 children in state custody. The entire increase is traced, unquestionably, to the opioid epidemic,” explained Knox County Juvenile Court Judge Tim Irwin. Those children represent a growing trend across Tennessee – grandparents taking on the role of caregivers for children due to drug abuse.
TX: Officials fear more victims after Texas foster parent arrest
Texas Tribune – October 12, 2017
Officials want to talk to dozens of girls placed in foster care with a San Antonio-area man after his arrest on charges that he sexually assaulted five former foster children.
http://www.tribtown.com/2017/10/12/tx-foster-parent-abuse-charges/
WI: Marathon County might join opioid lawsuit
WSAU – October 11, 2017
The Marathon County Board of Supervisors will consider joining a class action lawsuit against a number of pharmaceutical companies over costs incurred by the opioid epidemic. “We’re going to have to put our mental health staff, our child welfare staff, our law enforcement staff… to work to comb through files and determine what our losses are as a result of the epidemic,” said Karger.
http://wsau.com/news/articles/2017/oct/12/marathon-co-could-join-opioid-lawsuit/
WV: State Board of Education adopts 9 new policies
WDTV – October 12, 2017
The West Virginia Board of Education adopted nine policies during its meeting in Charleston today that will affect schools statewide, including: ~~ • 4373 – Expected Behavior in Safe and Supportive Schools: The new comprehensive policy mirrors current legislation regarding the training of employees on new reporting requirements. The changes impact child welfare and safety as well as reporting requirements and clarify definitions. This policy will be effective on November 13, 2017.
http://www.wdtv.com/content/news/State-Board-of-Education-adopts-9-new-policies–450669183.html
US: & Uganda: Kids for sale: ‘My mom was tricked’ (Including video)
CNN – October 12, 2017
The Davises shared their story exclusively with CNN, saying they believe that Ugandan children like Mata are being trafficked, with American families not knowing the real stories behind their adoptions. An investigation by CNN into this alleged trafficking scheme found that children are being taken from their homes in Uganda on the promise of better schooling, placed into orphanages even though they aren’t orphans, and sold for as much as $15,000 each to unsuspecting American families. CNN’s investigation discovered that multiple families were duped this way.
Also: Families in Crisis: When Foreign Adoption Goes Wrong (Historical article from 2004): https://clevelandmagazine.com/in-the-cle/the-read/articles/families-in-crisis-when-foreign-adoption-goes-wrong
Also: Information Gateway resource: Intercountry Adoption: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/adoption/adopt-ethics/types/intercountry/
http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/12/health/uganda-adoptions-investigation-ac360/index.html
US: Child Welfare Foundation awards 28 grants totaling $636,467 (Press release)
American Legion – October 12, 2017
In its 63rd year, the American Legion Child Welfare Foundation has awarded $636,467 to 27 nonprofits for 2018. The grant recipients were selected by CWF’s Board of Directors on Oct. 8 during their annual fall meeting in Indianapolis. The recipients have been awarded the grants to support youth-serving projects that seek to enhance the lives of children by addressing their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual needs.
https://www.legion.org/childwelfare/239587/child-welfare-foundation-awards-28-grants-totaling-636467
US: Fighting Sex Slavery: Siddharth Kara Discusses the Impact of the Ripped from the Headlines Film Trafficked
Movie Maker – October 12, 2017
Highlighting the global nature of sexual slavery, university professor turned screenwriter, Siddharth Kara, synthesized years of research and investigation into Trafficked, a narrative feature he hopes will serve as vehicle to reach a wider audience in the fight to eradicate the illicit business.
US: Finance Reform: Looking Beyond Title IV-E (Commentary)
Chronicle of Social Change – October 12, 2017
Talk to child welfare advocates about federal child welfare finance reform and the conversation almost immediately turns to Title IV-E of the Social Security Act. This is for good reason: Title IV-E, including the foster care, guardianship and adoption assistance programs, represents the only federal entitlement program targeted specifically to the needs of children who have experienced abuse and neglect.
https://chronicleofsocialchange.org/analysis/finance-reform-looking-beyond-title-iv-e/28347
US: Helping child welfare agencies benefit from new CCWIS rule (Press release)
Microsoft, Inc. – October 12, 2017
We’re privileged to work with CareDirector, which has more than 20 years of experience across the health and human services sector in the U.S., Ireland, and the U.K. I recently caught up with Dr. Ann Knefel, who is its Child Welfare Specialist, about how CareDirector can help child welfare agencies in the U.S. comply with the new Comprehensive Child Welfare Information Systems (CCWIS) federal rule.
US: Recovering from Hurricane Maria Requires an Extensive Federal Response (Opinion)
Center for American Progress – October 12, 2017
The American territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands weathered two devastating storms and are still struggling through the earliest stages of recovery. Both of these American territories have been devastated by the recent storms and require rapid and comprehensive recovery assistance from the federal government. But given the limited information coming from the Virgin Islands, this column focuses primarily on relief efforts in Puerto Rico. Many of the recommendations explored in this report, however, could be applied to both territories.
US: DeVos Outlines Vision for ‘American Education’
U.S. News & World Report – October 11, 2017
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has outlined in the most specific terms to date her vision and policy priorities for education in the United States. In a document uploaded to the Federal Register and scheduled to be published Thursday, the Department of Education details 11 proposed priorities for use in competitive grant programs that “reflect the Secretary’s vision for American education.” ~~ The document specifically proposes giving priority to projects that seek to increase the proportion of students with access to “educational choice,” particularly students living in rural areas, those with disabilities, those living in poverty and those still learning English, as well as homeless students, students in foster care, American Indian students, students who have been incarcerated and military- or veteran-connected students.
Also: Report: Secretary’s Proposed Supplemental Priorities and Definitions for Discretionary Grant Programs: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/10/12/2017-22127/secretarys-proposed-supplemental-priorities-and-definitions-for-discretionary-grant-programs
Also: Critics to DeVos During WA Visit: Policies Only Serve Wealthiest (Includes audio): http://www.publicnewsservice.org/2017-10-13/education/critics-to-devos-during-wa-visit-policies-only-serve-wealthiest/a59835-1
INTERNATIONAL
Africa: UNICEF Horn of Africa Drought Situation – Updated: 30 September 2017 (Infographic)
United Nations Children’s Fund – September 30, 2017
11.4 million children are at risk of of malnutrition, water shortages, lack of health services, child protection violations and disruption to their education.
https://reliefweb.int/report/somalia/unicef-horn-africa-drought-situation-updated-30-september-2017
Canada: Youth death highlights mental health reform
Pique – October 12, 2017
The Office of the B.C. Representative for Children and Youth has renewed its call for a comprehensive provincial child and youth mental health strategy in the wake of another youth failed by B.C.’s mental health services.
Niger: Protection for millions of children: ECOWAS Member States take a huge step forward
Child Fund Alliance – October 12, 2017
In a decision that will have positive implications for millions of children in West Africa, all member states of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) today agreed to a range of concrete measures to protect children from violence, abuse and exploitation.
Thailand: Inside Development: Rohingya refugee crisis: A city-sized refugee camp with even bigger child protection challenges
Devex – October 12, 2017
Child-focused spaces on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border will number more than 1,500 in the coming year as UNICEF and nongovernmental organizations race to respond to the needs of an unprecedented concentration of refugee children. Mobile safe spaces and learning centers even in the thousands, however, are likely no match for the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya children who have already crossed the border or arrived by sea to Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar district in the past six weeks.
CA: County Welfare Directors are on the front lines of an ongoing crisis (Commentary)
News Review – October 12, 2017
Most days I think I have a difficult job publishing three alternative newspapers, at a time when giant internet corporations are gobbling up the advertising revenues that used to support independent journalism. But last week I attended the conference of the County Welfare Directors Association, a nonprofit association of California human services directors who oversee welfare, food stamps, Medi-Cal and Child Protective Services. My job suddenly seemed pretty easy.
https://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/county-welfare-directors-are-on/content?oid=25149251
CA: Los Angeles to Process Child Abuse Reports Online
Chronicle of Social Change – October 11, 2017
Reports of child abuse and neglect have been mounting in recent years, but the county will experiment with an online system to ensure that its child abuse reporting system doesn’t get bogged down again.
https://chronicleofsocialchange.org/news-2/los-angeles-process-child-abuse-reports-online/28421
GA: This Life with Gracie: Church families opening homes to children caught in opioid crisis (Includes video)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution – October 12, 2017
At any given time, FaithBridge has 165 children in its care. Of those, well over 40 percent are there because of the drug crisis, said Bob Bruder-Mattson, president and CEO of the child placement agency. “Last year, DFCS called seeking placement for almost 2,800 children,” he said. “We have 250 licensed foster families and we need more.”
IA: DHS’s Foxhoven: Morale “Not Good” Among Child Abuse Investigators
Iowa Public Radio – October 11, 2017
Governor Kim Reynolds’ appointee to head the Iowa Department of Human Services today painted a bleak picture of morale among Iowa’s child protection workers, citing high caseloads and recent high-profile child abuse deaths.
IA: Prosecutor wants to show taped interviews with child sex abuse victims during teacher’s trial
Cedar Rapids Gazette – October 11, 2017
A prosecutor is asking a judge to allow videotaped interviews of three children, who were sexually abused by a 15-year-old boy, to be played during the trial. Mark Brown, Graham’s lawyer, resists the state’s motion and is asking the court to not allow the tapes to be played at trial. Brown argues the tapes are not direct evidence and unreliable hearsay because the interviews are directed or assisted by law enforcement for its purpose of leading to arrest.
IL: 911 calls add to details about attack on DCFS investigator (Includes video)
Chicago Tribune – October 12, 2017
The recordings fill out details of an episode that shocked and anguished officials at DCFS. The alleged assault underscores the dangers faced by investigators who often visit homes where they are not welcome and deal with families racked by domestic violence, drug abuse and criminal activity. While attacks are considered rare, investigators can face threats and harassment as they weigh whether the state should take custody of children.
Information Gateway resource: Decision-Making in Child Protection: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/responding/child-protection/decision-making/
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-dcfs-911-call-met-20171011-story.html
KS: ‘This is not a secret:’ KVC speaks out on missing foster care children (Includes video)
KSHB – October 11, 2017
One of the companies that runs the state’s foster care system is speaking out after it was exposed that more than 70 foster children are missing. Kansas State Sen. Laura Kelly brought light to the issue during a child welfare task force meeting Tuesday.
Also: For Kansas Foster Care Task Force, Report Of Missing Children Latest Concern: http://kcur.org/post/kansas-foster-care-task-force-report-missing-children-latest-concern#stream/0
Also: Official says Kansas works to find missing foster kids (Includes video): http://www.kake.com/story/36566967/70-plus-children-missing-from-kansas-foster-care-system
Also: More Than 70 Kids Missing From Kansas’ Foster Care System: http://kmuw.org/post/more-70-kids-missing-kansas-foster-care-system
KY: Relatives to receive foster care payments: U.S. Supreme Court rejects Kentucky’s challenge of ruling
News-Enterprise – October 12, 2017
Kentucky must pay families who take in relatives as foster children – a move a local grandparent said was a long time coming. “It’s a victory for all those families and all those children,” said Norma Hatfield, an Elizabethtown grandparent and local advocate. “It’s righting a wrong. Kids should not be penalized for being placed with family.”
Also: State must start paying relatives for foster care after US Supreme Court refuses case: http://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2017/10/10/kentucky-must-pay-foster-care-relatives-after-supreme-court-refuses-case/751154001/
Also: Supreme Court refuses to hear Kentucky foster care case: http://www.heraldonline.com/news/business/article178212666.html
MD: Universities need to help foster kids get a degree (Commentary)
Diamondback (University of Maryland) – October 12, 2017
With this explosive growth in applicants coupled with an increasingly diverse applicant pool, policymakers and educators focus on making education more accessible to marginalized groups of young Americans. A particular marginalized group that continues to remain invisible, however, is the youth within America’s foster care system.
Also: America’s foster system hurts teenagers (Commentary): http://www.dbknews.com/2017/10/11/adoption-teenagers-foster-care-maryland/
http://www.dbknews.com/2017/10/12/foster-care-college-education-umd-adoption/
MI: Court should dismiss foster parent gun rights lawsuit, state says
Michigan Live – October 11, 2017
A federal court should dismiss a lawsuit brought by potential Michigan foster parents because they are not foster parents, have no standing and haven’t presented a ripe case, state attorneys argued in a filing last week. “Plaintiffs have not shown an injury that is concrete or particularized, or even actual or imminent,” reads the state’s filing in the U.S. District Court Western District of Michigan.
http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2017/10/court_should_dismiss_foster_pa.html
MN: Q&A with Linnea Mirsch, the Northland’s public health director
Duluth News Tribune – October 11, 2017
Linnea Mirsch rose through St. Louis County government as a behind-the-scenes data maven, working several years as its deputy administrator for operations and budget. Now, she’s directing the county’s largest agency, Public Health and Human Services, with four locations across the county, including an office building on West Second Street in downtown Duluth. What follows is a condensed version of a half-hour conversation with Mirsch.
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/4342192-qa-linnea-mirsch-northlands-public-health-director
NC: Growing opioid epidemic puts increased burden on foster care system (Includes video)
WRAL – October 11, 2017
Karen McLeod, the CEO of Benchmarks, a group that advocates for services that include child welfare and addiction, says opioid addiction is putting a huge burden on the foster care system. “When you think about four people a day are dying in North Carolina as a result of opioids, obviously the impact goes across all systems,” she said. “The number of kids coming into foster care has increased by 25 percent over the last five years.”
http://www.wral.com/growing-opioid-epidemic-puts-increased-burden-on-foster-care-system/17009514/
NH: Councilor challenges state contract with religious organization to recruit foster parents
New Hampshire Union Leader – October 11, 2017
A $100,000 contract for a faith-based initiative by Bethany Christian Services of Candia to recruit foster and adoptive families was approved by the Executive Council on Wednesday, despite opposition from Democratic Councilor Andru Volinsky of Concord, who questioned if the group would serve gay foster or adoptive parents. Health and Human Services Commissioner Jeffrey Meyers told councilors the state has had a contract with Bethany Christian for years, with the support of former Democratic governors John Lynch and Maggie Hassan.
NY: YouthBuild aims to construct strong students
Rochester Business Journal – October 12, 2017
The mission of YouthBuild USA and YouthBuild International is to “unleash the intelligence and positive energy of low-income young people to rebuild their communities and live their lives.” The program targets disadvantaged youth aged 18 to 24, three-quarters of whom have left high school. Participants must meet one of the following criteria: be a member of a low-income family; in foster care; adjudicated; an individual with a disability; a child of an incarcerated parent; homeless; or a migrant.
http://rbj.net/2017/10/12/youthbuild-aims-to-construct-strong-students/
OH: Marsh foster care/adoption area grows
Van Wert Independent – October 11, 2017
The foster care and adoption division at The Marsh Foundation continues to grow in order to meet the increasing number of children in care. Part of that growth is the hiring of a new consultant and licensing specialist: Breanna Zipfel, LSW.
http://www.thevwindependent.com/news/2017/10/marsh-foster-careadoption-program-grows/
PR: For Puerto Rico’s Children, Finding A ‘Safe Place’ In The Few Schools That Are Open (Includes audio)
NPR – October 11, 2017
To get an idea of how children and teachers and parents are coping, we visited two different schools in San Juan last week. They’re among the lucky ones that have been able to open their doors and welcome students back.
