Education
Dropout rates down - Alternative programs keeping students in class
The Advocate – November 24, 2008
While the state eyes how it can quickly improve its high school graduation rates and reduce the number of dropouts, alternative programs in Lafayette Parish show success at keeping students in the classroom. In the 2006-07 school year, 635 students dropped out of high school in Lafayette Parish, according to figures reported to the Louisiana Department of Education.
Dropout rates spur solutions
Corsicana Daily Sun – November 22, 2008
Kids who drop out of school face an uphill battle in today’s world. Armed with few skills and experiences, no diploma, and no proof they can finish something important, drop-outs often end up working minimum-wage jobs and needing government or charitable assistance on a regular basis. Two years ago, the high school started a program called ATTACK, in which each student is assigned to an adult at the high school, and they meet in small groups on a regular basis to go over grades, and even in the students’ homes. Last year, the district began AVID, which beefs up students’ skills, like note-taking and test-taking, while also providing incentives, such as college trips and mentoring with local professionals.
There's a message for young people in 80-year-old's mission
Winston-Salem Journal – November 23, 2008
At first blush, Kenneth "Al" Williams of Thomasville might not seem like a poster boy for staying in school. He dropped out during World War II but rose to the level of plant manager, earning a decent living. It wasn't until this fall, long after he retired from the factory, that he got his general equivalency diploma -- at the age of 80. But when you hear all of Williams' story, you realize that he is an example for others of the importance of graduating from high school, in a state and region in need of much improvement on graduation rates.
Juvenile Justice
Officials consider juvenile peer juries
The Plainfield Sun – November 23, 2008
Besides fashion and music, local teens are getting a chance to influence their peers in the legal system. Local school administrators, police officers and social workers met with the Will County Juvenile Justice Council to discuss peer juries for juvenile offenders. Instead of going through the court system, law enforcement can refer a teen who's been arrested to a group of high school student volunteers who will hear the case and decide an appropriate punishment, which is typically assigning hours of community service. The teen is spared a criminal record and police and prosecutors are spared the time and expense of prosecution.
Restorative justice an option for young offenders
InsideBayArea.com – November 20, 2008
The consequences for the 13-year-old boy accused of bringing a loaded gun to school are serious. He faces expulsion from Cole Middle School and has been charged with five weapons-related misdemeanor counts, authorities said. The boy was arrested and now is among many other youth offenders who end up in the juvenile court system. But instead of responding with iron-fisted justice, do cases like this one provide a teachable moment and serve as an entry point for restorative justice intervention? The practice of restorative justice makes it possible to address harms, needs and causes, advocates say, adding that it is a model that enforces accountability, encourages moral transformation and meaningfully involves victims.
Restorative Justice offers more holistic alternative response to juvenile crime
Chicago County Press – November 18, 2008
The week of November 16-23 is "Restorative Justice Week." All around the planet societies and organizations are promoting this alternative model to responding to crime. Locally, our police officers, courts and schools have turned to the restorative justice model for non-violent and misdemeanor offenses. There are at least a couple hundred "cases" referred from Chisago County to the Youth Service Bureau Restorative Justice program.
Foster Care
Pinellas foster kids needn't fly solo
St. Petersburg Times – November 23, 2008
Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Ray Ulmer waits to hear cases of juveniles facing charges from shoplifting to drug possession. Most have an adult by their side. Some are with grandmas, others are sandwiched between mom and dad. But for the countless foster children who cycle through, it's often a solo endeavor. Pinellas-Pasco public defender Bob Dillinger has set out to change that with the Crossover, a pilot program that pairs foster children with public defenders who handle not only their criminal cases, but also matters involving their family situation.
CYF services help youths leaving system
New Pittsburgh Courier – November 20, 2008
In the past, youths in the foster care system have had to face harsh realities when turning 18 and leaving the system. However, the Office of Children Youth and Families has helped to create The Bridge of Pittsburgh, a facet of its services aimed at helping young people through this transition process.
