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Jun222016

Pennsylvania Child Protection News May & June 2016

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

Lawsuit: Youth mental health facility in Butler County didn’t stop sex abuse

WTAE Pittsburgh – May 12, 2016

A Pennsylvania facility that treats youths diagnosed with mental health conditions has been accused in a lawsuit of not stopping or reporting sexual assaults, and instead ridiculing a teen boy for reporting them. The lawsuit filed Wednesday in Allegheny County states the boy was among a group of patients who reported assaults by fellow patients last year at the Glade Run Lutheran Services facility, about 25 miles north of Pittsburgh in Zelienople.

http://www.wtae.com/news/lawsuit-youth-mental-health-facility-in-butler-county-didnt-stop-sex-abuse/39511308

Expanding Family-Based Foster Care in PA

Public News Service – May 5, 2016

Children in family-based foster care do much better than those placed in group settings, according to a new report. The report, “Congregate Foster Care in PA,” from the Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children, said kids in family care do better in school, face fewer problems with drugs and alcohol, and maintain better relationships with siblings. Joan Benso, president of the group, said the commonwealth has made a lot of progress, but still places children in group homes or institutions more often than 40 other states.

http://www.publicnewsservice.org/2016-05-05/childrens-issues/expanding-family-based-foster-care-in-pa/a51757-1

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Jun222016

A Wish List For At Risk Children

Aces and Trauma, All Posts from Kids at Risk Action

Subsidized day care (tens not thousands of families on state’s waiting list); more mental health services (consistent and better control and use of psychotropic medications)

BA degree, mental health training & higher wages for day care workers; more training, smaller caseloads, & greater resources for social workers and school counsellors

removing law enforcement from the front lines of dealing with mentally unhealthy people & eliminating jails and prisons as housing for mentally unstable people

fail safe programs ending child death by caregiver; more and better training and resources for handling child abuse in rural MN; End child suicide

interrupt generational child abuse; expand programs for children aging out of foster care; stop courts from trying children as adults

create support, training, and alternatives for adoption and foster families; expand kinship searches & support;

encourage media to report on the state of mental health and child protection in your community

make ACEs & trauma informed policies the rule not the exception; stop child trafficking;

reduce psychotropic medication use by young children and children in child protection;

involve the community in the safety and well-being of all children;

through adequate access to mental health services);

End child abuse and mental health stigmatizing

Help KARA find and engage the brightest minds

and improved perspectives in

the search for more effective

Child Protection &

children’s

Mental

Health

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Jun192016

CASA guardian ad-Litem News April & May 2016

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

CASA Child Advocates
Montgomery County Newspaper
WHY: CASA Child Advocates of Montgomery County held its first in-office corporate training for volunteers last month at the new Exxon Mobil …
CASA breakfast serves up a ‘Ray of Hope’ – Bonner County Daily Bee
CASA of Denton County to hold information session – Star Local Media
Look into becoming a CASA volunteer – Victoria Advocate
Full Coverage

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CASA training begins in June
Choteau Acantha
Training will be begin in June for Front Range CASA volunteers to serve as court-appointed special advocates for abused and neglected children.
Golden Crescent CASA needs volunteers – Victoria Advocate
Local Scottsdale resident advocates for foster children – Scottsdale Independent
Full Coverage

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Area CASA swears in 4 new advocates
Corpus Christi Caller-Times
Judge Patrick Flanigan swears in the second class of court-appointed special advocates, or CASAs, for CASA of Bee, Live Oak and McMullen counties …

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New CASA advocate
White Mountain Independent
Presiding Judge Michael Latham congratulates Michele Sexton after swearing her in as a court appointed special sdvocate (CASA) for Apache County …

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Pay it Forward recognizes Jeanne Linn of CASA
KTVZ
The biggest CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocates) fundraiser of the year took place Thursday evening at Broken Top Golf Club CASA works with …

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CASA program a great way to help local foster children
Ontario Argus Observer
Court Appointed Special Advocates get to know children in foster care. They spend time with the kids, observe their interactions with their families, and …