Also: Student from Puerto Rico enrolls in Chicago school after Hurricane Maria devastates island (Includes video): http://abc7chicago.com/education/puerto-rican-student-enrolls-in-chicago-school-after-hurricane-devastates-island-/2513340/
Also: Puerto Rican influx noticable in Rochester schools, churches: http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2017/10/10/rochester-puerto-rican-schools-churches-increase/749101001/
PR: Tens of thousands of Puerto Ricans flee to US mainland
Associated Press – October 11, 2017
Lourdes Rodriguez fled Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria filled her home in the northern town of Vega Baja with mud, ruining mattresses and other belongings. She thought it would be a short stay with her daughter in Florida, but three weeks later, there’s still no power or water back home. “We’re going to be here indefinitely,” the 59-year-old retiree said in an interview at the daughter’s home in Tampa. “It’s been crazy, totally unexpected, like nothing I’ve experienced before.”
Also: Florida docs told to screen storm evacuees from islands for illness and monkey bites: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/health-care/article177947361.html#storylink=cpy
http://nypost.com/2017/10/11/tens-of-thousands-of-puerto-ricans-flee-to-us-mainland/
RI: DCYF in the spotlight: Forum explores grim realities for R.I. kids in state custody (Includes video)
Providence Journal – October 11, 2017
Children in state care will only thrive when state agencies work together and community members step up, panelists at the Providence Journal’s Publick Occurrences forum stressed on Wednesday night. “This is a societal problem,” said Family Court Chief Judge Michael Forte. “People can’t expect one department with very limited resources to fix all of the social problems.” He added: “People have to come forward and become a part of the solution.”
Also: Forum explores DCYF problems; speakers include key players, those who grew up in foster care: http://www.providencejournal.com/news/20171011/forum-explores-dcyf-problems-speakers-include-key-players-those-who-grew-up-in-foster-care
Also: DCYF’s history of leadership: http://www.providencejournal.com/news/20171011/dcyfs-history-of-leadership
TX: CPS workers find case relief after agency overhaul (Includes video)
KBTX – October 11, 2017
The state agency in charge of protecting our children is undergoing a major overhaul. Reports of foster children sleeping in state offices and caseworkers that were spread thin are just a couple reasons the Governor made fixing the Child Protective Services agency a priority.
http://www.kbtx.com/content/news/CPS-workers-find-case-relief-after-agency-overhaul-450521623.html
TX: Investigators digging deeper into allegations of foster parent sexually abusing kids (Includes video)
KSAT – October 11, 2017
“Some of them were troubled girls,” Brown said about the girls Briseno had access to. “People felt they didn’t have credibility when they would speak up. I know some of them had been threatened if they said anything.” Investigators have gone back to interview multiple women who were teens under his care years ago. Brown said the cases become personal when they hear about the allegations the victims make.
TX: Texas State University’s School of Social Work grant to help improve state foster care program
KGNB – October 10, 2017
The School of Social Work at Texas State University has been awarded a Title IV-E grant of nearly $2.9 million from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) to enhance the skills of current and future Child Protective Services workers. This marks the 24th consecutive year the School of Social Work has received a Title IV-E grant from DFPS.
UT: 11-year-old girl explains her wild embrace after adoption news (Includes video)
KUTV – October 10, 2017
Sixth-grader Tannah Butterfield, who attends American Heritage School in South Jordan, says the viral video that has made hearts melt all over the world is “the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” Well, on second thought, it’s the second best thing. The news that created the moment caught on security camera video at school — that’s the best thing that’s ever happened to her.
http://kutv.com/news/local/girl-11-explains-her-wild-embrace-caught-on-video
VA: Martinsville Social Services adds new director
Martinsville Bulletin – October 11, 2017
A new director has been hired for Henry-Martinsville Social Services. Amy Rice, who currently is assistant director at the Campbell County Department of Social Services, will start her new job in Martinsville on Oct. 23, according to Leigh Cockram, chairwoman of the Henry-Martinsville Social Services Board.
WI: Jackson County leading the way in children’s court revamp
La Crosse Tribune – October 11, 2017
Over the last year, Jackson County has implemented the Child Safety Decision-Making Model pilot, which has led to many changes in the Jackson County children’s court judicial process and is helping make sure the right decisions are being made about vulnerable children.
WV: Failure to report child abuse major issue
Times West Virginian – October 11, 2017
The SHIELD Child Abuse Reporting Initiative led a community discussion panel Tuesday evening at the Fairmont State University Falcon Center to break the barrier on child-abuse reporting. Abuse survivors, experts, local law enforcement and medical professionals presented information and answered questions for the sole purpose of informing the citizens of Marion County on the issue of child abuse, how to help and how to give the children a voice.
INTERNATIONAL
Armenia: USAID Wants to Transition from Aid to Trade in Armenia
Armenian News Network – October 12, 2017
“We promote democracy and improved governance through local governance reform, anti-corruption efforts, and support for civil society, independent media, and the protection of human rights. Together we promote child welfare reform, an inclusive education system, and work to reduce the burden of tuberculosis and maternal and child mortality,” wrote Gresier.
http://groong.usc.edu/news/msg612412.html
Canada: Sixties Scoop continues: Advocates say B.C.’s child welfare system plagued by racial inequity
CBC News – October 10, 2017
Child welfare advocate Cindy Blackstock says there are more Indigenous children in the child welfare system today than there were in residential schools or affected by the Sixties Scoop. “We are seeding the ground for what will be an apology 10, 20 years down the road. In B.C., it’s particularly egregious in the child welfare system as the federal government did not increase prevention funding to help families stay together in 28 years,” Blackstock said.
Also: ‘Mixed feelings’ over Canada’s ’60s Scoop’ settlement: http://travelwirenews.com/mixed-feelings-over-canadas-60s-scoop-settlement-467343/
India: Indian Supreme Court Says Sex With Underage Wife Is Rape (Audio)
National Public Radio – October 12, 2017
India’s Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that a man is committing rape if he has sex with an underage wife. It is a victory for women’s rights advocates.
Also: Supreme Court Rules Sex With Wife Below Age 18 Years of Age Is Rape: http://www.indiawest.com/news/india/supreme-court-rules-sex-with-wife-below-age-years-of/article_e5d6ecfe-aec9-11e7-a22c-7ffe7ad52d52.html
http://www.npr.org/2017/10/12/557298148/indian-supreme-court-says-sex-with-underage-wife-is-rape
United Kingdom: Experts express concerns over infant mental health assessment (Press release)
University of Cambridge – October 11, 2017
Forty world experts on child development and mental health have released a joint statement calling for caution when applying an influential classification for assessing infant mental health and potential cases of abuse. The consensus statement, published in the journal Attachment & Human Development, highlights the appropriate use and current limitations of a classification known as ‘Disorganised Infant Attachment’, which has been in use for over 30 years.
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/uoc-eec101117.php
FL: Criminal record? Horrible work history? Florida juvenile justice would still hire you
Miami Herald – October 10, 2017
For Williams, Harris and hundreds of juvenile justice system employees, problematic pasts were hiding in plain sight, either inside the personnel records of Florida sister agencies or in the Florida Department of Law Enforcement criminal database.
Also: They were stalkers, sexters and rapists – and worked safeguarding Florida delinquents: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/special-reports/florida-prisons/article177887586.html
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/special-reports/florida-prisons/article177889736.html
KS: 70 Foster Children In Kansas Go Missing In 2017, Sparking Safety Concerns (Includes video)
International Business Times – October 11, 2017
Concerns are being raised about the safety of state foster care system after reports emerged Tuesday that more than 70 children were missing from foster homes in Kansas.
http://www.ibtimes.com/70-foster-children-kansas-go-missing-2017-sparking-safety-concerns-2599809
KS: Nowhere Else to Go: Why Kids Are Sleeping in Child Welfare Offices (Commentary)
Governing – October 11, 2017
Every month, there are kids in Kansas forced to sleep on cots or couches in a foster care contractor’s office because they don’t have anywhere else to stay that night.
KY: State must start paying relatives for foster care after US Supreme Court refuses case
Louisville Courier-Journal – October 10, 2017
In a sweeping victory for the growing number of Kentucky relatives providing free foster care for children, Kentucky must begin paying them – many, grandparents struggling with the costs – the same as they do licensed foster families.
MN: New lawsuit targets custody battles in tribal courts (Includes video)
Fox 9 – October 10, 2017
A lawsuit filed Tuesday targets the Minnesota Department of Human Services and Scott County, organizations the plaintiffs allege are violating federal law by sending child custody cases to Indian tribal court without the consent of both parents.
http://www.fox9.com/news/tribal-custody-battles-are-subject-of-new-lawsuit
MS: US Supreme Court is asked to block Mississippi LGBT law
Associated Press – October 10, 2017
Advocates of same-sex marriage are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down a new Mississippi law that lets government workers and business people cite their own religious objections to refuse services to LGBT people.
Also: HB 1523 being appealed to US Supreme Court – it’s been in effect for less than 1 day: http://www.sunherald.com/news/politics-government/article178089226.html
http://wnyt.com/news/us-supreme-court-is-asked-to-block-mississippi-lgbt-law/4630651/?cat=10104
NC: Observer Investigation: Deaths point to crisis in NC’s child welfare system
Fayetteville Observer – October 10, 2017
A Fayetteville Observer investigation found more than 120 children have died in the state within a year of their parents or caregivers being referred to a DSS agency. Some of those deaths, which go back nearly a decade, were from undetermined causes or accidents. But 31 of the children were killed – beaten to death, shot, drowned, smothered or poisoned by drugs.
NY: Dinolfo plans to boost staffing at Child Protective Services
City Newspaper – October 11, 2017
Dinolfo is now advancing an eight-point plan to bolster the department as part of her 2018 budget proposal. The plan is aggressive and speaks directly to some of the concerns that advocates and CPS staff have identified. She said her budget will fund 30 new caseworker positions, which will bring staffing back to pre-2010 levels.
OH: Opioid epidemic drives increased need for foster homes
Norwalk Reflector – October 10, 2017
“Strong efforts (are) made by JFS to place children in care with relatives or family members with the intent to unify them with their parents once (the) home is safe. Some parents receive and complete substance abuse treatment and fight for children to return home while others find it too difficult to battle their addiction to gain custody of their children,” Nolan said.
OR: & KY: States face off over adoption of 4-year-old girl in foster care
Oregonian – October 11, 2017
Oregon and Kentucky are locked in a dispute over which state will decide the fate of a 4-year-old girl from Klamath Falls, Laila Sloan.
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2017/10/oregon_and_kentucky_face_off_o.html
TN: Norbeck is new director of Child Advocacy Center in Charlotte
Tennessean – October 10, 2017
Kathryn Norbeck is the new executive director of The Child Advocacy Center of the 23rd Judicial District, based in Charlotte.
TX: Harris County Protective Services boosts community outreach
Community Impact Newspaper – October 11, 2017
State officials have been working to improve child protection and foster care in Texas since a federal judge declared the system broken in December 2015, citing overloaded case workers and children sleeping in offices due to lack of beds.
WA: Short-term foster care costs taxpayers millions
Crosscut – October 11, 2017
Faced with a severe, ongoing shortage of foster parents, the state Children’s Administration has grown desperate. To avoid placing children in hotels, it increasingly offers foster parents large sums to keep children from bedtime until breakfast, rather than pay three times as much to keep kids in hotels.
http://crosscut.com/2017/10/short-term-foster-care-costs-washington-state-taxpayers-millions/
US: To Prevent Further Tragedies, Require Immediate Fatality Reviews for Children Known to System (Commentary)
Fostering Reform – October 10, 2017
There is another problem with child fatality review panels as a mechanism for reviewing systems’ failure to identify children at risk. In about half the states, these teams review all child fatalities, not just those that are due to child maltreatment, or those of children known to child welfare agencies.
Also: Information Gateway resource: Responding to Child Fatalities and Near Fatalities: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/responding/fatalities/
https://fosteringreform.blogspot.com/2017/10/to-prevent-further-tragedies-require.html
US: Youth Villages Names Christen Glickman as Federal Policy Manager
Chronicle of Social Change – October 10, 2017
Christen Glickman, the former government relations director for the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI), is in as federal policy manager for Youth Villages, a Tennessee-based national provider of residential and community-based services for children and families.
US: One Nation Overdosed (Includes video)
NBC News – October 06, 2017
Ongoing coverage and news of the heroin epidemic and addictions in the United States.
Also: One Nation Overdosed: Utah’s Children at Center of Opioid Crisis (Video): https://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/one-nation-overdosed-utah-s-children-at-center-of-opioid-crisis-1059289155953
https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/americas-heroin-epidemic
INTERNATIONAL
Germany: First adoption by gay couple in Germany
Channel NewsAsia – October 10, 2017
Two men in Berlin became the first same-sex couple to adopt a child in Germany, a human rights association said Tuesday (Oct 10), cheering another “big step forward” for gay people.
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/first-adoption-by-gay-couple-in-germany-9297148
United Kingdom: Girl, 2, becomes youngest child to give evidence in British criminal court
Metro (UK) – October 11, 2017
A two-year-old girl has become the youngest person ever to give evidence in a British crown court helping to secure a more than 10-year jail sentence for a child sex offender.
CA: Broken Promises: Another Failing Charter Gets A Pass (Commentary)
OPED News – October 09, 2017
In providing the reasons for their failures, one of the principals for the schools states that “the truth of it is, (the students) are coming from poverty. They are coming from a community where the average income is about $17,000 for a family.” He continues: “We have a lot of students that come from foster care, that are returning from camp. We have students that come from single-parent households, from neighborhoods with high crime. They are coming from the housing projects…and we have a really high transiency rate.” However, these conditions did not suddenly develop in the last ten years; they were not an adequate excuse for the failures of the LAUSD and they should not be one for Green Dot. On its webpage, Green Dot says that it “is proving it can achieve better student outcomes with the same student population”. Not in the case of Locke.
FL: Former DCF worker accused of falsifying records
Central Florida News 13 – October 09, 2017
Doreece Hines, a former DCF child protective investigator, was assigned a case that involved a child who had bruises. An investigation revealed that Hines documented she visited the child and talked with the parents to determine if the child was in “present danger.” However, Hines never conducted the visit, investigators said.
Also: DCF worker terminated, charged with falsifying records after FDLE investigation: https://www.clickorlando.com/news/dcf-worker-terminated-charged-with-falsifying-records-after-fdle-investigation
IA: Human trafficking victims live ‘out where we can see them’ expert says
Des Moines Register – October 09, 2017
A warm body is worth $300,000 a year, one Iowa human trafficking expert estimates. “If I could wave a magic wand and change one thing about trafficking, it would be the public perception of what trafficking is,” Mike Ferjak, a retired human trafficking investigator for the Iowa Department of Justice, told a crowd of more than 100 at the Fellowship Community Church. “Most people think about prostitution when you say human trafficking. I’m here to tell you in a very clear and definite way they are not the same thing.