Limbo lessened for Bucks County’s foster kids
Bucks County Courier Times – November 20, 2008
While many of Bucks County’s foster kids stay in the system too long, officials here — unlike other parts of the state — have a plan for every child that will free them from foster care limbo, a state child advocacy group said Wednesday. Lynne Rainey, executive director of Children and Youth, said that her staff works hard to protect children from slipping through the cracks by focusing on the problems that landed them in foster care in the first place.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
This Week's News: Youth in Transition
Education
New program attempts to narrow an education gap
Star Tribune – November 17, 2008
Minnesota consistently ranks in the top five states in test scores, high school graduation and college participation rates. And yet, even here, thousands of students drop out or fail to pursue any postsecondary education. Enter Ramp-Up to Readiness. A project of the College Readiness Consortium at the University of Minnesota, Ramp-Up has the ambitious goal of increasing the number and diversity of Minnesota students at postsecondary institutions.
Elizabeth City-Pasquotank schools sees its number of dropouts fall
PilotOnline.com – November 16, 2008
Jackson nearly left school last year before Sawyer, guidance counselor June Gibbs and others persuaded him to finish. Keeping Jackson and others like him in school is a priority nationally and statewide as dropout rates continue to rise. State and elected officials have created programs to curb the problem but without clear success. City schools tend to be the worst. In Elizabeth City, the numbers are improving. Since 2003, the number of dropouts in Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public Schools has fallen from 129 to 81 at the end of the 2007- 08 school year. With about 1,700 high school students, Elizabeth City-Pasquotank has many of the same struggles as large inner-city schools, Sawyer said.
New program at Tempe High, Marcos targets at-risk kids
AZ Central.com – November 13, 2008
A few credits shy of earning his high school diploma, Tempe High School senior Dontae Bess, 18, is in a place many peers who share his past never reach. Bess was selected to represent Arizona at the JAG national conference in Washington, D.C., next month. New to Tempe High this year, JAG is a national program aimed at students who face obstacles that usually prevent them from graduating. Discipline problems, having parents who are high school dropouts, being a teen parent or, as in Bess' case, having a parent in prison, are among the long list of barriers JAG cites.
Juvenile Justice
Juvenile Justice Council working on Teen Court
Mt. Vernon Register-News – November 17, 2008
Organizers, in conjunction with the Juvenile Justice Council, are getting closer to their goal of implementing a Teen Court in which juvenile offenders would be juried by their peers. The council met early last week to discuss preliminary action plans and steps needed to begin the process of implementing the peer jury.
Program aims to help agencies work together
Sioux City Journal – November 15, 2008
Arrested for drunken driving while returning home from a party, Meis spent a year in the juvenile court system. But he successfully completed probation and, now 19, plans to attend school to become a police officer. And on Monday, he'll be on his way to Washington, D.C., as part of a group of local child-welfare advocates, juvenile-justice officials and volunteers who will attend training at Georgetown University in Washington. Sioux City is one of seven sites chosen to participate in the university's Juvenile Justice Reform Center's Certificate Program Breakthrough Series Collaborative.
Foster Care
Raising Kids Of Relatives Could Bring Federal Funds
Washington Post – November 17, 2008
A new federal law would steer monthly financial support to people who take in children their relatives have abused or neglected, a development expected to expand such assistance in Maryland and the District and perhaps launch a similar effort in Virginia.
Bipartisan legislation helps foster care and adoption
The Progress – November 14, 2008
Last week, in the midst of stock market meltdowns and election politics, a historic, bipartisan piece of legislation called the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act – H.F. 6893 was quietly signed into law. The bill will significantly improve the nation’s child welfare system, increasing children’s chances to leave foster care for permanent, loving homes, and extending foster care to youth from 18 to 21 years of age. Children’s Aid and Family Services applauds the legislators who reached across the aisle to come to a consensus on behalf of this vulnerable population.
New hope for foster teens
WPTV.com – November 16, 2008
Life must go on for foster kids who don't get adopted. But, they're often thrown into the world with little hope after they turn 18. Now, a new project is providing these teens with opportunity. With shovels in hand, adoption advocates marked the start of a project that will turn an empty lot in Vero Beach, into a center that will build opportunity for folks like Christine Bury and Sancia Jentil.
New program attempts to narrow an education gap
Star Tribune – November 17, 2008
Minnesota consistently ranks in the top five states in test scores, high school graduation and college participation rates. And yet, even here, thousands of students drop out or fail to pursue any postsecondary education. Enter Ramp-Up to Readiness. A project of the College Readiness Consortium at the University of Minnesota, Ramp-Up has the ambitious goal of increasing the number and diversity of Minnesota students at postsecondary institutions.