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Dining For A Cause – CASA Of Ocean County
Micromedia Publications
casa1 OCEAN COUNTY – CASA of Ocean County will celebrate their 10 year anniversary advocating for Ocean County children in foster care on …

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CASA of Terrebonne: More than 100 kids need a volunteer
Daily Comet
One-hundred and eleven foster care children are currently in need of a volunteer to advocate for them in the local courts system, according to CASA of …

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Members learn about CASA
The Hillsdale Daily News
HILLSDALE — The Hillsdale Intermediate School District administration building, located on West Bacon Street, was the scene for the most recent …

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County court adds six advocates for kids
Daily Astorian
The Clatsop Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program recently announced six new volunteers have joined in serving abused and neglected …

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WEB
Become an Alameda County Court Appointed Special Advocate
Idealist.org
Are you interested in being a powerful voice in a child’s life? Come to an Informational Session to learn if being a CASA Volunteer is right for you.

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Jun182016

Gender Pay Gap & How it Relates to Child Well – Being (see where Minneapolis ranks)

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

I was raised by a single mom who made a fraction of the salary that men in her office earned. It was harder in other ways for her also as overt sexism was not just tolerated, it was the rule.

It hurts me to see that today my home town is the second poorest in the nation in this study;

http://www.businessinsider.com/gender-pay-gap-in-us-cities-2016-6

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Jun102016

I’m Not The Crazy One (20,000 one & two year old’s on Prozac – now that’s crazy)

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

90% of mental health hospital beds that were available in the 1960’s are gone today while our overall population grew over 40% in that time.

When America eliminated mental health hospitals in the 60’s, teachers, juvenile and criminal justice workers and social workers became defacto mental health service providers. This is no small feat. Humans are complex beings and understanding a mind takes extensive effort & training (especially a traumatized or troubled mind). Few service providers get that training.

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Jun52016

Minnesota’s Mental Health Crisis (spot on reporting by our Star Tribune – Many Thanks)

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

Today’s service providers are rarely capable of adequately dealing with the level of dysfunction encountered by a large and growing number of people.

They will fail to achieve the results they strive for until we the voters demand the core changes that will reverse these painful trends. These failures drive up burnout and good workers leaving the field for lack of success and very high stress (and lack of understanding appreciation from the rest of us).

Reflect on this;

The “colossal failure” of Child Protective Services” Governor Dayton’s words upon the death of 4 year old Eric Dean after 15 largely ignored reports of child abuse

MN Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz’ statement s that “90% of the youth in Juvenile Justice have come through Child Protection” and“ the difference between that poor child and a felon is about 8 years” are as true today as they were a few years ago when she said them. My spin on the Chief Justice’ words are that, the difference between that poor child and a preteen mother with no parenting skills, a drug problem and a violent boyfriend, is about 8 years.

2/3 of the youth in the Juvenile Justice System have diagnosable mental health issues & half of them have multiple, chronic and serious problems.

1/3 of the children in Child Protective Services are proscribed Prozac or other psychotropic medications.

20,000 one and two year olds were proscribed psychotropic medications in this nation in 2014 (Johnson & Johnson paid 4 billion dollars in fines for illegally selling these drugs to pediatricians for use on children and there are 5000 cases awaiting trial).

MN Sheriff’s had to threaten a law suit to get the state to move on providing timely mental health services for the people in their jail cells.

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Jun12016

New York Child Protection News April – May 2016

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

NY: Editorial: Answering foster care, adoption need brings rewards
Amherst Bee – April 27, 2016
Becoming a foster parent or adoptive parent means an person can change the course of a child’s life, and while it can be difficult, the rewards are great, and there is no shortage of children in the United States who are in need of a temporary or permanent home.
http://www.amherstbee.com/news/2016-04-27/Editorial/Answering_foster_care_adoption_need_brings_rewards.html

NY: Connections: Fragile Lives Series Looks At The State Of Foster Care (Audio)
WXXI – April 13, 2016
In honor of Child Abuse Awareness month, WXXI News –in participation with Side Effects Public Media– is presenting Fragile Lives, a series about the health outcomes of children in foster care.
http://wxxinews.org/post/connections-fragile-lives-series-looks-state-foster-care

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