Permanency Tip of the Week: Exercising Our Voice, Ensuring Our Youth and Families Have Theirs
One of the great rights and privileges in the United States is that we have the right To exercise our voice through voting. This is a critically important right and responsibility that must be taken seriously. In working with our Youth and Families, it is our obligation to ensure that their authentic voice is placed front and center in the discussions we have WITH them. Having their voice be front and center may yield challenging dialogue and awkward moments. These are OUR issues to deal with and should never prevent us from honoring the true experts in the lives of our Youth and Families – THEMSELVES!
Permanency Success Story of the Week: Families Formed on National Adoption Day
Elko Daily – National Adoption Day isn’t officially until Nov. 21 this year, but District Judge Nancy Porter decided to seize the day and celebrate the gift of adoption early. For the past seven years, Judge Porter has scheduled one special day of honor in recognition of the monumental task which is called adoption, the task of unconditionally loving a child who is not directly related but who desperately needs a place and people to call home. This year’s Adoption Day ceremony involved five adoption proceedings, gifts from the court as well as the District Attorney’s office; and a luncheon catered by Ogi Deli…
According to NationalAdoptionDay.org, the event was inspired by Michael Nash, a former presiding judge of Los Angeles County’s Juvenile Court who would open his courts on Saturdays in order to aid in finalizing adoptions in the area he served. The website also states that currently in the United States more than 120,000 children are in foster care.
Whether or not your immediate family has been impacted by adoption, chances are that you know a family that has been blessed by adoption and grown through the joys and trials of becoming a new family. “Presiding over adoptions,” Judge Ported commented, “is one of the most rewarding parts of my job. Being able to move children into ‘forever’ homes and bring families together makes some of the more difficult cases I have to manage worth it.”
Permanency Related Articles:
Proclamation on National Adoption Month, 2020
WhiteHouse.gov – For children, parents, and families, adoption paves the way for new beginnings and provides children with a forever family who can help them reach their full potential. During National Adoption Month, we recognize birth families who make the difficult decision to place their children up for adoption, commend foster parents who care for children from different backgrounds, and celebrate adoptive parents who open their families to those children in need…
This month, we celebrate the blessings of adoption and renew our resolve to promote a culture of respect for every human life. Countless Americans dedicate their time, energy, and resources to the adoption process, and we honor their selfless contributions as community members, faith leaders, caregivers, role models, and families. Our Nation is strengthened by the sacred institution of the family, and devoted parents who love and protect their adopted children. As a Nation, let us commit to ensuring a brighter future for all of our Nation’s children.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim November 2020 as National Adoption Month. I encourage all Americans to observe this month by helping children and youth in need of a permanent home secure a more promising future with a forever family and enter adulthood with the love and connections we all need.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirtieth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.
DONALD J. TRUMP
Casey Selects 16 Organizations to Train Juvenile Justice Staff on the Frontlines
Annie E Casey Foundation – The Annie E. Casey Foundation has selected 16 state and local juvenile justice agencies and related organizations to conduct professional development based on the Reimagining Juvenile Justice (RJJ) curriculum. This training is for frontline staff who are working with youth involved in the juvenile justice system and their families, and it is designed to help these staff better support, divert and redirect youth to appropriate and fair justice options.
The RJJ training curriculum’s goals are to (1) Improve system and youth outcomes by providing alternatives to justice system involvement and incarceration; (2) Instill positive programs, support, and opportunities so that young people can develop to their full potential; and (3) Increase collaboration across public systems.
The chosen agencies and organizations will participate in the virtual 2020 RJJ Train-the-Trainer Institute sponsored by the Foundation and delivered by the School & Main Institute. This training equips agencies and organizations to take RJJ’s concepts, curriculum, and instructional approach back to their home jurisdictions…
10 Truths You Need to Know About Adoption
Dr. John DeGarmo – Though many in society may not recognize it, adoption is all around us, and is a normal part of how thousands of families come together. Indeed, six out of every ten Americans are touched by adoption in some fashion. Along with this, roughly 7 million Americans have been adopted. Each year, roughly 135,000 children are adopted in the United States. Yet, there are many myths and misconceptions surrounding adoption.
Here are ten truths about adoption. 1) Adoption is Also a Loss for a Child. 2) Post Adoption Depression is Real. 3) Most Adoptions Come from Foster Care. 4) Adoptions Are Not Always Costly. 5) Post Adoption May Have Additional Expenses. 6) Attachment Issues May be a Factor. 7) Honesty About Adoption is Essential. 8) Open Adoptions Can be Healthy. 9) Parenting Will Be Different. 10) The Child is the Most Important Part.
What is Generational Trauma? Here’s How Experts Explain It
Health – Experts are learning more about who is vulnerable to it, and how it manifests in families and communities. Many things get passed down through families, like heirlooms, genetic conditions, and physical characteristics. In some cases, trauma can be inherited, too. Generational trauma (also known as intergenerational trauma or transgenerational trauma) is still a relatively new field of study, meaning researchers have a lot to discover about its impact and how it presents in people who suffer from it. Here’s what we know so far, according to experts.
Generational trauma is exactly what it sounds like trauma that isn’t just experienced by one person but extends from one generation to the next. “It can be silent, covert, and undefined, surfacing through nuances and inadvertently taught or implied throughout someone’s life from an early age onward,” licensed clinical psychologist and parenting evaluator Melanie English, Ph.D., tells Health.
In 1966, Canadian psychiatrist Vivian M. Rakoff, MD, and her colleagues recorded high rates of psychological distress among children of Holocaust survivors, and the concept of generational trauma was first recognized…
The Impact of COVID-19 on Youth Aging Out of Foster Care
Children’s Action Alliance (CAA) – Fostering Advocates Arizona, a group of young leaders with lived experience in the child welfare system, conducted two surveys during the pandemic: one of foster and former foster youth ages 14 to 26 and one of the adult providers and allies.
Some of the results: 1) Over 1/3 of young people reported that the health crisis had a negative impact on their educational progress. 2) More than half reported struggling with safe and stable housing and their service providers and allies listed housing at the top of the list of requests for assistance and at the top of the list where resources were lacking. 3) Two-thirds of young people reported that they were struggling or starting to struggle to pay their bills. 4) Two-thirds reported a reduction in, or loss, of employment and providers, reported that helping youth navigate filing for unemployment benefits was a highly requested service. 5) Just over half reported they are experiencing some level of food insecurity. 6) About one-third of young people said they were starting to struggle with their social-emotional health, while providers/allies reported deep concern for the social-emotional well-being of youth.
A national-level report from The Field Center at the University of Pennsylvania found similar results on the challenges faced by transition-aged youth during the Coronavirus pandemic…
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