IL: Abraxas Leads Successful Turnaround of Behavioral Healthcare (Press release)
ABF Journal – October 09, 2017
Founding Partner David Johnson, serving in the role of interim chief operating officer, led the successful turnaround and restructuring of a Chicago-area behavioral healthcare company active in adolescent residential treatment, adoption, clinical services and foster care.
http://www.abfjournal.com/dailynews/abraxas-leads-successful-turnaround-of-behavioral-healthcare/
KS: State acting as ‘religious police’ in mandating vaccine for grandson, couple argue (Includes video)
Kansas City Star – October 08, 2017
The 2-year-old grandson of Linus and Terri Baker has never been vaccinated. His mother and the Bakers oppose immunization on religious and health grounds. But now that the boy is in temporary state custody, the Kansas Department for Children and Families intends to vaccinate him despite the family’s wishes.
http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article177411636.html
KY: State senator again seeks return of Kinship Care
News-Enterprise – October 09, 2017
State Sen. Dennis Parrett is looking to once again try to re-establish Kinship Care, a program that provides financial assistance to relatives caring for a child who is not their own. Last week, he pre-filed a bill for the 2018 legislative session that would start the program. Children in the program would end up in foster care if not for their relatives taking them in. The bill, BR 247, directs that support services and case management services be provided to the kinship caregiver or the child.
MA: Foster families needed for children displaced by drug abuse
Cape Cod Times – October 09, 2017
Some of the youngest victims of the opioid drug abuse epidemic are children who need safe and nurturing homes. Social workers describe the need for more foster families as urgent and critical. Adults are needed to step up and take in growing numbers of children displaced in large part because of drug addiction.
MS: I Tweeted About My Toddler and Someone Called Child Protective Services (Commentary)
Time – October 09, 2017
This time last week, I was the subject of a human trafficking investigation. There’s no punchline. This was real life. The saga began when a caseworker and supervisor from Child Protection Services dropped by my office with a Lafayette County sheriff’s deputy. You know, a typical Monday afternoon. They told me an anonymous male tipster called Mississippi’s child abuse hotline days earlier to report me for attempting to sell my 3-year-old son, citing a history of mental illness that probably drove me to do it.
http://time.com/4974394/toddler-tweet-child-protective-services/
MS: OUR OPINION: Addressing opioid crisis critical to state’s future
Daily Journal – October 08, 2017
Another impact of Mississippi’s raging opioid epidemic was recently made painfully clear. During a presentation before state legislative leaders, the executive director of Mississippi’s Department of Child Protection Services said the growing problem has increased the caseload for that department.
NC: Focus: State guidelines govern DSS Child Services
Courier Tribune – October 07, 2017
A high-profile case recently raised questions about how it was handled by the Randolph County Department of Social Services. So what does DSS do exactly when there’s fear for a child’s safety? Here’s a look at the process, the goals in each case, how possible outcomes are determined and even what some of the DSS employees have to say about their work.
http://www.courier-tribune.com/news/20171007/focus-dss-child-services-follows-state-guidelines
NE: & IA: As nation faces opioid epidemic, in Iowa and Nebraska, meth is still the ‘No. 1 threat’ (Includes video)
BH News Service – October 09, 2017
Methamphetamine has dropped out of the public spotlight since the time, more than a decade ago, when it was labeled “America’s most dangerous drug.” But the highly addictive stimulant is at least as common now as it ever was in Iowa and Nebraska, far outpacing the opioids plaguing many other states. “Right now, meth is very abundant,” said Brenda Daley, coordinator for the Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, or HIDTA, a regional drug-control effort. “It’s supply and demand, and there is a lot of supply.”
Also: Former Meth User: When you take that first hit, you lose (Includes video): http://launch.newsinc.com/share.html?trackingGroup=91354&siteSection=91354_vmpp&videoId=33076643
NY: Dr. Courtney Cash joins Global Impact International (Restoration Rome) as vice president of development and community engagement (Press release)
Restoration Rome – October 10, 2017
Global Impact International, the parent ministry of Restoration Rome, has announced Dr. Courtney Cash as their new Vice President of Development and Community Engagement. Cash began work in September, focused on securing funds to transform the old Southeast Elementary School building into a hub for foster care services.
NY: Disabled Parents Sue New York City Over Child Removals
New York Times – October 09, 2017
Child welfare workers have removed Shantell’s three children from her care at various times, beginning in July 2016, following reports from hospital staff and social workers that her “developmental delays” and “mental delays” could hinder her ability to parent.
NY: DYCS’s Bill Chong and Susan Haskell on the importance of integrating services
New York Nonprofit Media – October 09, 2017
Bill Chong, who was appointed commissioner of the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development by Mayor Bill de Blasio in 2014, has served in various capacities in city government under four mayors, beginning with the former Mayor David Dinkins’ administration. But in the past four years, Chong has seen his department’s budget double, freeing him to take on infrastructural challenges that have existed since DYCD was formed through the merger of smaller city agencies in 1996.
PA: Former foster youth deserve assistance (Commentary)
Temple News – October 10, 2017
Temple is partnering up with the University of Pennsylvania Field Center for Children’s Policy, Practice and Research to make college more accessible to former foster care youth by granting free housing to them over academic breaks. This is an important act for Temple to counterbalance the struggles of disadvantaged young people. I am proud to attend a university that’s working toward this.
http://temple-news.com/opinion/former-foster-youth-deserve-assistance/
TX: Group struggling to keep pace as Brown County CPS cases rise (Includes video)
KTXS TV – October 09, 2017
Child Protective Services is reporting an across-the-board increase each year in the number of cases it handles, and that’s putting a financial strain on rural counties, including the Brown County Child Welfare Board.
http://www.ktxs.com/news/group-struggling-to-keep-pace-as-brown-county-cps-cases-rise/634850444
WA: Caring for the most vulnerable in the opioid epidemic (Includes video)
King 5 – October 09, 2017
In the fallout of the opioid epidemic in this country, the most heartbreaking cases are often the youngest: newborn babies born to addiction. As Washington state tries to track the cases, a clinic in Kent helps care for them. On Monday, the Pediatric Interim Care Center in Kent had seven babies in their care. All of them had been exposed to opioids before they were born. Some also had a variety of other drugs.
http://www.king5.com/news/local/caring-for-the-most-vulnerable-in-the-opioid-epidemic/482096649
WA: Treehouse appoints 12 members to Young Professionals Board to support youth in foster care (Press release)
Treehouse – October 09, 2017
Treehouse, a Seattle-based nonprofit which has dramatically increased graduation rates for youth in foster care, today announces 12 new members to its Young Professionals Board (YPB). With the new roster also comes changes to the YPB’s Executive Leadership Team. Mathew Lane, formerly an Executive Chair, has been elected President. Currently a compliance manager at Wave, Lane earned a bachelor’s degree from Seattle University and a master’s degree from the University of Washington.
http://news.sys-con.com/node/4175235
WV: How To Prevent Your Child From Being a Victim of an Internet Crime
We Are WV Proud – October 09, 2017
McKinney-Brookes stressed it’s also important her children understand why she’s keeping an eye on them. “By me going through my child’s phone it’s not that I don’t trust you it’s that I don’t trust other people.” Online predators can be hard to identify and many of them are skilled at misleading their targets. Child Protect Operation Manager, Tammy Neal, has a rule for keeping kids safe. “I would encourage not to allow your child to talk to someone if they don’t know them in real life.”
US: Sizable Number of HIV-Infected Children Not Receiving Care
Health Day News – October 10, 2017
A substantial proportion of children with diagnosed HIV infection might not be receiving the recommended frequency of medical care, according to a study published online Oct. 5 in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Also: Retention in Medical Care Among Insured Children with Diagnosed HIV Infection – United States, 2010-2014: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/66/wr/mm6639a1.htm?s_cid=mm6639a1_w
http://www.physiciansbriefing.com/Article.asp?AID=727271
US: ‘One false move and you’re done’: how US cities are changing for runaway kids
Guardian – October 09, 2017
At the age when most young people are ready to start their adult lives, Hicks was ready to end his. But then he met a “train-hopper traveller kid who asked me to smoke a bowl with him and tell him why I was crying”. Hicks confessed that he couldn’t take “being homeless in this town forever” (he still refers derisively to non-transient homeless people as “home bums”) but had no money to leave. The traveller laughed, and said: “All’s you need is a backpack, a sleeping bag, a tarp, and a piece of cardboard and a Sharpie so you can make some money. That’s your credit card.”
US: Born Addicted: The Number of Opioid-Addicted Babies Is Soaring (Includes video)
NBC News – October 09, 2017
Nationally, the rate of American children born with neonatal abstinence syndrome, a set of symptoms experienced by babies exposed to drugs in the womb, has quadrupled over the past 15 years. In East Tennessee the number of infants born with NAS has skyrocketed, with some counties reporting rates eight times the national average.
Information Gateway resource: Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/bhw/casework/families-sud/children-sud/responding/nas/
US: Ex-foster Kids Must Stay Strong to Help Those Still in Care (Commentary)
Youth Today – October 09, 2017
In 2006, as a doctoral candidate researching juveniles, I found out about and joined a national organization called Foster Care Alumni of America (FCAA), an organization of adults whose ages range from 18 to 80. Before discovering FCAA, I had no idea foster care advocacy and foster care alumni family existed. Who are they and what do they do? FCAA was established with the assistance of Casey Family Programs (CFP) and their national foster care alumni study. FCAA’s beginning slogan was “Connecting Today, Transforming Tomorrow.” So what does that mean? Two things: advocacy and family.
http://youthtoday.org/2017/10/ex-foster-kids-must-stay-strong-to-help-those-still-in-care/
US: Head Start May Protect Against Foster Care Placement
Newswise – October 09, 2017
Participating in Head Start may help prevent young children from being placed in foster care, finds a national study led by a Michigan State University researcher.
Study: Early care and education arrangements and young children’s risk of foster placement: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0190740917303195
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/682547/?sc=rsla
US: How I Found Myself in the Middle of a Difficult Immigration Trial
Pop Sugar – October 09, 2017
All the while, Maria was facing down her own demons. Immigration was looking to deport her. Her mother’s boyfriend had been accused of molesting her, so she couldn’t live with her mother, which meant detention was her only option. Into all this stepped a lawyer named Michelle Abarca, who agreed to take her case. She argued that under a US law governing refugee children, Maria could qualify for a visa.
https://www.popsugar.com/latina/Soledad-OBrien-Hispanic-Heritage-Month-Essay-44000715
US: The Wabanaki people are taking back their narrative
Public Radio International – October 09, 2017
From boarding schools in the 1800s to foster care today, Native children have repeatedly been separated from their families. In Maine, the Wabanaki-State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission formed in 2012 to trace the abuses experienced by Native children since the Indian Child Welfare Act was enacted in 1978.
http://kuow.org/post/wabanaki-people-are-taking-back-their-narrative
US: Why Disabled Youth Are More at Risk of Being Incarcerated
Teen Vogue – October 09, 2017
The school-to-prison pipeline for children with disabilities is a multi-layered problem. About 85% of incarcerated youth have a disability, but just 37% of them received special education services in school. At the same time, special education programs often function as a new form of school segregation that place disabled children on a track toward unequal outcomes, according to the National Council on Disability.
https://www.teenvogue.com/story/why-disabled-youth-are-more-at-risk-of-being-incarcerated
US: Trump seeks border wall, crackdown on unaccompanied minors for ‘Dreamer’ deal
Reuters – October 08, 2017
U.S. President Donald Trump, who pledged to help protect young people known as “Dreamers” brought illegally to the United States as children, called on Sunday for money to fund a border wall to be part of any immigration deal.
INTERNATIONAL
Hong Kong: Children’s rights body for Hong Kong may end up toothless
South China Morning Post – October 10, 2017
Carrie Lam is expected to announce long-awaited commission in policy address, but sources say it will be non-statutory and without real power.
AR: National Guard forgoes at-risk kids’ site
Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette – October 06, 2017
The Arkansas National Guard has shelved plans to expand its program for at-risk youths to the former Ouachita Job Corps facility, meaning both of the once-dueling federal and state proposals for the vacant site have been set aside. “It was kind of doubtful from the beginning,” Fram said of the National Guard’s proposal. “The state, just like everybody else, is kind of strapped (for money). That wasn’t something that could be readily funded.”
http://www.nwaonline.com/news/2017/oct/06/guard-forgoes-at-risk-kids-site-2017100/?news-arkansas
AZ: ASU Law’s immigration clinic prepares empathetic litigators
ASU Now – October 08, 2017
Evelyn Cruz is quick to point out that the clinic is a teaching and learning environment, not a legal service. Therefore, the clinic is there to help students become ethical and professional lawyers, not to maximize representation of clients. As such, the clinic picks only a handful of students each semester and handles a few select cases, mostly representing immigrant children in foster care.
CA: Santa Clara Supervisors Look to Create Programs for Homeless Youth
Edge Media Network – October 08, 2017
Following the presentation of a report showing 13,250 high school students in Santa Clara County are couch surfing or living on the streets, the Board of Supervisors last week voted 5-0 to create programs to tackle Silicon Valley’s growing homeless youth population.
Information Gateway resource: Services for Youth: Homeless and Runaway: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/youth/interventions/homeless-runaway/
FL: Death of 1-year-old boy under investigation, but DCF not releasing many details
Bradenton Herald – October 05, 2017
“The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Child Protective Investigations Division has an open child death investigation into this tragic case,” DCF spokeswoman Jessica Sims said. “MCSO is also handling the criminal investigation.” In Manatee County, the sheriff’s office’s Child Protective Investigations Division investigates all child welfare case for DCF.
http://www.bradenton.com/news/local/crime/article177303316.html
FL: Sheriff’s Office: SRO neglected duties in child abuse case
Northwest Florida Daily News – October 05, 2017
OCSO report: Former Okaloosa County deputy Dwayne Vasiloff “blatantly” failed to assist the Florida Department of Children and Families in child abuse investigations at Kenwood.
http://www.nwfdailynews.com/news/20171005/sheriffs-office-sro-neglected-duties-in-child-abuse-case
IA: Hoffman shares statistics, Domestic Abuse Awareness month (Commentary)
Boone News-Republican – October 05, 2017
As we approach Domestic Abuse Awareness month coming up in October. I have researched Boone County’s statistics of calls for service that generated a law enforcement response in Boone County to domestic abuse and domestic abuse related crimes to raise awareness for Boone County residents. Boone County currently has five Law Enforcement agencies. As of Sept. 7 of this year we have responded to 867 domestic abuse and domestic abuse related calls. The 2017 statistics are broken down as follows: assault – 110; domestic abuse – 321; harassment – 254; protective order violation – 89; sex offenses – 69; Child Neglect / Abuse – 24.
