Permanency Tip of the Week:Starting a New School Year – Challenges and Opportunities
As another summer season wraps up and children around the county prepare to return to school, our youth in foster care share that same journey; however, they often approach this journey from a range of different perspectives that are impacted by their histories of abuse, neglect, trauma and a loss of Permanency: 1) School may be a safe haven where they feel supported almost normal; 2) School may represent everything that is wrong in foster care as they have had countless changes in homes and schools; 3) School may feel scary and unsafe as they might be targeted by fellow students, isolated from inclusion in groups or maybe they were taken into foster care directly from a classroom. No matter the perspective(s), it is the role of the caring adults to support the youth and walk side by side with them in this journey to start the new school year – always with an eye towards Permanency.
Permanency Story of the Week: No One’s Girl by Ashley Ash
A lot of people assume that adopted children are orphans, but I wasn’t that lucky. I know my birth parents are alive somewhere in the vastness of India. Unlike an orphan, I’ll never have the relief or the closure that I imagine comes with the death of one’s parents. I know that sounds awful and of course I sympathize with orphans. I read their stories in the popular media: the orphan reunited with her long-lost sister, or the orphan graciously taken in by a rich family, never again to question her early beginnings … I’m lucky enough to be one of the thousands of foster kids, abused children, to make it out, for the most part sane. I think it just comes down to the age-old fight for survival. Surviving doesn’t always mean fighting back; sometimes it means keeping quiet, enduring what you must to continue living. There were many times I felt like giving up … I am so proud of myself for not plunging that steak knife into my chest that night eleven years ago, because I would not have been here, alive, thriving in my new life with my new and final family …. I am moving forward. I am growing up.
Current Permanency related articles:
At Granny’s House: More children raised by grandparents than before
The number of children being raised by their grandparents shot up, doubling from 2000’s 2.4 million to 4.9 million in 2010, according to U.S. Census figures. Child Welfare Agencies try to place children first with relatives and acquaintances whom the child knows, which may be one reason more children are living with grandparents since they often provide similar family values that the parent was raised with. This could be a comfort to both the parent and child.
According to the Child Welfare Information Gateway, “Often, grandparents take on this obligation when the grandchildren’s own parents abandon them or when the children can no longer live with them because of the parent’s mental disorder, substance abuse, or incarceration.” The federal government has created a list of resources for grandparents who are raising their grandkids. It includes potential for some financial support, tips and health and safety resources
Food helps build trust, security for children in foster care
For children in foster care, food is much more than nutrition and health. Food also means love and security. “Sometimes, the only thing that was loyal to them was food,” says Robin Reese, placement and department manager at Lucas County Children Services, of the relationship that some children in foster care have with food and with the situations that ultimately led them into protective custody.
Foster care families are advised by the agency to always keep some items — such as fruit and other snacks — visible and accessible so that the children develop a trust that there will be a stable food supply. “Most of our kids, when they come into care, they have food issues … mostly lack thereof,” Ms. Reese says. But “when they feel safe, the hoarding will go away.”
New Find Youth Info.gov Youth Topic: Trafficking of Youth
FindYouthInfo.gov recently added the topic of trafficking of youth to their Youth Topics series page, which contains information, strategies, tools, and resources for youth, families, schools, and community organizations, provided by the Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs. This page provides: an overview of the issue of human trafficking; a list of potential indicators that a young person may be a human trafficking victim; guidance for reporting a suspected incidence of human trafficking; a summary of efforts by federal departments and agencies; and information on sexual exploitation and sex trafficking of minors.
CWLA Launches New Website and #100Days4Kids Campaign
CWLA is excited to announce the launch ofthe new CWLA.org. The new site provides a comprehensive and simple online experience that allows users to find information on all things quickly and enjoyably. Today, we are also launching #100Days4Kids – a national campaign aimed at rallying CWLA members and partners, families, agencies, elected officials and more to weigh in on ways to improve the systems we use to protect children in America.
Receiving a Foster Care Placement: The First 24 Hours
By Jasmine Sassack – A few weeks ago my phone rang at 4am. One look at the screen showed a caseworker’s phone number. Before I even answered I knew what the call would bring. Are you willing to accept a new foster care placement? A child needs a home. The caseworker tells me the child’s age and gender. She knows nothing more. I groggily relay the sparse information to Mike. “Yes.” He says to me. “Yes.” I say to the phone. And just like that, the phone call is over. I lay in bed for a few seconds collecting my thoughts. “I guess we should get the bedroom ready.” I say to Mike.
How Childhood Neglect Harms the Brain
Experts have long known that neglect and abuse in early life increase the risk of psychological problems, such as depression and anxiety, but now neuroscientists are explaining why. They’re showing how early maltreatment wreaks havoc on the developing brain. Dr. Charles Nelson, a Boston Children’s Hospital neuroscientist, studies how children’s early experiences shape the developing brain. Abuse and neglect, he says, can cause significant damage to the circuitry of the brain. At Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr. Stuart Ablon directs Think: Kids, a program for children with behavioral challenges. He says while working with these children, it’s important to understand that they have brains that are not fully developed. They don’t lack the will to behave, he says, but the skill.
Four adopted women seek out their Native American roots
The Fault Lines Digital Team – For more than one hundred years, U.S. policies and practices separated Native American children from their families. Prior to 1978, when the Indian Child Welfare Act went into effect, Native American children were regularly plucked from their homes and sent to live with non-Natives. Some children grew up surrounded by love; others suffered enormous hardships. Many had a powerful desire to reconnect with the culture that they had lost. In “Lost Birds,” we profile four adopted women who sought out their Native American roots and came to discover and connect with her true heritage.