Elizabeth City-Pasquotank schools sees its number of dropouts fall
PilotOnline.com – November 16, 2008
Jackson nearly left school last year before Sawyer, guidance counselor June Gibbs and others persuaded him to finish. Keeping Jackson and others like him in school is a priority nationally and statewide as dropout rates continue to rise. State and elected officials have created programs to curb the problem but without clear success. City schools tend to be the worst. In Elizabeth City, the numbers are improving. Since 2003, the number of dropouts in Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public Schools has fallen from 129 to 81 at the end of the 2007- 08 school year. With about 1,700 high school students, Elizabeth City-Pasquotank has many of the same struggles as large inner-city schools, Sawyer said.
New program at Tempe High, Marcos targets at-risk kids
AZ Central.com – November 13, 2008
A few credits shy of earning his high school diploma, Tempe High School senior Dontae Bess, 18, is in a place many peers who share his past never reach. Bess was selected to represent Arizona at the JAG national conference in Washington, D.C., next month. New to Tempe High this year, JAG is a national program aimed at students who face obstacles that usually prevent them from graduating. Discipline problems, having parents who are high school dropouts, being a teen parent or, as in Bess' case, having a parent in prison, are among the long list of barriers JAG cites.
Juvenile Justice
Juvenile Justice Council working on Teen Court
Mt. Vernon Register-News – November 17, 2008
Organizers, in conjunction with the Juvenile Justice Council, are getting closer to their goal of implementing a Teen Court in which juvenile offenders would be juried by their peers. The council met early last week to discuss preliminary action plans and steps needed to begin the process of implementing the peer jury.
Program aims to help agencies work together
Sioux City Journal – November 15, 2008
Arrested for drunken driving while returning home from a party, Meis spent a year in the juvenile court system. But he successfully completed probation and, now 19, plans to attend school to become a police officer. And on Monday, he'll be on his way to Washington, D.C., as part of a group of local child-welfare advocates, juvenile-justice officials and volunteers who will attend training at Georgetown University in Washington. Sioux City is one of seven sites chosen to participate in the university's Juvenile Justice Reform Center's Certificate Program Breakthrough Series Collaborative.
Foster Care
Raising Kids Of Relatives Could Bring Federal Funds
Washington Post – November 17, 2008
A new federal law would steer monthly financial support to people who take in children their relatives have abused or neglected, a development expected to expand such assistance in Maryland and the District and perhaps launch a similar effort in Virginia.
Bipartisan legislation helps foster care and adoption
The Progress – November 14, 2008
Last week, in the midst of stock market meltdowns and election politics, a historic, bipartisan piece of legislation called the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act – H.F. 6893 was quietly signed into law. The bill will significantly improve the nation’s child welfare system, increasing children’s chances to leave foster care for permanent, loving homes, and extending foster care to youth from 18 to 21 years of age. Children’s Aid and Family Services applauds the legislators who reached across the aisle to come to a consensus on behalf of this vulnerable population.
New hope for foster teens
WPTV.com – November 16, 2008
Life must go on for foster kids who don't get adopted. But, they're often thrown into the world with little hope after they turn 18. Now, a new project is providing these teens with opportunity. With shovels in hand, adoption advocates marked the start of a project that will turn an empty lot in Vero Beach, into a center that will build opportunity for folks like Christine Bury and Sancia Jentil.
Monday, November 10, 2008
This Week's News: Youth in Transition
Education
City school enrollment headed up
Baltimore Sun – November 9, 2008
Enrollment in the Baltimore schools has been plummeting since 1969. But not this year. City schools chief Andres Alonso threw a party at M&T Bank Stadium yesterday morning to announce that the enrollment decline has stopped - the result of more parents choosing to send their children to public elementary schools and fewer high school students dropping out.
New Hampshire plans to trim high school to two years
Examiner – November 7, 2008
In New Hampshire, educational officials are devising a system that will allow students to complete high school in the 10th grade and send students to high school and then send them to technical school or community colleges. For students whose intention it is to go to college, they may stay in high school and finish the last two years.
Churches unite to attack school dropout issue
The Muskegon Chronicle – November 7, 2008
A group trying to reduce the number of students dropping out of school is turning to the faithful for help. Church-goers throughout Muskegon County will be urged to become mentors to young people this Sunday. The hope is that volunteers' support will help prevent students from dropping out of school, said the Rev. John Brown, who spurred Creating a Graduation Generation!, a local effort to curb high school dropouts.