IL: Runaway, kicked out, victims of sex trafficking. These teens are the ‘invisible homeless.’ (Includes video)
Belleville News-Democrat – October 05, 2017
Runaway teenagers often find themselves homeless, temporarily living with friends or falling victim to sex traffickers. They wander the streets by day, scraping together or stealing what they need to survive. At night, they “couch surf,” going from friend to friend for a place to sleep.
http://www.bnd.com/news/local/article177238596.html
IN: A generation left behind: Northwest Indiana kids delayed, removed from the home because of the opioid epidemic
NWI Times – October 08, 2017
Children across the state, including areas in Northwest Indiana, are increasingly being placed in foster care, in part, experts say, to the opioid epidemic.
KY: How Kentucky Is Leading the Way in Addiction Care for Pregnant Women
Pacific Standard – October 05, 2017
When Christy discovered last year that she was pregnant, she panicked. She had finished a detox program for an opioid addiction just a few months before, but was still smoking pot and taking prescription painkillers from time to time. She knew she needed more help if she were to deliver a healthy baby. “I needed a safety net,” she says. “I didn’t want to use when I was pregnant.”
LA: Child abuse deaths should make us question whuppings | Opinion
Times-Picayune – October 06, 2017
Just like gun partisans don’t want to talk about the proliferation of guns after yet another mass shooting, the “spare the rod, spoil the child” crowd doesn’t want to talk about the prevalence of “whuppings” after yet another child had died from his or her parent’s punishment.
http://www.nola.com/opinions/index.ssf/2017/10/twynea_thomas_chase.html
MS: State’s drug epidemic leading to increased workload for child welfare agency
Mississippi Business Journal – October 05, 2017
The state’s growing drug problem is one of the factors in the increasing caseload for Mississippi’s Department of Child Protection Services, its new executive director told legislative leaders recently. To deal with that growing caseload, during the 2018 legislative session, the new agency is requesting $113.2 million in state funding, an increase of $15 million from what it received in the 2017 session, said Executive Director Jess Dickinson.
http://msbusiness.com/2017/10/states-drug-epidemic-leading-increased-workload-child-welfare-agency/
MT: Proposed cuts would hit Montana nonprofits, community programs hard (Includes video)
KPAX 8 – October 05, 2017
DPHHS has $105 million worth of programs up for being eliminated. This represents a broad range of services, ranging from foster care family support to services for senior citizens and many others.
NC: Cumberland program will help kids aging out of foster care
Fayetteville Observer – October 05, 2017
The Cumberland County Department of Social Services and its partner organizations will use more than $800,000 in grant money to establish a program to improve the outcomes of youths who age out of foster care.
http://www.fayobserver.com/news/20171005/cumberland-program-will-help-kids-aging-out-of-foster-care
NJ: Transportation Professionals Come Together to Support Bernice’s Place for Homeless Children
Tap Into – October 06, 2017
Transportation industry professionals joined forces elected officials and union representatives on Wednesday to support Bernice’s Place, the after school and summer program for homeless and near homeless children, supported by the Elizabeth Coalition to House the Homeless, at the Sixth Annual Transportation, Logistics & Distribution recognition breakfast.
NY: Da Vance invests $3.75 million to support youth aging out of foster care (Press release)
New York County District Attorney’s Office – October 05, 2017
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., today announced the investment of $3,750,000 to enhance and expand innovative programs for youth who are transitioning out of the foster care system. The three-year grants awarded to The Door and Graham Windham are expected to serve approximately 500 New Yorkers ages 16- to 24-years-old each year.
NY: County Executive Dinolfo: ‘We can do better’ when it comes to CPS (Includes video)
Democrat and Chronicle – October 04, 2017
“When I took this office, I did so with the fundamental belief that we can always do better,” said Dinolfo. On Wednesday she announced an 8-point plan to enhance CPS effectiveness. Changes include redoubled efforts to fill vacant caseworker positions, expand the number of caseworker jobs, increase salaries and reinstate an in-house child abuse hotline that was discontinued in 2015 under then-County Executive Maggie Brooks.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2017/10/04/monroe-county-cps-brook-stagles/732549001/
OH: Wayne County Children’s Services: Most foster homes are at capacity
Daily Record – October 05, 2017
“Wayne County has 62 licensed foster homes,” said Suzanne Greenberg, a recruiter for Wayne County Children’s Services. “Of the houses that we have available, the majority of them are at capacity.” Greenberg explained that there is a delicate balance between finding families and matching them up with children in need, especially those with siblings.
Also: Opiate epidemic impact on Wayne County Children Services is two-fold: http://www.the-daily-record.com/news/20171005/opiate-epidemic-impact-on-wayne-county-children-services-is-two-fold?rssfeed=true
OK: Efforts ongoing to reduce rate of domestic violence in Oklahoma (Commentary)
News OK – October 09, 2017
Victims of domestic violence in the metro area also can get help at a family justice center called Palomar, at 1140 N Hudson. The center, which opened in February, houses representatives from 14 agencies including the police department, the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office, Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma and the Department of Human Services Child Protection Services.
http://newsok.com/article/5567081
OK: Former Oklahoma DHS Adoptive Parent of the Year gets prison time in child abuse case
Tulsa World – October 05, 2017
A former foster care parent and award-winning adoptive mother accused of child abuse was sentenced Wednesday and will serve about three years in prison, a prosecutor said.
http://newsok.com/article/5566914
OK: Health officials warn of dire budget consequences
Associated Press – October 05, 2017
Because DHS is required by court order to maintain funding for its child welfare programs, the Advantage program would almost certainly be decimated if the agency loses 10 percent of its budget – or an estimated $69 million it would have received from the cigarette tax – if lawmakers can’t reach an agreement, said agency spokeswoman Sheree Powell. The state’s Medicaid agency has announced plans to slash reimbursement rates to health care providers by 9 percent beginning Dec. 1. The agency says that cuts are needed to make up for the loss of funding to its agency, cuts that could result in doctors and other health care providers refusing to treat Medicaid patients.
http://www.startribune.com/oklahoma-health-officials-warn-of-dire-budget-consequences/449646083/
OR: Children need advocates for safe homes
Daily Astorian – October 05, 2017
“Our middle-class, white-picket-fence instinct is, ‘Well, let’s just take that child and put her into a happy home, and everyone feels good,'” says Julia Mabry, executive director of Clatsop CASA Program. “But that’s not how it works,” Mabry says. “That is not in the child’s best interest. The child’s best interest is to help the parents be safe and sober so they can continue their attachment and continue to be raised by their parent, if that is at all possible.”
http://www.dailyastorian.com/CBG/opinions/20171005/children-need-advocates-for-safe-homes
PA: New after-school drop-in center for Scranton teens to open soon
Times-Tribune – October 09, 2017
According to a recent survey in 11 NEPA counties, there were 310 homeless teens in ninth through 12th grades, she said. Of those, 32 teens from Lackawanna County were homeless, she said. They may stay temporarily at friends’ homes, shelter near the Lackawanna River, sleep in cars or at relatives’ homes, or go into foster care. Such moves could displace the teens from their social networks, which could be detrimental to them.
PA: Auditor General says caseworkers are “underpaid and overworked” (Includes video)
WJET – October 05, 2017
The Pennsylvania Auditor General is saying the state’s child welfare system is broken and is in Erie discussing ways to make it better. This visit to the Erie County Office of Children and Youth coming after Auditor General Eugene Depasquale says the results show the caseworkers and employees are “underpaid and overworked”.
Also: Erie County OCY Caseworkers Voice Concerns: http://www.erienewsnow.com/story/36532467/erie-county-ocy-caseworkers-voice-concerns
WV: New study calls for more help for drug-addicted babies (Includes video)
WSAZ – October 05, 2017
Babies born with a drug dependency are in great need of help, according to health officials. A new study is calling for federal action to address the problem that not only affects the entire country, but especially the Mountain State.
Study: https://www.capito.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/GAO%20Report%20on%20Neonatal%20Abstinence%20Syndrome.pdf
US: ABA lawsuit against Education Department awaits hearing date
Daily Record (MD) – October 06, 2017
In its latest court filing, the ABA says the agency’s denial has led the organization to face “serious recruiting and retention problems” due to its revocation as an employer under the loan forgiveness program. One program that has had a particularly hard time recruiting attorneys is the ABA’s ProBAR initiative, which supports direct legal representation of unaccompanied children along the Texas border.
http://thedailyrecord.com/2017/10/06/aba-dept-of-education-loan-forgiveness-lawsuit/
INTERNATIONAL
Bangladesh: UNICEF Bangladesh Revised Response Plan for Rohingya Crisis, October 2017 (Press release)
Relief Web – October 05, 2017
With the new Influx of 501,800 since 25 August 2017, the current total number of Rohingya people who have fled from Myanmar into Bangladesh, coupled with the affected population in the communities has reached 1.2 million as estimated by the Inter-Sector Coordination Group (ISCG). It is estimated that 80 per cent of the new arrivals are children and women including newborn babies and pregnant and lactating women.
France: The Calais migrant crisis is not over
Varsity (UK) – October 08, 2017
In October 2016, the Calais ‘Jungle’ – a temporary town of refugee housing, shops and other facilities – was demolished. The estimated 8,000 inhabitants were evicted, with most relocated across the country by the French authorities. After the operation, the prefect of Pas-de-Calais declared, “our mission is accomplished”. It wasn’t. There is also evidence of violence against people themselves: a recent Human Rights Watch report claimed the police “routinely use pepper spray on child and adult migrants while they are sleeping”, according to “nearly every asylum seeker” interviewed.
Also: Asylum: up to 400 refugee children stuck in France, lawyers say: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/oct/08/asylum-up-to-400-refugee-children-stuck-in-france-lawyers-say
https://www.varsity.co.uk/comment/13585
United Kingdom: I am a worker says foster carer, as she launches employment rights claim
Times & Star – October 09, 2017
A foster carer is launching a claim over her employment rights in what could be a landmark legal case.
West Africa: ECOWAS Signs Strategic Framework To Protect Children From Violence
Independent – October 06, 2017
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Thursday adopted a Strategic Framework for Strengthening National Child Protection Systems to prevent and respond to violence, abuse and exploitation against children in West Africa. A statement signed by Geoffrey Njoku, Communication Specialist, United Nations For Children Fund (UNICEF) which was made available to INDEPENDENT said that the decision which will have positive implications for millions of children in West Africa was taken at the ECOWAS First Ladies’ Forum in Niamey, from October 2 to 5 2017.
http://independent.ng/ecowas-signs-strategic-framework-protect-children-violence/
AZ: New ban on conversion therapy for gay teens in Arizona (Includes video)
3TV/CBS 5 – September 27, 2017
Pima County just banned conversion, or reparative, therapy for minors. It went into effect Aug. 28, so now, any paid therapist who tries offering it to kids can be fined $2,500.
http://www.azfamily.com/story/36469520/new-ban-on-conversion-therapy-for-gay-teens-in-arizona
CA: Los Angeles County Launches “Just in Reach” Supportive Housing Program to Break Cycles of Homelessness and Reincarceration (Press release summary)
Conrad N. Hilton Foundation – October 05, 2017
Los Angeles County has launched Just in Reach (JIR), a new health-based housing program that will reduce jail recidivism and help end homelessness among people experiencing repeat jail stays. Over four years, JIR will place 300 homeless individuals who are currently in custody within the county jail and who have a mental health and/or substance-use disorder into permanent supportive housing.
Also: Press release: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171004006481/en/
DE: Fentanyl use rising fast in Delaware
Cape Gazette – October 04, 2017
“All evidence suggests the problem will continue to worsen in 2017,” said Renata Henry, executive director of the nonprofit training organization The Danya Institute. “The fallout from a rise in deadly drug use also includes an increase in viral infections such as HIV and hepatitis, more babies born drug-dependent and an increase in children placed in foster care,” she said. “The economic burden to this country is pegged now at about $78.5 billion,” she said. “I expect that to change and rise.”
http://www.capegazette.com/article/fentanyl-use-rising-fast-delaware/142645?source=fs&slide=1
FL: Florida Virtual School to welcome 20,000 Puerto Rican students, Gov Scott says
Orlando Sentinel – October 05, 2017
Puuerto Rican students, whether still on the island or resettling in Florida, can take classes through the state’s public online school for free, Gov. Rick Scott announced Thursday. The Florida Virtual School will accommodate up to 20,000 youngsters from Puerto Rico, Scott’s office said. The offer comes as the U.S. territory continues to struggle after Hurricane Irma pounded it two weeks ago, damaging homes, schools, business, roads and the island’s power grid.
FL: Delray Housing Authority Provides Homes For Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
Delray Newspaper – October 04, 2017
Dorothy Ellington said she receives calls daily from people who need a place to live. As president and CEO of the Delray Beach Housing Authority, the calls are part of her job. Recently, she said the types of calls she noticed coming in were from a different kind of family, one where grandparents were finding themselves raising their grandchildren.
IA: Hotel staff train against trafficking
Daily Iowan – October 05, 2017
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds’ new statewide initiative trains hotel and motel employees on how to stop human trafficking. The Iowa Network Against Human Trafficking and Slavery and the Nebraska Coalition on Human Trafficking recently teamed up to do the Iowa Hotel/Motel Training Project, which was announced by Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds in a Sept. 19 press release.
http://daily-iowan.com/2017/10/05/motel-hotel-staff-train-against-trafficking/
IN: Indiana Heart Gallery sharing pictures and stories about children in foster care in Indiana
WIMS – October 04, 2017
The Indiana Heart Gallery is a traveling photo exhibit featuring compelling portraits of children in need of adoptive families, and it is making a stop at the Norther Indiana Autism Expo in South Bend. The Indiana Department of Child Services (DCS) created the Heart Gallery in 2007 with the goal of sharing the beautiful professional portraits along with stories about children in foster care in Indiana. This initiative helps put a face on a sometimes invisible need and reminds families that adoption changes lives.
KS: Foster Care System Is Improving But Still Can’t Keep Up With Demand (Video)
Quad-City Times – October 04, 2017
Tonight in Kansas, children in foster care are in crisis. There are just not enough homes for all of them. “In the end,” Child Protective Services says, “the goal is always to reunite the child with the family.”
MA: More reports of sex abuse at elite Massachusetts prep school
Washington Post – October 04, 2017
An elite boarding school in Massachusetts says more ex-students have come forward to report they were victims of sexual misconduct by a former teacher.
Also: At Milton Academy, more accusations of sexual misconduct surface: http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2017/10/03/milton-academy-more-allegations-sexual-misconduct-surface/tpd5sQ3LYLIIuagjzCVFXK/story.html
MI: MSU’s opportunity: Use Nassar to teach how abuse gets missed (Commentary) (Includes audio)
Michigan Public Radio – October 05, 2017
Advocates say Michigan State University has a rare platform now to help students, staff, and the broader community understand how child molesters use our trust against us – and how even the best-intentioned adults can fail to see abuse. A crisis like the Nassar case can create an opening.
Also: MSU has “no plans” to release internal review into Larry Nassar (Includes audio): http://michiganradio.org/post/msu-has-no-plans-release-internal-review-larry-nassar
http://michiganradio.org/post/msu-s-opportunity-use-nassar-teach-how-abuse-gets-missed
NC: Children Bearing The Impact Of Drug Addiction – Brevard, NC
Transylvania Times – October 05, 2017
Drug addiction is reported to be one of the most corrosive threads that dissolve the family dynamic in Transylvania County, leaving children victims of abuse and neglect, then tossed into an unpredictable system, not knowing where they may find their next home.
