Permanency Tip of the Week: Secondary Trauma/Burnout/Compassion Fatigue – #5 – Goal = Compassion Satisfaction
Many of us started in this profession believing that we can change the world. The good news is that all of our efforts ARE helping to change the world! However, in order to persevere and continue to thrive in this profession, we need to focus our goals, both immediate and long-term, on achieving Compassion Satisfaction. This can be defined as being both satisfied with and deriving pleasure from being able to do our work well (not perfectly). When we focus on this goal, our greatest gift of Compassion, will continue to be a critical source of strength and guidance as we have the privilege of serving our Youth and Families.
Permanency Success Story of the Week: Family Adopts 9 Siblings from Foster Care: ‘What a Beautiful Family’
Inside Edition – A Florida family recently adopted nine siblings from foster care. “I started scrolling through Facebook, and I thought, ‘Wow, what a beautiful family,'” Jacob Smith says. Eight siblings were looking for a home. Jacob his wife Peggy had no children, but they were moved. To share the burden of so many new additions, Jacob’s parents, who live nearby, adopted the five older siblings. Jacob and Peggy took the three younger children. And then the youngest sibling, a baby, joined them.
Permanency Related Articles:
Research Central: OJJDP Releases Findings from Study on Dual System Youth
Corrections Connection – Youth who have been involved with both the child welfare and juvenile justice systems-commonly known as “dual system youth”-often are not recognized and do not receive services targeted to their individual needs because of challenges in cross-system communication and collaboration. In an effort to address these challenges, in 2015 Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) launched a data collection and analysis project, the Dual System Youth Design Study, led by Denise Herz, Ph.D., and Carly Dierkhising, Ph.D., of California State University, Los Angeles.
New from CWLA Press: LGBTQ Youth Issues, Third Edition
CWLA Press is pleased to announce the publication of the third edition of LGBTQ Youth Issues: A Practical Guide for Youth Workers Serving Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, & Questioning Youth, by author Gerald P. Mallon, DSW. LGBTQ Youth Issues brings relevant research and clinical practice into focus for youth-serving professionals. Youth who are LGBTQ often are an invisible population, but every youth-serving organization has clients who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning. With a combination of practice tips, proven research, and case narratives, this book is a helpful guide for workers who want to address the needs of youth who may be confronting challenges in their families, at school, in out-of-home care, or in the wider community. This edition gives particular focus to youth who are LGBTQ and are runaways or homeless, and youth in juvenile justice settings. In addition, this edition focuses on creating healthy social, dating, and relationship environments for youth who are LGBTQ. This is a must-have book for all youth-serving professionals.
Keeping Kids in Families – Trends in U.S. Foster Care Placement
Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF) – In this data snapshot, the Annie E. Casey Foundation examines how placements for young people in foster care have changed from 2007 to 2017. Using data from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, Casey finds that child welfare systems are doing a better job of placing kids in families. At the same time, racial disparities persist for kids of all ages and progress eludes teens in care.
To push for further progress, the four-page snapshot tells how states can leverage the federal Family First Prevention Services Act to prioritize family placement and high-quality, family-centered settings to support even better outcomes — and a brighter future — for kids in care.
Federal Funding Opportunity Primary Prevention of Abuse and Neglect
California ACEs Action – The purpose of this FOA from the federal Administration on Children, Youth and Families – Children’s Bureau is to fund cooperative agreements that support the development, implementation, and evaluation of primary prevention strategies to improve the safety, stability, and well-being of all families through a continuum of community-based services and supports.
During the project period, grantees will address site-specific barriers and mobilize communities to prevent child maltreatment, reduce entry into the public child welfare system, and enhance the overall well-being outcomes of children and families. The cooperative agreements aim to develop integrated family support systems through a continuum of community-based prevention services that are able to support families early and strengthen protective factors before formal involvement with the child welfare system is necessary.
Ex-Offender Finds Key to Stem Youth Crime: Give Kids Hope
Juvenile Justice Information Exchange (JJIE) – Tommie Mabry was 12 when a bullet grazed him while he was burglarizing a home he thought was empty. It could have been fatal for the rebellious preteen hell-bent on emulating the people in the midtown area of Jackson, where he grew up. “We modeled what we saw. What was cool to me were the guys that were getting all the attention. Those were either rappers, athletes or drug dealers. I wanted to be that,” said Mabry, an author and motivational speaker working on his Ph.D. in higher education at Jackson State University.
The problem with an increasing rate of gun violence and incarceration among juveniles is their repeated exposure to negative influences, he said. “There is not much reform going on in our neighborhoods and what our kids are subjected to. They are just playing the hands they are dealt,” he said. “Children growing up in a model neighborhood will probably never see the jail system. However, if you take children in an environment where poverty is high and during a simple walk to school they encounter negative influences daily, they are going to be a product of that environment.”
In 2013, he self-published “A Dark Journey to a Light Future” through WestBow Press about his life. He describes his book as the true story of an African-American child destined by God but fighting against his violent and discouraging surroundings to walk in the path of greatness. His second book “If Tommie Can Do It, We Can Do it,” self-published in 2015, is the middle-school version of his story. “I wanted to reach the younger kids, but the first book was too complex,” said Mabry, who this year released a K-5 version called “Little Tommie’s Four B’s.”
In 2015, he founded Tommie Mabry Co., an educational and motivational speaking platform, and in 2016 the John Maxwell leadership and training program company recognized him as one of the country’s Top 30 leadership coaches. Pickett said many people relate to Mabry’s ability to rise above his circumstances and forge a new path. In 2017, Mabry received his Master of Arts in education. He now tours the country encouraging educators and students to analyze factors that deter academic achievement while tackling the experiences and challenges minority students face in and outside the classroom. “I want to show them that there is no expiration date on success.”
This story was produced in conjunction with the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting.
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