Juvenile Justice
Talk that works
Baltimore Sun – November 9, 2008
For months, the therapist took her place on the Langstons' overstuffed burgundy couch in Randallstown and listened to the teenager talk about his juvenile record, problems in school and the inability to control his anger. The Langstons are one of a small number of Maryland families who have undergone Multisystemic Therapy, an intense, family-based intervention program meant as an alternative to juvenile prison. Statewide, there are spaces for about 100 families at a time to undergo the therapy.
Police Schooled On Juvenile Justice And Other Human Right Laws
All Africa – November 4, 2008
The Deputy Inspector General of Police, Mrs. Elizabeth Mills Robertson has commended the African Women Lawyers Association and UNICEF for their efforts in equipping the police to combat child trafficking and other crimes. Mrs. Robertson made the commendation at the opening of a three-week course on Juvenile justice and other human rights laws relating to children for police prosecutors in Accra last Monday.
Changes to teen life sentence laws sought
Hattiesburg American – November 10, 2008
A renewed push to change Mississippi's laws pertaining to life sentences for teenagers is on the horizon for the 2009 Legislature since the effort's original poster child has been acquitted of murder. Tyler Edmonds was 13 when he was arrested in 2003, accused of helping his half-sister, Kristi Fulgham, kill her husband, Joseph T. "Joey" Fulgham. A 2006 bill, which became known as Tyler's Law, would've given judges the discretion to consider whether juveniles sentenced to life in prison should be paroled when they turn 18.
Foster Care
Treehouse teams with Starfire to aid foster kids
Highline Times – November 8, 2008
They say it takes a village to raise a child. No one knows this better than Treehouse for Kids. In keeping with the needs of children, the non-profit organization recently partnered with the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila. The result is a dynamic program with resources for foster care children in South King County. On Oct. 18, the Treehouse Learning Center officially opened its doors. Amid colorful balloons, free youth haircuts by professional stylists, live entertainment, and indoor/outdoor sports fields, it was clearly a celebration for foster care youth.
County agencies hope deal will help provide stability for foster kids
Times-Herald – November 8, 2008
Solano County officials hope a new inter-agency agreement will make it easier for foster youth to transfer between schools, providing a bit more stability for children whose lives are often rocky. "Any time there's a change in their life it's usually detrimental as far as it effects another loss to them, a loss of something familiar," said Maria Moses, executive director of CASA Solano, which advocates for foster youth. The Solano County Board of Supervisors approved the agreement Tuesday, providing guidelines for agencies that work with foster youth to streamline the transfer process.
A new vision: Local looking to create nonprofit for foster youth program
Sierra Sun – November 7, 2008
Gia States thinks that the Truckee-Tahoe area’s resources — both natural and human — could make the difference for foster youth. Both the wilderness and the locals experienced in it could lend themselves to self-exploration, teamwork, and leadership, States said. “I don’t want to reinvent the wheel — I see myself as a coordinator,” States said. To be that coordinator, States is starting a nonprofit called “Remix,” to find funding and bring community members together for the benefit of foster youth, States said.
City school enrollment headed up
Baltimore Sun – November 9, 2008
Enrollment in the Baltimore schools has been plummeting since 1969. But not this year. City schools chief Andres Alonso threw a party at M&T Bank Stadium yesterday morning to announce that the enrollment decline has stopped - the result of more parents choosing to send their children to public elementary schools and fewer high school students dropping out.
New Hampshire plans to trim high school to two years
Examiner – November 7, 2008
In New Hampshire, educational officials are devising a system that will allow students to complete high school in the 10th grade and send students to high school and then send them to technical school or community colleges. For students whose intention it is to go to college, they may stay in high school and finish the last two years.
Churches unite to attack school dropout issue
The Muskegon Chronicle – November 7, 2008
A group trying to reduce the number of students dropping out of school is turning to the faithful for help. Church-goers throughout Muskegon County will be urged to become mentors to young people this Sunday. The hope is that volunteers' support will help prevent students from dropping out of school, said the Rev. John Brown, who spurred Creating a Graduation Generation!, a local effort to curb high school dropouts.