NC: Cumberland program will help kids aging out of foster care
Fayetville Observer – October 05, 2017
The Cumberland County Department of Social Services and its partner organizations will use more than $800,000 in grant money to establish a program to improve the outcomes of youths who age out of foster care.
http://www.fayobserver.com/news/20171005/cumberland-program-will-help-kids-aging-out-of-foster-care
NY: ‘I’ve Always Been a Lioness When It Comes to My Children’: Stories From Inside the Child Welfare System (Opinion)
Jezebel and Rise Magazine – October 04, 2017
In collaboration with Rise magazine, Jezebel is publishing a series of articles written by parents affected by the child welfare system. This post, the third in the series, features narratives by LaQuana Chapelle and Lashonda Murray, two mothers who themselves grew up in foster care. In New York City, an estimated 25 to 40 percent of mothers with children in foster care grew up in the foster care system; nationwide, 51 percent of children in foster care end up returning home.
https://jezebel.com/ive-always-been-a-lioness-when-it-comes-to-my-children-1818992935
OH: Wayne County Children’s Services: Most foster homes are at capacity
Daily Record – October 05, 2017
Earlier this year, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced plans to institute a pilot program to help families impacted by parental opioid addiction. While DeWine’s pilot program only consists of 14 counties in the southern region of Ohio, his plea for families to become foster parents was heard throughout the state, especially in Wayne County.
OH: Dayton Children’s to add mental health wing
Journal-News – October 04, 2017
An increased need for children mental health services has led Dayton Children’s Hospital to develop its first inpatient mental health unit at its main campus, helping fill a resource gap for local families who sometimes go to Columbus or Kentucky when there aren’t hospital beds available in the region.
http://www.journal-news.com/news/dayton-children-add-mental-health-wing/C3FFaK1PbLNKBtVyJWKCGK/
OK: State health officials warn of dire budget consequences
Associated Press – October 05, 2017
Because DHS is required by court order to maintain funding for its child welfare programs, the Advantage program would almost certainly be decimated if the agency loses 10 percent of its budget – or an estimated $69 million it would have received from the cigarette tax – if lawmakers can’t reach an agreement, said agency spokeswoman Sheree Powell.
Also: Wayne Greene: Unimaginable potentials become imaginable, if Legislature doesn’t get busy soon: http://www.tulsaworld.com/opinion/editorials/wayne-greene-unimaginable-potentials-become-imaginable-if-legislature-doesn-t/article_e978d1b3-4789-52f8-baad-bc8830d6bbe4.html
http://www.startribune.com/oklahoma-health-officials-warn-of-dire-budget-consequences/449646083/
OR: Protecting vulnerable children (Commentary)
Baker City Herald – October 05, 2017
Protecting children can involve multiple agencies, including law enforcement, and the people involved often have to negotiate a labyrinth of laws. And as Bailey pointed out, finding qualified foster parents can be difficult in our sparsely populated county.
http://www.bakercityherald.com/opinion/5649013-151/protecting-vulnerable-children?referrer=section
OR: Children With Incarcerated Parents Get Bill of Rights in Oregon (Commentary)
Huffington Post – October 04, 2017
One in 14 children in the U.S. has one or both parents in prison – and those children are four times more likely to end up in jail themselves. They also drop out of school at a higher rate and, if they are in foster care, are 65 percent more likely to become homeless once they age out. Those are sobering statistics, but there’s more. Between 1991 and 2007 the number of imprisoned adults that had children in their care at the time of incarceration has grown by 79 percent.
Also: Information Gateway resource: Supporting Children and Families of Prisoners: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/supporting/support-services/prisoners/
PA: Erie County OCY Caseworkers Voice Concerns (Includes video)
Erie News Now – October 05, 2017
The Erie County Office of Children and Youth is dealing with an increase in child abuse cases. Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale today came to Erie to listen to concerns from employees. Similar problems are being reported in OCY offices across the state. DePasquale released an 80-page report last month called ‘The State of the Child.’ In that report, he said that Pennsylvania’s child welfare system is broken. Today, he indicated that Erie County is less broken than other areas of the state.
http://www.erienewsnow.com/story/36532467/erie-county-ocy-caseworkers-voice-concerns
PA: When we talk about mass deportation, we’re talking about 4 million Latinx children without parents (Commentary)
Public News Service (PNS) – October 04, 2017
Approximately one in four Latinx children living in the United States has one undocumented parent, according to the latest research from The National Research Center on Hispanic Children & Families published Wednesday – a stunning finding that could have major ramifications in the discussions of mass deportation policies under President Donald Trump.
Also: Brief: One Quarter of Hispanic Children in the United States Have an Unauthorized Immigrant Parent: http://www.hispanicresearchcenter.org/publications/one-quarter-of-hispanic-children-in-the-united-states-have-an-unauthorized-immigrant-parent/
Also: Responding to ICE Raids with Prayer Vigil (Includes audio): http://www.publicnewsservice.org/2017-10-06/immigrant-issues/responding-to-ice-raids-with-prayer-vigil/a59724-1
https://thinkprogress.org/1-in-4-latinx-kids-undocumented-parents-e69ecf1da331/
PR: ‘I’m so hungry.’ Deep in Puerto Rico’s countryside, we see firsthand the post-Maria crisis (Commentary) (Includes video)
CNBC – October 03, 2017
When we landed in San Juan, Puerto Rico, our team’s immediate focus was on a broken supply chain that was prolonging the life-or-death crisis for families across this island of 3.4 million people.
WA: Tacoma-Area Task Forces Disrupt Gang Members Trafficking Minors for Sexual Exploitation (Press release)
Federal Bureau of Investigation – October 03, 2017
Multiple state, local, and federal agencies combined efforts to disrupt a criminal enterprise known to be trafficking minors for sexual exploitation out of Tacoma, Washington. Working through the South Sound Child Exploitation Task Force (CETF) and the South Sound Gang Task Force (SSGTF), federal agents and law enforcement officers arrested five individuals on Monday, October 2, 2017, and are working to locate and arrest two additional individuals.
US: Human trafficking is a hidden aftermath of natural disasters (Includes audio)
Public Radio International – October 05, 2017
Think about it in this disaster context: Your life was upended by a hurricane. Maybe you lost your home, your car. But you probably still have your phone. You may still be going online. Franklin consults for a Texas nonprofit called Children At Risk. They did a study recently and found that adult ads on online sites doubled after the Hurricane Harvey.
Also: Harvey, Irma, and Maria: Natural Disasters and Human Trafficking: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/harvey-irma-and-maria-natural-disasters-and-human_us_59d55cdbe4b085c51090ad63
https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-10-05/human-trafficking-hidden-aftermath-natural-disasters
US: Riding ‘the beast’: child migrants reveal full horror of their journeys to America
Guardian – October 05, 2017
To the question about how they travelled here, with a blend of pride and horror, most say: “I came on La Bestia” – which literally means “the beast”, and refers to the freight trains that cross Mexico, on top of which as many as half a million Central American migrants ride annually. There are no passenger services along the routes, so migrants have to ride atop the rail cars or in the recesses between them.
INTERNATIONAL
Europe: EU Governments Forcibly Return Almost 10,000 Afghans
Tolo News – October 05, 2017
The report states that Afghans forcibly returned from Europe include unaccompanied children and young adults who were children at the time when they arrived in Europe. Several people Amnesty International interviewed for the report were sent to parts of Afghanistan they had never known, despite the dangerous situation and impunity for crimes such as torture.
http://www.tolonews.com/afghanistan/eu-governments-forcibly-return-almost-10000-afghans
West Africa: ECOWAS Signs Strategic Framework To Protect Children From Violence
Sahifa – October 05, 2017
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Thursday adopted a Strategic Framework for Strengthening National Child Protection Systems to prevent and respond to violence, abuse and exploitation against children in West Africa.
https://www.newsinseconds.com/ecowas-signs-strategic-framework-to-protect-children-from-violence/
CA: L.A. County finalizes negotiations with new DCFS director
Antelope Valley Times – October 04, 2017
The Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to formally appoint a new director to run Los Angeles County’s child welfare agency. Bobby Cagle, the director of the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services, will take office Dec. 1.
http://theavtimes.com/2017/10/04/l-a-county-finalizes-negotiations-with-new-dcfs-director/
CA: Lawsuit filed 2 years after foster child eats meth and dies (Includes video)
KTVU – October 04, 2017
The story of a three-year-old Oakland girl who died after ingesting methamphetamine twice in the same foster home is now coming to light two years after her death. A federal lawsuit was filed on Monday on behalf of her 7-year-old brother Jeremyah. His foster mother says he’s still coping with the loss of little sister Mariah.
http://www.ktvu.com/news/lawsuit-filed-2-years-after-foster-child-eats-meth-and-dies
FL: School resource officer suspended during child abuse investigation (Includes video)
WEAR – October 04, 2017
A former Okaloosa County school resource officer was suspended for “allegations of unsatisfactory performance and not obeying the rules”, according to a report released by the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO). It all came to light, the OCSO reports, when the sheriff’s office began investigating allegations of child abuse at Kenwood Elementary School in May.
http://weartv.com/news/local/new-school-resource-officer-suspended-during-child-abuse-investigation
IL: DCFS investigator is assaulted while trying to aid a child in Sterling, Ill.
Chicago Tribune – October 04, 2017
Illinois child welfare officials are reacting with shock and anguish to the severe beating of a veteran investigator who was assaulted while taking protective custody of a 2-year-old child near Sterling, about 120 miles west of Chicago. The child’s relative, 25-year-old Andrew Sucher, allegedly knocked the 59-year-old Department of Children and Family Services investigator to the ground and kicked her in the head when she appeared at the child’s home Friday evening, according to court records and interviews with state and local authorities.
Also: State Child Protection Investigator Attacked on the Job (Press release): https://www.afscme.org/now/il-child-protection-investigator-attacked-on-the-job
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-dcfs-worker-attacked-met-20171004-story.html
MN: Child protection officer may join Pennington County staff
Thief River Falls Times – October 04, 2017
Pennington County commissioners are considering adding a child protection officer. If the position were approved, the deputy would be shared between the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office and Pennington County Human Services Department. Commissioners discussed the matter at their meeting Tuesday, Sept. 26.
http://www.trftimes.com/news/child-protection-officer-may-join-pennington-county-staff
MS: State’s drug epidemic leading to increased workload for child welfare agency
Daily Journal – October 04, 2017
The state’s growing drug problem is one of the factors in the increasing caseload for Mississippi’s Department of Child Protection Services, its new executive director told legislative leaders recently. To deal with that growing caseload, during the 2018 legislative session, the new agency is requesting $113.2 million in state funding, an increase of $15 million from what it received in the 2017 session, said Executive Director Jess Dickinson.
NC: Person County Foster Care Staggers Under Weight of Substance Abuse
North Carolina Health News – October 05, 2017
The number of children in the Person County foster care system continues to rise, primarily due to substance abuse, county officials said this week. This spring, there were 82 children in the custody of Person County Department of Social Services, and 55 were displaced due to a caregiver’s drug or alcohol use.
https://www.northcarolinahealthnews.org/2017/10/05/person-county-foster-care-substance-abuse/
ND: North Dakota Today: What Kind of Individual Can be a Foster Parent? (Video)
Valley News Live – October 04, 2017
If you’re looking to provide care for a child and make a difference in their life then you should consider becoming a foster parent.
http://www.valleynewslive.com/video/?vid=449439103&vid=449439103
NY: County Hearing Reveals Child Welfare A Key Spending Driver
Post-Journal – October 05, 2017
Juvenile delinquent care and placing children in foster or higher care institutions are driving increases in local spending. Budget discussions between county legislators and Health and Human Services’ administrators Wednesday morning in Mayville revealed the opioid problem as a main contributor.
NY: To Save Opioid Addicts, This Experimental Court Is Ditching The Delays (Includes audio)
National Public Radio – October 05, 2017
Federal, county and city court officials are looking hard at Buffalo, N.Y.’s new opioid crisis intervention court as one potential model solution to the epidemic of heroin and opioid overdoses that continue to devastate families and communities across America, taxing local governments, first responders and the nation’s criminal justice system.
NY: Eight-point plan outlines Monroe County CPS changes
WHAM – October 04, 2017
Monroe County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo is laying out a plan to change the way Monroe County Child Protective Services works. The changes come in the wake of the Brook Stagles case and subsequent murder conviction of her father’s girlfriend Erica Bell.
Also: CPS releases timeline of investigation involving Brook Stagles (Includes video): http://www.rochesterfirst.com/news/local-news/cps-releases-timeline-of-investigation-involving-brook-stagles/825804661
Also: Report: Child Protective Services in Monroe County is understaffed and overwhelmed: http://13wham.com/news/local/child-protective-services-in-monroe-county-is-understaffed-and-overwhelmed
Also: Guest Essay: Foster care panic won’t stop child abuse tragedies (Opinion): http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/opinion/guest-column/2017/10/04/brook-stagles-child-abuse-foster-care-panic-protection/732620001/
http://13wham.com/news/local/dinolfo-county-human-services-commissioner-announcing-cps-changes
OK: Reports of drug-exposed newborns surge
Oklahoma Watch – October 04, 2017
Oklahoma health-care professionals reported to the state a record 517 cases of newborn infants who tested positive for dangerous drugs or alcohol last year, up from 320 when officials began compiling statistics in 2013. State officials said they couldn’t determine how much of the 62 percent increase was attributable to rising drug use among pregnant women and how much to improved reporting and testing by health care personnel.
OR: The good they do: Foster parents shepherd children through troubled system (Commentary)
Forest Grove News Times – October 04, 2017
The challenge for Oregon’s Department of Human Services and particularly its Child Welfare Division, which handles foster children, is to draw and support more foster parents – both “general” parents like the Raicharts, who are willing to love and care for any young strangers in need, and “child-specific” parents, who are related or known to the child or who take only certain ages or types of children. That might get easier now that the Oregon Legislature just pumped $130 million into Child Welfare this last session, bringing its funding up to $1.07 billion – the biggest funding jump in four years. In Washington County, where Child Welfare had a particularly turbulent 2016, it’s perfect timing. But will it be enough?
PA: Prove kids are priority (Commentary)
Citizens’ Voice – October 05, 2017
High-profile problems often produce high-profile responses. So when the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal roiled the entire nation, Pennsylvania lawmakers very publicly raced to toughen child protection laws. Now, as revealed in a study by state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, it’s apparent that legislators did not pay as much attention to enabling child welfare agencies to deal with the vastly expanded case loads that resulted.
http://citizensvoice.com/opinion/prove-kids-are-priority-1.2251004
PA: Auditor praises Allegheny County’s use of algorithm in child welfare screening
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – October 04, 2017
Pennsylvania’s auditor general, who recently issued a report critical of the state’s child welfare system, on Wednesday praised Allegheny County’s use of technology in screening for potential child neglect. “While county children and youth services agencies statewide are struggling to work within a broken system, Allegheny County is attempting to use technology so it can more efficiently deploy the resources it has,” Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said in a statement following a visit to the county’s Department of Human Services.
