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Feb122016

Progress & Next Steps in County Child Protection (thank you SafePassageForChildren)

All Posts from Kids at Risk Action, CASA, GAL and Child Protection

This week the Hennepin County Oversight Committee reviewed efforts by child protection managers to implement recommendations in the Casey Report, which was critical of the program.

Progress was reported for example in rolling out a 24/7 child protection response, and adding screening and investigation staff.

In another part of this hearing, Casey staff presented a draft child protection ‘Practice Model’. While it identified child safety as the paramount responsibility of the program, much of the language – as Commissioner Mike Opat and others pointed out – echoed the old Family Assessment philosophy, which is weighted towards the needs and preferences of parents.

The final version of this practice model should reflect more clearly the priority that recent changes in state law and recommended practices gave to child safety and well-being.

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Sep172014

Privatized Juvenile Prisons – Kids For Cash The Movie (watch the trailer)

All Posts from Kids at Risk Action, Juvenile + Criminal Justice

KIds For Cash the movie is a documentary about two Pennsylvania Judges who were imprisoned for 40 years because they sentenced thousands of innocent juveniles to prison for 2.5 million dollars in kickbacks. This movie captures the devastating impact imprisonment has on youth and the dangers of privatized facilities. Watch the trailer here.

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Jan182019

Prevention – Early Intervention – thank you Safe Passage for Children of MN

All Posts from Kids at Risk Action, Reporting and News - MN Specific

Keeping children with their families through early intervention (a very big deal).

These bills at the State Legislature can help make that happen – Tune into this Safe Passage for Children webinar here for the update on the session and the intervention & support services being proposed to make it happen.

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Apr22020

Preventing Child Abuse During the Lockdown of Covid19

All Posts from Kids at Risk Action, COVID 19 and its Impacts

What’s it like for stressed out families living with the profound and immediate changes that keep our children out of school, parents out of work and the pervasive fear of the Covid19 virus?

Social distancing, stay at home orders and fear are driving up 911 calls and police departments are having a hard time responding adequately.  In France, the government is paying for hotel rooms for victims of domestic violence and providing pop-up counseling centres due to the soaring numbers of abuse calls…

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Mar262019

Preteen Moms & Why (stories & statistics)

Adoption, Foster and Kinship Care, All Posts from Kids at Risk Action

May had her first child while living as a state ward in a group home when she was 16 and her second child when she was 18 before aging out of foster care.

Her mother was 17 when May was born.

Her grandmother was even younger when May’s mother was born. How old will her daughter be when she has her first baby?

Abused children suffer traumas that last forever and leave a child feeling devoid of love with an emotional void that cannot be filled by social workers, teachers or kind foster parents.

All girls want love in their life. A baby is love. The difference between that poor child and a preteen mom with no parenting skills, a drug problem and a violent boyfriend is about 8 years.

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Aug112010

Practical Strategies for Helping Troubled Adopted Children with Complex Histories: Focus On Anger Issues with Dr. Richard J. Delaney

Adoption, Foster and Kinship Care, All Posts from Kids at Risk Action

Minnesota Adoption Resource Network Announces August Webinar Wednesday, August 25, 2010 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM Many adopted children are “multiply impacted” by prenatal exposure to drugs, and/or alcohol, by neglect and deprivation, complex trauma such as chronic child physical and sexual abuse, exposure to domestic violence, separation from or loss of significant other, and/or…

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Jan92015

Powerful Video Expose On Drugging 5 & 10 Year Old State Ward Children

All Posts from Kids at Risk Action, Mental Health + Over Medication

This video from Mercury News is the most comprehensive and powerful discussion I have seen on the topic of forcing abused and neglected children to take psychotropic medications.  Remember, state ward children have no voice in this discussion.  These decisions are made for them by a closed system that rarely shares information and by and…

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Jul242014

Powerful Stories From The Atlantic Journal (here’s a preview)

All Posts from Kids at Risk Action, Reporting and News - US Based

Working with abused and neglected children and dysfunctional families is complex and grueling and needs more not less understanding and support.

Blaming social workers when a baby is found in a dumpster is not so different for blaming teachers for failed schools.

Troubled students not only don’t learn, they disrupt and make teaching the rest of the class much more difficult.

This is not so different from blaming law enforcement for the boy in the squad car (admit it, that would be ridiculous – but the analogy works in both prior examples).

Support teachers, support social workers, support justice workers. It is very hard work inside of institutions with very bad governance (and that my friends is our fault).

Support KARA’S TPT documentary project to bring these issues into the limelight and help our children get a fair start in life.

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