Juvenile Justice
Talk that works
Baltimore Sun – November 9, 2008
For months, the therapist took her place on the Langstons' overstuffed burgundy couch in Randallstown and listened to the teenager talk about his juvenile record, problems in school and the inability to control his anger. The Langstons are one of a small number of Maryland families who have undergone Multisystemic Therapy, an intense, family-based intervention program meant as an alternative to juvenile prison. Statewide, there are spaces for about 100 families at a time to undergo the therapy.
Police Schooled On Juvenile Justice And Other Human Right Laws
All Africa – November 4, 2008
The Deputy Inspector General of Police, Mrs. Elizabeth Mills Robertson has commended the African Women Lawyers Association and UNICEF for their efforts in equipping the police to combat child trafficking and other crimes. Mrs. Robertson made the commendation at the opening of a three-week course on Juvenile justice and other human rights laws relating to children for police prosecutors in Accra last Monday.
Changes to teen life sentence laws sought
Hattiesburg American – November 10, 2008
A renewed push to change Mississippi's laws pertaining to life sentences for teenagers is on the horizon for the 2009 Legislature since the effort's original poster child has been acquitted of murder. Tyler Edmonds was 13 when he was arrested in 2003, accused of helping his half-sister, Kristi Fulgham, kill her husband, Joseph T. "Joey" Fulgham. A 2006 bill, which became known as Tyler's Law, would've given judges the discretion to consider whether juveniles sentenced to life in prison should be paroled when they turn 18.
Foster Care
Treehouse teams with Starfire to aid foster kids
Highline Times – November 8, 2008
They say it takes a village to raise a child. No one knows this better than Treehouse for Kids. In keeping with the needs of children, the non-profit organization recently partnered with the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila. The result is a dynamic program with resources for foster care children in South King County. On Oct. 18, the Treehouse Learning Center officially opened its doors. Amid colorful balloons, free youth haircuts by professional stylists, live entertainment, and indoor/outdoor sports fields, it was clearly a celebration for foster care youth.
County agencies hope deal will help provide stability for foster kids
Times-Herald – November 8, 2008
Solano County officials hope a new inter-agency agreement will make it easier for foster youth to transfer between schools, providing a bit more stability for children whose lives are often rocky. "Any time there's a change in their life it's usually detrimental as far as it effects another loss to them, a loss of something familiar," said Maria Moses, executive director of CASA Solano, which advocates for foster youth. The Solano County Board of Supervisors approved the agreement Tuesday, providing guidelines for agencies that work with foster youth to streamline the transfer process.
A new vision: Local looking to create nonprofit for foster youth program
Sierra Sun – November 7, 2008
Gia States thinks that the Truckee-Tahoe area’s resources — both natural and human — could make the difference for foster youth. Both the wilderness and the locals experienced in it could lend themselves to self-exploration, teamwork, and leadership, States said. “I don’t want to reinvent the wheel — I see myself as a coordinator,” States said. To be that coordinator, States is starting a nonprofit called “Remix,” to find funding and bring community members together for the benefit of foster youth, States said.
Monday, November 03, 2008
This Week's News: Youth in Transition
Education
Economy knocks education out of campaign spotlight
The Boston Globe – October 28, 2008
Forget Joe the Plumber. Joe the teacher wants to know what happened to education as an issue during the presidential campaign. "The country, if education is something they're concerned about, they've got to seek it out," said Joe Post, a 17-year-veteran language arts teacher at a middle school in the Cleveland suburb of North Ridgeville, Ohio. "It's not going to be on the front page of the newspaper in this election."
District hopes specialized staff can reverse trend
Houston Chronicle – November 3, 2008
As a high school junior, Francisco Cruz Mendez lived alone, worked as a busboy at night to pay the rent and then sleepily went to class. He came close to dropping out of school. But this fall, with help from his counselors at Lee High School, the aspiring physical therapist plans to be the first in his family to attend college.
CIS programs proven to help stem tide of dropouts
Tecumseh Herald – October 30, 2008
Communities in Schools of the Tecumseh Area (CISTA) Executive Director Susan Reeder told the Tecumseh School Board members on Monday night that national studies of CIS programs show scientifically-based evidence of effectiveness in preventing dropouts. The report also noted that CIS is the only organization proven to increase graduation rates. “We can find the same outcomes here,” said Reeder. “We do those same things. We have a lot of preventive programs that help kids in their process of staying in school.” CISTA, which is one of approximately 200 CIS programs across the country, will be making some adjustments in the upcoming months to follow a Total Quality System enacted by the national program to help document its success, and the process recently got underway with a Strategic Plan.