Also: Report: Allegheny County DHS using algorithm to assist in child welfare screening: http://www.post-gazette.com/local/region/2017/04/09/Allegheny-County-using-algorithm-to-assist-in-child-welfare-screening/stories/201701290002
TX: ‘So Much Worse’: Bowie County sues Big Pharma amid opioid epidemic
Texarkana Gazette – October 04, 2017
“The economic burden caused by opioid abuse in the U.S. is approximately $78.5 billion, including lost productivity and increased social services, health insurance costs, increased criminal justice presence and strain on judicial resources, and substance abuse treatment and rehabilitation,” the complaint alleges. “This epidemic did not occur by chance.
TX: Bowie Police obtain warrant for ‘false’ CPS report
Bowie News – October 04, 2017
A warrant has been obtained through the Bowie Police Department for a man accused of making a false report to Child Protective Services. This is the first time police are using a charge that comes from a change in the Texas Family Code, which makes this type of false report a state jail felony.
http://bowienewsonline.com/2017/10/bowie-police-obtain-warrant-for-false-cps-report/
WI: Human Services reorganization creates new position: Pierce County Board
River Towns – October 04, 2017
At the Sept. 26 Pierce County Board meeting, county supervisors unanimously approved the Human Services reorganization plan for the 2018 budget, including the creation of a full-time foster care coordinator-social worker position. Human Services Director Ron Schmidt said the reorganization that’s occurring is a “consolidation effort” to help Child Protective Services.
WV: Many challenges, but hope for state’s foster care system (Opinion)
Register-Herald – October 05, 2017
The situation in the State of West Virginia is rather dire. Just recently, Bill Crouch, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources, reported to the legislature that West Virginia is experiencing nothing short of a child welfare crisis: We lead the nation in children removed from the home, and we are 48th in the nation when it comes to congregate care. To make things worse, children in the system are becoming younger and more traumatized. Not surprisingly, West Virginia falls short when it comes to foster care families, adoption options, child protective service staff and other resources.
WV: Southern Appalachian Labor School awarded funding
Register-Herald – October 05, 2017
Southern Appalachian Labor School (SALS) has been re-funded by the U.S. Department of Labor to continue for three more years its successful program of training and educating at-risk youth. The Southern Appalachian Labor School was the only program funded in West Virginia and one of 77 funded within the United States. YouthBuild is a recognized pre-apprenticeship program that helps at- risk youth complete high school or state equivalency degree programs, earn industry-recognized certifications for in-demand occupations, and undergo training to build housing for low-income or homeless individuals and families in their communities.
US: DeVos’ rule changes on handling sexual assault will benefit everyone (Opinion)
Times Higher Education – October 05, 2017
When US education secretary Betsy DeVos announced in August that she would rewrite the Title IX rules on campus sexual assault, former education secretary Arne Duncan called foul. “Instead of building on important work to pursue justice,” he rebutted, “they are once again choosing politics over students, and students will pay the price.”
US: Our Opinion: Hoosier voice on national opioid task force
South Bend Tribune – October 04, 2017
As Indiana seeks solutions to its crippling opioid crisis, the chief justice of the state Supreme Court is taking a national role in the battle. Chief Justice Loretta Rush will lead a group tasked with examining the justice system’s role in fighting the opioid addiction scourge. She will co-chair the panel with Tennessee court administrator Deborah Taylor. The task force will hear from state and national experts on what’s working and what’s not working in the area of prevention. It will also establish partnerships that focus specifically on the impact of opioids on foster children and families.
Information Gateway resource: Court-Child Welfare Agency Collaboration: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/courts/ccwa/
US: State attorneys general seek more beds for drug treatment
Associated Press – October 03, 2017
A bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general on Monday called on Congress to allow Medicaid funding to flow to larger drug treatment centers, potentially expanding the number of addicts who can get help as the nation grapples with an overdose crisis. The government lawyers for 38 states and Washington, D.C., sent a letter to congressional leaders requesting the change. They say it’s needed to help fight the opioid abuse and overdose epidemic, which continues to claim tens of thousands of lives a year.
INTERNATIONAL
Haiti: & Caribbean: One year after Hurricane Matthew, Haiti’s children still vulnerable to natural disasters (Press release)
UNICEF Canada – October 04, 2017
One year after Hurricane Matthew, a category 4 hurricane, devastated the Southwest of Haiti, causing loss of life and considerable damage, children and adolescents in the Caribbean country are still incredibly vulnerable to the effects of natural disasters and extreme weather events, UNICEF warned today.
Also: Report: U-Reporters in countries & islands affected by Irma tell us their health concerns: https://ureport.in/poll/2265/
Saudi Arabia: UN draft report blacklists Saudi coalition for violations against children in Yemen
Guardian (UK) – October 04, 2017
The Saudi Arabia-led coalition in Yemen has been included in a draft version of the UN’s annual blacklist for grave violations against children in conflict. The report, parts of which have been seen by the Guardian, conceded that the coalition has put in place measures to improve child protection. The report is set to be published this month, before the children and armed conflict debate on 31 October. It has to be approved by António Gutteres, the current UN chief before publication and is subject to change.
Also: Press Conference by Security Council President on Work Programme for October (Press release): https://www.un.org/press/en/2017/171002_SC.doc.htm
United Kingdom: Study reveals link between childhood in care and mums who have babies removed by the courts
Science Daily – October 03, 2017
A study has found a high number of women, who repeatedly appear before the family courts and lose many children into public care or adoption because of child protection concerns, have been in care themselves.
Also: Study Summary: Birth Parents and the Collateral Consequences of Court-ordered Child Removal: Towards a Comprehensive Framework: https://academic.oup.com/lawfam/article/3065577/Birth
Study PDF: https://academic.oup.com/lawfam/article-pdf/31/1/41/10907085/ebw013.pdf
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171003094933.htm
Vatican City: Church more aware of crime, harm of child abuse, top Vatican official says
America: The Jesuit View – October 04, 2017
The church has become “progressively aware of the harm suffered by the victims” and of the need to listen to them so as to find ways “to heal the wounds, re-establish justice, prevent crimes” and to develop and consolidate “a new culture of child protection,” Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, said, at the first world congress focused on addressing the dangers children and adolescents face on the internet. The congress was being held as the Vatican was investigating accusations that one of its foreign diplomats had violated laws relating to child pornography images.
Also: Pontifical abuse commission member speaks on ‘child dignity in the digital world’: https://www.childdignity2017.org/fileadmin/downloads/press_releases/20170531/Zollner_Keynote_EN_Congress_Child_Dignity_in_the_Digital_World_2017.pdf
AZ: Judge: All children in DCS care are now part of class-action lawsuit (Includes video)
Arizona Republic – October 03, 2017
A lawsuit that seeks improvements in Arizona’s foster-care system will apply to all Arizona children in the system, now as well as in the future, a federal judge has ruled.
CA: Should The US Defend Undocumented People in Immigration Court? (Includes video)
International Business Times – October 03, 2017
Deportations take parents away from their homes, which means more kids in foster care, greater mental health and medical needs, and housing and food insecurity for more families.
Report: California’s Due Process Crisis: Access to Legal Counsel for Detained Immigrants: https://www.nilc.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/access-to-counsel-Calif-coalition-report-2016-06.pdf
http://www.ibtimes.com/should-us-defend-undocumented-people-immigration-court-2595696
IA: A teen who was locked up and beaten sues Iowa for bungling her child-welfare case (Includes video)
Des Moines Register – October 03, 2017
In a rare move, a 19-year-old abused in an Urbandale foster home for years has sued the state for negligence, saying she suffered physically and emotionally because the child welfare case was mishandled.
IL: ChildServ welcomes six new members to its board of trustees (Press release)
ChildServ – October 03, 2017
ChildServ, a nonprofit dedicated to building better lives for children, recently announced six new additions to its board of trustees: Tim Brennan, Edward J. Dunphy, Cristal Thomas Gary, Andrew Goldberg, Thomas Kopecky, and Dave Sullivan.
MA: State Generally Complied With State Requirements To Ensure Children Who Were Title IV-E Eligible and Residing in Foster Care Congregate Care Group Homes Received Required Medical Services (Press release)
Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services – October 03, 2017
The Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (State agency) generally complied with applicable Federal and State regulations for ensuring that children who were Title IV-E eligible and residing in foster care congregate care group homes received medical services during calendar year 2015 as required pursuant to Title IV-E of the Act. ~~ Of the 75 case files we reviewed, 74 case files contained documentation to support that required services were received by the children in foster care. One case file did not contain documentation to support that the child in foster care received a 30-day comprehensive medical exam.
Also: Full report: Massachusetts Generally Complied With State Requirements To Ensure Children Who Were Title IV-E Eligible and Residing in Foster Care Congregate Care Group Homes Received Required Medical Services, September 14, 2017 (A-01-16-02501): https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region1/11602501.pdf
https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region1/11602501.asp
MN: Case Workers: Foster Care Provider Recruitment Reaches Critical Need Level (Includes video)
KSTP – October 03, 2017
AFSCME, the union representing child protection workers in the state’s biggest counties, testified that since the state started this overhaul in 2015 investigations have increased by 50 percent. The foster care population in Minnesota has risen 33 percent, and the number of maltreatment reports case workers are expected to study has increased by 72 percent.
NE: State chosen to test child welfare workforce strategies
Associated Press – October 03, 2017
A Nebraska state agency is one of eight government groups chosen to participate in a test of strategies to reduce turnover among child welfare caseworkers.
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article176785616.html
OR: New initiative looking to help foster care crisis in Coos County (Includes video)
KCBY – October 04, 2017
While hundreds of children in Coos Count are in foster care, there is still a shortage of foster homes in the area. Because of this, an effort is being made to involve more people in the foster care crisis. “Every Child – Coos County” wants to mobilize the community to help with the current foster care crisis.
http://kcby.com/news/local/foster-care-crisis-growing-in-coos-county
PA: Lawsuit: York CYF placed boy in foster care with known pedophile
York Dispatch – October 03, 2017
The York County Office of Children, Youth and Families allegedly placed a boy in foster care with a convicted pedophile, according to a federal lawsuit filed Tuesday, Oct. 3.
WV: Child sexual abuse spans all geographic areas, races, and classes
Fairmont News – October 04, 2017
In West Virginia, and all across the country, children are referred to Child Advocacy Centers by child abuse first responders soon after an initial allegation of abuse or violence has been made. CACs are child-focused centers where children who have survived abuse, violence and neglect can begin the healing process.
US: Becky Shipp, Key Senate Staffer on Child Welfare, Heads to Private Sector
Chronicle of Social Change – October 03, 2017
Becky Shipp, a veteran policy advisor for the Senate Finance Committee, has been named vice president of The Sheridan Group, a D.C.-based consulting firm that specializes in helping to create advocacy campaigns. Shipp, who was director of the Senate Caucus on Foster Youth from 2009-2012, has led child welfare policy for the Republican side since 2003.
US: Eight-State Regional Judicial Opioid Initiative Receives $1 Million
USAgNet – October 03, 2017
A first-of-its-kind regional judicial effort by states to combat the opioid epidemic is receiving a $1 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance. The Regional Judicial Opioid Initiative (RJOI) was formed a year ago to explore ways that state leaders within a region devastated by opioid abuse could work more effectively and collaboratively across disciplines to confront this problem.
Also: State agrees to join multi-state opioid initiative: http://www.loganbanner.com/cvn/cv_news/west-virginia-agrees-to-join-multi-state-opioid-initiative/article_2b08ec00-cfcc-5da9-89d0-8fd9921f7d5d.html
http://www.usagnet.com/story-national.php?Id=2048&yr=2017
US: House passes 20-week abortion ban (Includes video)
Hill – October 03, 2017
The House passed a bill Tuesday that would ban abortions after 20 weeks. The bill (H. R. 36 – Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act), sponsored by Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), would make it a crime to perform or attempt an abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy, with the possibility of a fine, up to five years in prison or both.
Also: Graham Applauds House Passage Of Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (Press release): https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=A9F43D3E-FFE0-4417-AF7C-FD9AA17F0A80
Also: U.S. House of Representatives Passes Unconstitutional Nationwide Ban on Abortion at 20 Weeks (Press release): https://yubanet.com/usa/u-s-house-of-representatives-passes-unconstitutional-nationwide-ban-on-abortion-at-20-weeks/
http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/353709-house-passes-20-week-abortion-ban
US: Indiana justice will lead national opioid task force
Batesville Herald Tribune – October 03, 2017
In response to this national crisis, top state court leaders formed a task force to find solutions, examine current efforts and make recommendations to address the opioid epidemic’s ongoing impact on the justice system. Chief Justice Loretta Rush will co-chair the task force.
US: Success Spurs Growth of Medicaid Managed Care for Children with Special Health Care Needs
NASHP – October 03, 2017
Some states are discovering that MMC can provide greater opportunities for coordinating care, controlling costs, and improving health care quality and outcomes for CYSHCN.
Also: State Medicaid Managed Care Enrollment and Design for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs: http://nashp.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/50-State-Scan-Issue-Brief.pdf
Information Gateway resource: Health Services: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/service-array/health/
INTERNATIONAL
Rwanda: Inside Rwanda’s shocking orphanages marked for closure
INews – October 03, 2017
A British charity is backing the decision by Rwanda to shut the orphanages which sprang up after the 1994 genocide, as the country’s radical but controversial reforms continue. Five years ago, the Rwandan government decided to close them and start rehoming children with families – one aspect of a rapidly changing country led by President Paul Kagame, a Tutsi former guerrilla fighter whose rebel forces helped end the genocide. Though orphanages sprang up to alleviate a desperate situation, decades of research shows the detrimental impact of growing up in one. Often isolated and cut off from communities, children suffer a chronic lack of affection and proper adult care, which affects cognitive and socio-economic development.
https://inews.co.uk/explainers/iq/rwanda-orphanages-hope-homes-children-charity-campaign/
Scotland: Time bar on child abuse payouts lifted
BBC · – October 04, 2017
A long-standing time bar which prevented victims of childhood abuse seeking civil legal action has been lifted.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-41485863
AR: Breaking the cycle
Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette – October 01, 2017
As the child welfare director in Arkansas, I’ve seen firsthand an increase of children entering foster care due to parental substance abuse and neglect. It is time to get serious about addressing this issue by building up and supporting families. A guiding principle in our society is that the most desirable place for children is with their family, and if we can keep children safe, that should apply to these types of situations as well.
http://www.nwaonline.com/news/2017/oct/01/breaking-the-cycle-20171001/
AZ: Auditors: Turnover Apparently Down at Child Welfare Agency
Associated Press – September 30, 2017
Staff turnover in Arizona’s long-struggling child protection agency appears to be down slightly, but data shortcomings mean auditors can’t be sure, the state Auditor General’s Office said. The Department of Child Safety’s turnover rate in the fiscal year that ended June 30 was 28.7 percent, down from 30.1 percent in the previous fiscal year, a report released Friday said.
