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May72016

KARA Readers Reminder

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

There is a situation here in Troy, New York. Regarding our Rensselaer County CPS Office. As of April, 2015, when the four children involved first went back to live with their mother. There have been at least 8 calls to Rensselaer County CPS regarding a mother and these four children, soon to be 4, 6, 8 and 10, years of age this year. There have been continuous calls made to both Rensselaer & Albany County CPS offices on this mother since 2007. There were calls/reports given to Rensselaer County CPS back in June, July, September, October, November and twice in December, 2015. The ones in December, 2015 was made by the children’s school nurse for lack of medical care. Then again in January, 2016 of the little boy, present age of 7 whose mother’s live in boyfriend punch him in the mouth, resulting in a broken front tooth.

Then again in March of 2016, a report was made to the same Rensselaer County CPS office ( same case worker) that the present age of 5 little sister of the 7 year old boy. Said she saw a few times, the mom’s live in boyfriend kissing their present age of 9 year old sister “ like boyfriend & girlfriend. That the 9 year old sister was touching the live in boyfriends’ private area. My question to you is, why after all these numerous calls made, and esp. the last two calls regarding physical assault and sex abuse is this CPS office allowing the total of these four siblings to still be living with this mom and her live in boyfriend? And why, when asking this same question to this CPS office, the caseworker, her supervisor and the Director of this CPS office. We get the BS answer of “ Oh, it takes time, but we are investigating”.

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May72016

Sad Stories California – March & April 2016

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

CA: Social Workers Charged in Death of 8-Year-Old Gabriel Fernandez (Includes video)

NBC Washington – April 07, 2016

Four Southern California social workers have been charged with child abuse and falsifying public records in the beating death of 8-year-old Gabriel Fernandez three years ago.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/national-international/Gabriel-Fernandez-Child-Abuse-Case-Social-Workers-Charged-374903631.html

CA: Inside Los Angeles’ Ambitious Public-Private Child Welfare Partnership

Inside Philanthropy – April 12, 2016

Public-private partnerships are the philanthropy of the future, and there’s a big one starting up in Los Angeles right now. Los Angeles County and 13 local foundations have recently banded together around improving the well-being of vulnerable children. And to solidify this collaboration, the county launched the Center for Strategic Public-Private Partnerships, a first-of-its-kind office squarely focused on child welfare.

http://www.insidephilanthropy.com/los-angeles/2016/4/12/inside-los-angeles-ambitious-public-private-child-welfare-pa.html

CA: Social workers blast DA Jackie Lacey for prosecuting colleagues

City News Service – April 12, 2016

Dozens of county social workers protested downtown Tuesday, accusing District Attorney Jackie Lacey of criminalizing child welfare work by bringing child abuse charges against four of their colleagues.

http://www.dailybreeze.com/social-affairs/20160412/social-workers-blast-da-jackie-lacey-for-prosecuting-colleagues

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May72016

The Teachers Dilemna (and what is not talked about in education)

All Posts from Kids at Risk Action, Day Care and Education

Assaults on teachers, starting with first graders hitting teachers with chairs & stabbing with pencils & knives. In some of the bigger inner city schools, teachers are afraid to walk to their cars after the school day ends and guns are now appearing in classrooms with growing frequency. Too many districts are suggesting that teachers be armed.

*The lack of books & basic resources for educators to complete their tasks is unacceptable. Detroit teachers were threatened this spring with working without pay this coming summer. If they had not reacted as they did, that might have actually happened.

To not support the people engaged in the important work of building our next generation of service providers, business people and lawmakers is an atrocious mistake. We will benefit by or suffer from the things that are happening in our schools today. We build and support those schools (or we don’t).

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May62016

The Importance of Performance Measures (from Safe Passage for Children)

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

  From Safe Passage for Children today; We often emphasize the importance of measuring outcomes for children. But performance measures are important too. They tell us current information about program operations. The metrics currently on the Department of Human Services’ Dashboard Report don’t cover enough parts of the system to give a well-rounded picture. However…

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May22016

ACES Connection (articles from April)

Aces and Trauma, All Posts from Kids at Risk Action

MARC Advisor: Brenda Jones Harden, PhD, ACEsConnection.com
Dr. Brenda Jones Harden is Associate Professor in the Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology at the University of Maryland College Park. Her research examines the developmental and mental health needs of children at environmental risk, especially those who have suffered maltreatment or trauma.

Colleges Need to Do More to Support Poor Students, PSMag.com
A new report from the Department of Education calls on schools to improve the graduation gap.

Mental Illness Mostly Caused by Life Events Not Genetics, Argue Psychologists, Telegraph.co.uk
While there has been some success in uncovering genes which make people more susceptible to various disorders, specialists say that the true causes of depression and anxiety are from life events and environment, and research should be directed towards understanding the everyday triggers.

The Growth of Concentrated Poverty Since the Recession, in 3 Infographics, CityLab.com
A new analysis by the Brookings Institution shows increases in two-thirds of the largest U.S. metros.

Don’t Let Defensiveness Stand in the Way of Personal Growth, PsychCentral.com
Defensive walls go up quickly when we feel unappreciated or disrespected. The walls are meant to keep out unfairness and negative evaluations of our choices and behaviors. But what it often shuts out is self improvement.

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May12016

Pennsylvania Child Protection News For March & April 2016

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

Legislators say PA adoption law is “archaic” (Includes video)
FOX 43 – March 23, 2016
Under the current state law a parent can claim their child back 20 days after they sign their rights away. Petri wants to change that to 96 hours.
http://fox43.com/2016/03/23/legislators-say-pa-adoption-law-is-archaic/

Innovative program aims to mend broken lives of foster kids (Video)
Public Broadcasting Service – March 22, 2016
For kids growing up in foster care, personal traumas and frequent moves from home-to-home and school-to-school have led to grim educational outcomes. Only about half finish high school, and of that group only 20 percent go on to college. The NewsHour’s April Brown reports from Pittsburgh on one effort to improve lives and opportunities for children in the system.
http://www.pbs.org/video/2365698903/

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Apr302016

Child Abuse & Child Protection Around the World (January 2015)

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

Help KARA grow awareness and resources for at risk children around the world; Donate, buy KARA’s INVISIBLE CHILDREN book and share these articles with your friends and networks.   Saint Helena: Child abuse on St Helena ‘covered up by Foreign Office’ admits government International Business Times – January 04, 2014 The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)…

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Apr302016

Child Abuse & Child Protection Around the World (April 2016)

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

Help KARA grow awareness and resources for at risk children around the world; Donate a small monthly amount, buy KARA’s INVISIBLE CHILDREN book and share these articles with your friends and networks.   If you like to write and research, submit your nation’s child abuse and child protection stories/articles – please use the format you see here and include a link…

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Apr222016

Another Guardian ad-Litem Speaks (thank you David Strand)

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

Here is how civilized, non-superstitious nations fight problems afflicting their children. The citizens of these enlightened societies use government resources. Their governments are actually controlled by them. Doctors, nurses, social workers, teachers and counselors are employees of the public, via government. They don’t have for-profit hospitals, for-profit schools or for-profit prisons.

They also emphasize prevention instead of cure. Consequently, they spend far less than we do for health care, education, and corrective justice. That’s why their health care and education systems are far less expensive while producing better outcomes. It’s more bang for the buck, what Americans are supposed to prefer.

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