CA: Feds give CA poor reviews on tracking foster care
California Healthline – October 02, 2017
The federal government has given California bad marks on monitoring the well-being of children in foster care. State officials were slow to investigate complaints of abuse or neglect, failed to notify investigators of serious sexual abuse allegations and didn’t follow up to ensure cases were resolved, according to an audit released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General.
Audit: https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region9/91601000.pdf
http://capitolweekly.net/feds-ca-poor-reviews-tracking-foster-care/
CA: Former Cox Communications Exec Named Voices for Children Interim CEO
San Diego Business Journal – October 02, 2017
David Bialis: He succeeds Sharon M. Lawrence, who is stepping down from the job after 20 years to take a related job at the state level. Bialis, a Solana Beach resident, spent more than 30 years with Cox, working in Oklahoma before relocating to Southern California in 2011 to become senior vice president and general manager.
http://sdbj.com/news/2017/oct/02/former-cox-communications-exec-named-voices-childr/
CA: How USC researchers helped create a $31 million program for foster families
USC News – October 02, 2017
When the Emergency Child Care Bridge Program goes into effect in January, foster families in California will be receiving much-needed new financial assistance – and research by USC social work faculty played a part in getting that done.
CA: Schools face challenge bringing homeless children out of the shadows
EdSource – October 02, 2017
Homeless children are often invisible: They live in nearly every city and town in California, but are vastly undercounted in some areas and in a quarter of the state’s schools, not counted at all. According to the most recent data released by the California Department of Education, schools are getting better at identifying their homeless students, but more than 2,700 of the state’s nearly 10,500 schools still report zero. That means homeless students in those districts who have not been officially identified are not receiving specialized assistance, as required by state and federal law.
https://edsource.org/2017/homeless-count/588103
CA: San Joaquin County CASA program helps children in foster care
Lodi News-Sentinel – September 30, 2017
For San Joaquin County, which has about 1,500 children in foster care at any given time, the statistics are bleak. Enter the Court Appointed Special Advocate program, better known as CASA. The CASA program gives children who are removed from their homes a point of stability in their lives.
http://www.lodinews.com/news/article_29c7fc64-a5a6-11e7-86b0-d7e19f176c31.html
CT: New acts in Connecticut cover hate crimes, ‘sexting’ and more
Greenwich Time – September 30, 2017
The Connecticut General Assembly has complied a list of all the acts going into effect across the state on Oct. 1 – among them, changes to domestic violence crimes, “sexting,” hate crimes and the Safe Haven law. The Safe Haven law has been in effect since 2000. This act adds some revisions to the state’s laws and will go into effect on Oct. 1.
Information Gateway resource: Social Media: Tips for Foster Care Workers: https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/smtips_worker.pdf
http://www.greenwichtime.com/local/article/New-acts-in-Connecticut-cover-hate-crimes-12243372.php
IL: SIUE East St. Louis Center expands Workforce Development to include foster youth
Illinois Business Journal – October 02, 2017
Twin brothers, enrolled in Southern Illinois University Edwardsville East St. Louis Center’s new program Building Futures, are among 16 adults who are excited to take advantage of educational opportunities, all while they are transitioning out of the Illinois foster care system.
IL: Racial disparities evident in child welfare system
Journal Star – September 30, 2017
The child welfare system holds the legal authority to make or break families. Illinois Department of Children and Family Services is the center. Juvenile courts, state’s attorneys, attorneys for the children and attorneys for the parents are on one side; the social service agencies DCFS contracts with are on the other. The agencies place children in foster homes, provide families the services they need to regain their children, supervise visitations, and, if all else fails, place children in adoptive homes. When a child goes into foster care, parents are placed on probation in a sense.
http://www.pjstar.com/news/20170930/racial-disparities-evident-in-child-welfare-system
MI: Few changes for PI dept. of human services office
Alpena News – October 03, 2017
Interim Director Julie Waldron said the Presque Isle Department of Human Services has contracted with two private attorneys to use for legal services. “There’s been movement toward that because the prosecutor has a conflict. So we have lawyers working on the same case in two sides criminal verses child welfare. In keeping with that our department has moved toward a private attorney. We have two attorneys that we have established a contract with effective Oct. 1. The county prosecutor, Ken Radzibon, will still handle juvenile delinquency and dual wardship cases,” she said.
MS: Police officers have a place to turn when helping children
Hub City Spokes – October 02, 2017
Because a Hattiesburg police officer saw something out of the ordinary during what appeared to be a routine call and reported it to the appropriate resources, he may have saved the life of an 8-year-old. Kids Hub Child Advocacy Center Director DiDi Ellis said the actions by Officer Na’Aman Holmes prevented further injury to the child. The center, which uses a multidisciplinary team to provide services for children, recognized the work by Holmes during a brief ceremony last week.
NC: County is revamping its child welfare programs (Commentary)
Fayetteville Observer – September 30, 2017
The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners and the Social Services Board want the public to know that we have been working to address these issues. The best way to combat child abuse is prevention and everyone has a role in protecting our children – from DSS to family members, neighbors, schools, churches, law enforcement, the courts and our legislators.
http://www.fayobserver.com/opinion/20170930/county-is-revamping-its-child-welfare-programs
NJ: Parentally Speaking: Substance use hits close to home for grandparents (Commentary)
Wellspring Center for Prevention – October 02, 2017
Fact is that the number of grandparents who are raising their grandchildren is going up and increasingly it’s because their own kids are addicted to heroin or prescription drugs, or have died from an overdose.
OK: Federal inspectors criticize Oklahoma’s oversight of group foster care homes
Oklahoman – October 02, 2017
Cracked windows, holes in walls and celery so old that it had turned brown and begun to liquefy were among dozens of health and safety violations federal inspectors found when they visited Oklahoma’s group homes for foster children. Seventeen of Oklahoma’s 22 foster group homes were in violation of at least one state health and safety requirement, according to a newly released report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.
Also: US Inspector General’s 2017 report press release: https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region6/61607004.asp
Full report: Some Oklahoma Group Homes Did Not Always Comply With State Requirements: https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region6/61607004.pdf
http://newsok.com/article/5566283
OR: Boys & Girls Aid partners with Kinship House to improve mental health services
Oregonian – October 02, 2017
Kinship House is partnering with Boys & Girls Aid to provide onsite mental health services to children in Oregon’s foster care system. The partnership is designed to reduce the wait time for access to mental health counseling while improving the potential for children in foster care to find permanent, lifelong relationships.
http://www.oregonlive.com/boys-and-girls-aid/2017/10/boys_girls_aid_partners_with_k.html
PA: Allentown early education program focuses on children of drug-addicted parents
Reading Eagle – October 03, 2017
The infants and toddlers who spend their days in the Early Head Start classrooms here are all suffering the consequences of having parents addicted to drugs. There are 72 of them in the program known as SafeStart, most of whom went into withdrawal shortly after being born to mothers who took drugs while pregnant.
PA: University assists former foster youth with housing
Temple News – October 03, 2017
Temple is looking to provide housing over academic breaks to students who recently transitioned out of the foster care system. In October, AIC employees and university officials will meet with about 50 students, who are former foster care youth, to determine their specific housing needs.
http://temple-news.com/lifestyle/university-assists-former-foster-youth-housing/
PR: Save the Children: More steps needed to help Puerto Rico
CT Post – October 02, 2017
Save the Children has called upon the Trump Administration to do more for the well-being of Puerto Rican children and families after the widespread devastation caused by Hurricane Maria.
http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Save-the-Children-More-steps-needed-to-help-12245923.php
RI: General Assembly Claims 2017 Successes
GoLocalProv – September 30, 2017
Lawmakers banned the use of conversion therapy on minors by licensed health-care providers. The discredited practice seeks to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. A new law approved by the Assembly allows the Crime Victims Compensation Fund to be used to help child witnesses of homicide or domestic abuse.
http://www.golocalprov.com/politics/ri-general-assembly-claims-2017-successes
TX: Son Tus Niños También: Esperanza Offers Resources to Transgender Youth, Families
Rivard Report – October 01, 2017
The Esperanza Peace & Justice Center, through its “Queer Corazones” LGBTQIA initiative, hosted a day of resources and discussion for transgender youth and their families Saturday. The center’s second annual Son Tus Niños También event brought together advocacy groups and elected officials to educate families on their rights and resources.
VA: Local Social Services looks to hire new director
Martinsville Bulletin – October 03, 2017
There will be a new director in charge of Henry-Martinsville Social Services this fall. Tanya Verlik, who had headed the agency since April 2013, left to become human resources coordinator for the Henry County Public Schools, according to Leigh Cockram, chairwoman of the county-city social services board.
WI: Tonette Walker visits clinic that helps kids experiencing homelessness, foster care
Fox 47 – October 02, 2017
The Playing Field Child Care Center serves children six weeks to 5 years old who are experiencing homelessness or foster care. They help them deal with trauma and aggressive physical behavior. The center told the state’s first lady that kids learn how to problem solve, keep their composure and practice breathing techniques to combat anxiety.
WV: Child Protective Services Threats Case Continued in Marshall County
Intelligencer Wheeling News-Register – October 03, 2017
The case against a Moundsville man charged with terroristic threats against state employees was continued in Marshall County Magistrate Court Monday. On Sept. 8, police responded to the home of James Pasquino, 46, after a neighbor called to report yelling and breaking glass. After the removal of his daughters from his home by Child Protective Services, a division of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, Pasquino allegedly told police he was going to get his children back by any means necessary, naming several state employees and threatening to beat and “break (the bones)” of one specific employee.
US: Adding $1 to Minimum Wage = Less Child Neglect
Foreign Affairs Publisher – October 03, 2017
Kerri M. Raissian, an assistant professor of public policy in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, conducts research focused on child and family policy, with an emphasis on understanding how polices affect fertility, family formation, and family violence. She previously spent 10 years working with children and families in the public and nonprofit sectors. Earlier this year, she and her colleague Lindsey Rose Bullinger of Indiana University, published their study, “Money matters: Does the minimum wage affect children maltreatment rates?” in Children and Youth Services Review. They found that a $1 increase in the minimum wage can result in a statistically significant 9.6 percent decline in child neglect reports.
Article: Money matters: Does the minimum wage affect child maltreatment rates?: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2016.09.033
https://foreignaffairs.co.nz/2017/10/03/adding-1-to-minimum-wage-less-child-neglect/
US: GOP lawmakers want Puerto Rico funding to accompany children’s healthcare bill (Includes video)
Washington Post – October 03, 2017
Republicans from the House Energy and Commerce Committee have a plan to send $1 billion in additional Medicaid funding to Puerto Rico after two hurricanes ravaged the island, and tie that funding to a federal health insurance program for children. The money for Puerto Rico would be part of a funding package for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, known as CHIP, community health centers, and other health-care extenders, according to the Washington Post. The deadline to extend the funding of these programs was Oct. 1, but Congress did not act in time. Most states have funding for several more months though.
US: Cami Anderson: It’s ‘Back to School’ Time, but Punitive Discipline May Be Driving Some Students Away (Opinion)
Seventy Four – October 02, 2017
In Newark and in New York City’s alternative District 79, where I (Cami Anderson, superintendent of Newark Public Schools from 2011 to 2015 and superintendent of alternative high schools in New York City) served as superintendent, every year after the first week we tried to track down each and every student who hadn’t come back, or was sporadically attending school in the first month. One pattern was hard to deny: A majority of students who didn’t come back or who were not attending regularly had gotten into trouble in school, and were likely victims of extremely biased school discipline practices. Many of them – the ones most at risk of dropping out – had attended multiple schools in multiple years.
US: Q&A With Eva Velasquez of the Identity Theft Resource Center: The Red Flags of Child Identity Theft and How to Recover
Huffington Post – October 02, 2017
I recently had the opportunity to talk with Eva Velasquez, president and CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), about the issue of child identity theft; the ITRC has just released its 2017 Identity Theft: The Aftermath report, which shares insight into the complex issue of identity theft and the difficulties it creates for victims, families and communities, this month. In this discussion, Eva highlighted how and why criminals go after children’s information, the impact of children’s information being compromised and what parents can do to protect their children’s identities and recover from an incident.
US: Q&A with Sen. Chuck Grassley, Long-time Champion for Kids
Chronicle of Social Change – October 02, 2017
Among Congress’ noted champions for disadvantaged and at-risk youth, there isn’t a member with more power than Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the current co-chair of the Senate Caucus on Foster Youth.
https://chronicleofsocialchange.org/analysis/q-sen-chuck-grassley/28285
US: Tenth Circuit: Social Workers Held to Have Qualified Immunity on Foster Child’s Special-Relationship Claims
Legal Connection – October 02, 2017
The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals issued its opinion in Dahn v. Amedei on Monday, August 14, 2017. This case concerns an exception to the general rule that states are not liable for harm caused by private actors. This exception, called the special-relationship doctrine, makes a state or its agents liable under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for failing to protect people from harm if they have deprived those people of liberty and made them completely dependent on the state for their basic needs. In this case, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals decided whether the geographical reach of the special-relationship doctrine crosses state lines.
Decision: http://www.ca10.uscourts.gov/opinions/16/16-1059.pdf
INTERNATIONAL
Bangladesh: Unicef launching US$76.1m appeal for Rohingya children
Daily Observer – October 02, 2017
The Unicef is launching a US$76.1 million appeal for its emergency humanitarian response to the Rohingya refugee crisis in southern Bangladesh. The appeal will cover the immediate needs of newly-arrived Rohingya children, as well as those who arrived before the recent influx, and children from vulnerable host communities — 720,000 children in all.
http://www.observerbd.com/details.php?id=97940
International: Amid child porn scandal, Vatican backs push for child safety online
Crux – October 03, 2017
As the Vatican deals with criticism of its handling of the case of a papal diplomat recalled to Rome from Washington facing allegations of child pornography use both in the U.S. and Canada, it’s backing a major summit at Rome’s Jesuit-run Gregorian University this week designed to tackle the growing problem of child vulnerability in an internet age.
AZ: Courts craft rule on when DCS can remove children from homes (Video)
AZCentral – September 29, 2017
A new Arizona law requires a judge to approve a removal before a Department of Child Safety worker can take a child from their home.
CA: As many students nationwide grapple with hunger, California offers food assistance (Includes audio)
KCBX – September 29, 2017
“I do think it is a growing problem,” said Clare Cady, founder of the College and University Food Bank Alliance. She coauthored “Hunger on Campus,” a 2016 survey of 34 universities and community colleges on student food insecurity. About 48 percent of students reported food insecurity in the previous 30 days, 22 percent with such low levels of food security that they qualified as hungry. “The cost of college has gone up significantly over time and the types of funding that are available to students have not kept pace with the cost,” Cady explained. Related For students in the foster care system, college can be an elusive goal Community college students face hunger and homelessness, new study finds.
Also: For students in the foster care system, college can be an elusive goal (Includes audio): https://www.marketplace.org/2017/05/24/education/for-students-in-foster-care-system-college-elusive-goal
FL: Editorial: When in doubt, take the kid from abusive home
Tampa Bay Times – September 29, 2017
Take the kid. That is once again the lesson from another death in Florida that could have been avoided if child welfare workers would have erred on the side of caution rather than on keeping a dysfunctional family together. Instead, 8-month-old William Hendrickson IV is dead, his father is charged with his death and still another state investigation finds the system failed. Maybe this time the Florida Legislature will listen.
GA: How can we ease the foster care crisis in Georgia? (Commentary)
Ledger-Enquirer – September 29, 2017
With the departure of state child protection director Bobby Cagle for a similar position in Los Angeles, Georgia’s foster care system faces a crossroads. Indeed, Director Cagle has done an admirable job; second to none. As one who has been a foster and adoptive parent myself, Mr. Cagle’s leadership, passion, and drive have created positive changes in the state’s system. As one who consults and works with foster care agencies across the nation and world, I am confident that Los Angeles’ struggling foster care system will begin to turn around and begin to successfully face their challenges, under Mr. Cagle’s experience and leadership.
http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/opinion/article176219516.html
ID: Helping Kids Succeed
North American Precis Syndicate – September 30, 2017
For some kids, however, getting to graduation can be particularly difficult. For example, the average youth in foster care changes schools three times and loses four to six months of academic progress at each stop. Nationwide, only 50 percent of these youth graduate from high school. Without a diploma and a plan for their future, they experience disproportionately high rates of poverty, homelessness, incarceration, early parenting and substance abuse.
IL: DCFS worker assaulted during child welfare check
KWQC – September 30, 2017
The Carroll County Sheriff’s Department says one man has been arrested after assaulting a child services worker in Milledgeville, Illinois.
IL: Make system real priority (Commentary)
Scranton Times-Tribune – September 30, 2017
High-profile problems often produce high-profile responses. So when the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal roiled the entire nation, Pennsylvania lawmakers very publicly raced to toughen child protection laws. Now, as revealed in a study by state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, it’s apparent that legislators did not pay as much attention to enabling child welfare agencies to deal with the vastly expanded caseloads that resulted.
http://thetimes-tribune.com/opinion/make-system-real-priority-1.2249197
IL: Increase in children in foster care (Includes video)
WAND – September 29, 2017
CASA says it already has received 215 petitions to take children out of abusive or neglectful homes. Last year they recorded only 198 for the entire year.
http://www.wandtv.com/story/36488644/increase-in-children-in-foster-care
KS: 300 kids in need of permanent foster care in KS (Includes video)
KSHB – September 29, 2017
The number of foster children in Kansas continues to rise and at times it is becoming hard to even get a child in a long term home.
http://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/growing-number-of-foster-children-sleeping-on-offices
KS: Childhood poverty rate ticks down; tracks with national trend
Topeka Capital-Journal – September 29, 2017
The childhood poverty rate in Kansas and across the nation has ticked down for several years, and the state’s rate remains lower than the average, according to data from a report publicized by Gov. Sam Brownback. Brownback attributed the decline in poverty to his welfare reform bill, the HOPE Act, which increased work requirements for beneficiaries of public help. Advocates pointed to declining levels of childhood poverty across the nation.
KY: Dr. Hiram Polk, Kentucky’s top health official, departs job amid dispute over spending
Louisville Courier-Journal – September 29, 2017
Kentucky’s top public health official has quit his job with the administration of Gov. Matt Bevin amid a dispute over spending agency money. Dr. Hiram C. Polk Jr., 81, a surgeon and retired professor of surgery at the University of Louisville, confirmed in a brief interview Friday he has left the job he took 14 months ago as Kentucky’s commissioner of the Department of Public Health.
KY: Judge holds Kentucky officials in contempt for letting kids remain locked up
Louisville Courier-Journal – September 29, 2017
Frustrated by children who need care languishing in detention, a Jefferson County judge has found the state social services agency and two employees in contempt of court for failing to move them to foster or residential care.
LA: Louisiana court uphold priest’s refusal to testify on confession
Catholic World News – September 28, 2017
A Louisiana judge has said that he does not have the authority to determine what constitutes a sacramental confession, thus apparently ending a legal drama that threatened the integrity of the confessional seal. Judge Mike Caldwell ruled on September 27 that he could not determine whether a conversation between a young man and a priest was a confession. “I don’t have the jurisdiction to decide that,” he said, explaining that the Catholic Church determines what is and is not a sacrament.
Also: Judge: Confession Trumps Court Authority: https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/louisiana-judge-confession-trumps-court-authority
http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=33094
MD: Numerous Md. laws go into effect Sunday
Herald Mail Media – September 29, 2017
Lawsuit window: Sponsored by Delegate C.T. Wilson, a survivor, extends the deadline for victims of child sexual abuse to file a civil lawsuit …
MI: Lawsuit Challenges Adoption Agencies That Refuse to Work with Same-Sex Couples
Media – September 29, 2017
Now, a new lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, Dumont v. Lyon, challenges the application of these “religious objection” laws. The complaint, filed in the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, claims that Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services violated the Constitution by using taxpayer money to fund child placing agencies that use religious criteria to screen prospective foster and adoptive parents for children in the foster care system and turn away qualified families on the basis of sexual orientation.
MT: Health department cuts would hit state’s most vulnerable, could cost more in long run
Billings Gazette – October 01, 2017
“She said she didn’t know how to get out of the difficult situation she was in and Mountain Home gave her the tools to thrive,” said executive director Crissie McMullan. Now the woman is a nurse and has two children. Mountain Home in Missoula serves moms ages 16-24. Forty percent of the women who come to the program have been a part of the foster care system and 60 percent are homeless. About 1,000 moms and their children have come to the program since it started in 2000.
NC: What’s happening to my children is a North Carolina tragedy (Commentary)
Charlotte Observer – October 01, 2017
North Carolina has been “reinventing” its mental health system for the better part of the past 20 years. In an effort to get better results for less money, we’ve managed to achieve neither. The odds of getting help before something terrible happens aren’t good. And when something does happen, your only option is to head directly to the local emergency room.
Information Gateway resource: Working With Families: Mental Health: https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/bhw/casework/families-mh/
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/opinion/editorials/article176221961.html
NC: DHHS Begins Reform of Social Services (Press release)
N.C. Department of Health Human Services – September 30, 2017
The N.C. Department of Health Human Services’ Division of Social Services collaborated with the Office of State Budget and Management, which today released a request for proposal seeking a qualified vendor to conduct assessments of the state’s current social services and child welfare programs and develop a comprehensive plan for reform. Proposals are due Nov. 16, and a contract will be in place by March 1, 2018.
http://www.pressreleasepoint.com/dhhs-begins-reform-social-services
NE: After Whiteclay ruling, attention turns to alcoholism and health care
Chadron Record – October 01, 2017
Nora Boesem learned the hard way how little child welfare officials think of children with fetal alcohol syndrome. When she and her husband applied to be foster parents, they said they would not take children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Their first three placements all had FASD. When she began seeking assistance for them, she was told they were lucky — they hadn’t adopted them yet and could send them back.
NV: School board OKs policy on sexual misconduct, social media
Las Vegas Review-Journal – September 28, 2017
The vote came after 11:30 p.m. The policy, meant to curb and identify sexual misconduct between students and staff, sets rules for electronic communication with students. In accordance with a new state law, it also requires employees and volunteers to immediately report any suspected sexual misconduct to police and child protective services.
NY: David Hansell is ready to take on the city’s embattled ACS
New York Post – October 02, 2017
When David Hansell took the helm at the Administration for Children’s Services earlier this year, the city’s embattled child- welfare agency was still reeling from a string of high-profile deaths. “I like a challenge, and I feel we’ve come a long way the past (seven) months,” Hansell, 64, told The Post.
http://nypost.com/2017/10/02/david-hansell-is-ready-to-take-on-the-citys-embattled-acs/
OK: Baby’s case is still under investigation, but in the mean time, thousands of other children need emergency placement and adoptive parents
Oklahoman – September 27, 2017
“His story has so touched their hearts that they want to do something,” said Sheree Powell, Department of Human Services spokeswoman. “They want to get involved and help.” Finding a baby along the side of the highway is “highly unusual,” Powell said, “but children come into our care every single day on an emergency basis.”
Also: Oklahoma Watch: Reports of drug-exposed newborns surge: http://www.kpvi.com/news/national_news/oklahoma-watch-reports-of-drug-exposed-newborns-surge/article_c43fc1f6-1aa8-56a6-9551-60362ef1531b.html
PR: Puerto Rico’s Exodus Begins with a Trickle Into Orlando
Politico – September 29, 2017
After waiting for nearly four hours, the Marquezes boarded a Southwest jet that was supposed to depart for Orlando at 9:30 a.m. The flight didn’t take off for another two hours. Marquez estimates the plane carried 166 passengers, including dozens of elderly people and unaccompanied children. “There was an old lady who had an oxygen mask and needed dialysis,” Marquez said. “The man sitting in front of me was a renal patient. And I counted seven children who were 2-years-old or younger.”
Also: Puerto Rico’s children can endure this crisis and thrive, if they have the opportunity: http://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/353101-puerto-ricos-children-can-endure-this-crisis-and-thrive-if-they-have-the
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/09/29/puerto-ricos-exodus-maria-orlando-215659
TN: ‘Exposing’ in schools raising concern for educators, counselors
Tennessean – October 01, 2017
It’s a practice some Nashville kids have nicknamed “exposing:” Secretly taking a cell phone video or photo of other kids, in a compromising sexual position, then sharing those images on social media or via cell phone.
TN: Supreme Court Clarifies Analysis For Determining Best Interests Of A Child In A Parental Termination Case (Includes video)
Chattanoogan – September 29, 2017
The Tennessee Supreme Court ruled on Friday that courts must consider all nine statutory factors, as well as any other relevant facts, when deciding whether terminating parental rights is in a child’s best interests. The Supreme Court explained that requiring courts to consider all relevant facts and circumstances ensures each case receives individualized consideration before fundamental parental rights are terminated.
http://www.chattanoogan.com/2017/9/29/355834/Supreme-Court-Clarifies-Analysis-For.aspx
TX: Local Foster Care Organizations Expand Services Beyond Adolescence
Rivard Report – October 02, 2017
Being a mother means that Zapata is reduced to organizations that accept mothers with children, an additional barrier in a situation where options are already limited. At any given time, about 28,000 children are wards of the state.
https://therivardreport.com/local-foster-care-organizations-expand-services-beyond-adolescence/
TX: CarePortal seeks to connect churches with at-risk children
Terrell Tribue – September 26, 2017
Tammy Pargoud is enrolling Kaufman County churches to be a part of CarePortal, which connects families in crisis with churches to help them with their challenges. Pargoud is regional manager for the Global Orphan Project, which operates the CarePortal.
http://www.terrelltribune.com/community/article_5d60f28a-a2d4-11e7-87f2-af0244f1e04b.html
VA: Fairfax pushes back against proposed English requirement for child care workers
Washington Post – September 29, 2017
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is asking Gov. Terry McAuliffe to reject a proposed requirement that all child-care providers who receive government subsidies – both in centers and at home day cares – should be able to speak, read and write in English.
WA: Yakima Valley feeling addiction’s impact on families
Yakima Herald-Republic – September 30, 2017
Nationwide, annual overdose deaths from opioids such as heroin and prescription painkillers have soared in recent years, topping 33,000 in 2015, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Yakima County last year, five of the 26 overdose deaths involved heroin, according to the county coroner. But the opioid epidemic doesn’t just affect the lives of those addicted. It hurts families, leading to developmental and behavioral problems in kids, splitting children from parents, and straining the nation’s foster care system.
http://www.bradenton.com/news/local/health-care/article176314531.html
WI: Foster care programs in La Crosse, ‘a system in crisis’
WIZM – October 01, 2017
A task force on foster care in Wisconsin heard La Crosse’s program is “a system in crisis.” Foster care services for kids and families might be more effective in Wisconsin if local communities could get more money to provide those services. Wisconsin budget allots just 10% of what county actually needs .
US: Congress lets Children’s Health Insurance Program expire
Washington Post – October 01, 2017
Congress has allowed the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which provided low-cost health insurance to 9 million children, to expire. If action is not taken soon to restore the funding, the effects will become obvious in schools across the country, with many of the children in the program unable to see a doctor for routine checkups, immunizations, visits when sick and other services.
http://www.nola.com/health/index.ssf/2017/10/children_health_insurance_expi.html
US: Gazette editorial: Help for foster kids? Focus on relationships
Charleston Gazette-Mail – October 01, 2017
The way to get more foster kids into school and jobs may be to look beyond reading and math tutoring and work harder on their relationship skills, says a new report from the Brookings Institute’s Center on Children and Families.
Report: Care and Connections Bridging Relational Gaps for Foster Youths: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/09-14-2017_fostercarereport2.pdf
US: Why Family/CPS Courts Target ‘Fit’ Parents & Why the General Public is unaware of this National crisis. (short version) (Commentary)
Huffington Post – September 30, 2017
“Rich, poor, middle-class – no child in America is safe.” These words of award-winning investigative journalist Keith Harmon Snow (author of The Worst Interests of the Child) refer to the abusive practices that regularly occur within the Family Courts and Child Protective Services (CPS) Courts. On their watch, each year, hundreds of thousands of children suffer from abuse (including rape and prolonged torture) that would not have happened without the current court system’s initial invasion and subsequent entrapment.
US: Child Maltreatment Statistics Show Slight Decline From Year to Year
Youth Today – September 29, 2017
Child welfare officials found evidence of “maltreatment” in more than 683,000 cases in fiscal 2015, data newly released by nonprofit research group Child Trends show. That’s a slight decline from the year before, when there were more than 702,000 such cases.
US: Jenny Dang Vinopal Tapped to Lead National Foster Youth Institute
Chronicle of Social Change – September 29, 2017
Jenny Dang Vinopal, a child welfare advocate with 20 years of experience working with foster youth, was named today as the new executive director of the National Foster Youth Institute (NFYI). NFYI is a Los Angeles-based national advocacy organization that aims to transform the child welfare system and improve outcomes for foster youth. It was founded by U.S. Congresswoman Karen Bass (D-Calif.).
US: Pretesting a Human Trafficking Screening Tool in the Child Welfare and Runaway and Homeless Youth Systems
Urban Matters – September 29, 2017
The tool was built based on a comprehensive review of current tools, developed with feedback from a youth advisory council, and pretested with 617 youth respondents involved in the child welfare and runaway and homeless youth systems. Responses to the HTST were correlated with several known risk factors and outcomes associated with trafficking victimization, pointing to the effectiveness of the tool, though additional testing is needed.
Also: Full report: https://www.urban.org/research/publication/pretesting-human-trafficking-screening-tool-child-welfare-and-runaway-and-homeless-youth-systems/view/full_report
INTERNATIONAL
United Kingdom: Child sex abuse victims may have to travel more than 40 miles for treatment because there’s not enough staff
TravelWireNews – October 01, 2017
Child sex abuse victims may have to travel from Swansea to Cardiff for treatment in future, an email seen by the South Wales Evening Post and WalesOnline has suggested. The official email, sent between senior managers at ABMU health board, suggests that bosses of children’s services at Singleton Hospital are struggling to fill vacant posts in the wake of consultant retirements.