Juvenile Justice
Group to review juvenile justice practices in Tri-Cities
Tri-City Herals – November 3, 2008
Tri-City community leaders are analyzing juvenile justice data, practices and policies as part of a national reform effort aimed at making the system more effective and responsive. The group has targeted three areas for a closer look: How truancy is dealt with, care for youth with mental health issues and whether minorities are disproportionately represented in the system. The Models for Change initiative is a project of the Chicago-based John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Undo zero-tolerance policy in schools
The News-Press – November 3, 2008
The arrest and detention of a 9-year-old girl with mental illness at Royal Palm Exceptional School earlier this month was more than just a personal tragedy for the family. It was a sad reminder that children with disabilities are not getting the special care they need in our schools and that too many are being shoved needlessly into the juvenile justice system.
Foster Care
After 12 years in state care, Erica Holmes gets a place to call her own in Killeen
Killeen Daily Herald – November 2, 2008
Erica Holmes was too young to remember what happened the day she was removed from her mother's home. Initially her siblings were kept together in foster care, but after six years, all four were separated. Holmes can't even remember how many foster homes she's lived at, since she was transferred every couple of months. Holmes now lives in transitional apartments in Killeen, provided by Texas Youth Services' Project F.U.T.U.R.E., which stands for "focuses upon training, utilization of resources, and employment."
Help for foster kids
Oklahoman – October 29, 2008
This fall, Congress and the president acted to improve the lives and futures of children and youth in Oklahoma’s — and the nation’s — foster care system. The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act will help more children leave foster care for permanent families.
Economy knocks education out of campaign spotlight
The Boston Globe – October 28, 2008
Forget Joe the Plumber. Joe the teacher wants to know what happened to education as an issue during the presidential campaign. "The country, if education is something they're concerned about, they've got to seek it out," said Joe Post, a 17-year-veteran language arts teacher at a middle school in the Cleveland suburb of North Ridgeville, Ohio. "It's not going to be on the front page of the newspaper in this election."
District hopes specialized staff can reverse trend
Houston Chronicle – November 3, 2008
As a high school junior, Francisco Cruz Mendez lived alone, worked as a busboy at night to pay the rent and then sleepily went to class. He came close to dropping out of school. But this fall, with help from his counselors at Lee High School, the aspiring physical therapist plans to be the first in his family to attend college.
CIS programs proven to help stem tide of dropouts
Tecumseh Herald – October 30, 2008
Communities in Schools of the Tecumseh Area (CISTA) Executive Director Susan Reeder told the Tecumseh School Board members on Monday night that national studies of CIS programs show scientifically-based evidence of effectiveness in preventing dropouts. The report also noted that CIS is the only organization proven to increase graduation rates. “We can find the same outcomes here,” said Reeder. “We do those same things. We have a lot of preventive programs that help kids in their process of staying in school.” CISTA, which is one of approximately 200 CIS programs across the country, will be making some adjustments in the upcoming months to follow a Total Quality System enacted by the national program to help document its success, and the process recently got underway with a Strategic Plan.
Juvenile Justice
Group to review juvenile justice practices in Tri-Cities
Tri-City Herals – November 3, 2008
Tri-City community leaders are analyzing juvenile justice data, practices and policies as part of a national reform effort aimed at making the system more effective and responsive. The group has targeted three areas for a closer look: How truancy is dealt with, care for youth with mental health issues and whether minorities are disproportionately represented in the system. The Models for Change initiative is a project of the Chicago-based John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Undo zero-tolerance policy in schools
The News-Press – November 3, 2008
The arrest and detention of a 9-year-old girl with mental illness at Royal Palm Exceptional School earlier this month was more than just a personal tragedy for the family. It was a sad reminder that children with disabilities are not getting the special care they need in our schools and that too many are being shoved needlessly into the juvenile justice system.
Foster Care
After 12 years in state care, Erica Holmes gets a place to call her own in Killeen
Killeen Daily Herald – November 2, 2008
Erica Holmes was too young to remember what happened the day she was removed from her mother's home. Initially her siblings were kept together in foster care, but after six years, all four were separated. Holmes can't even remember how many foster homes she's lived at, since she was transferred every couple of months. Holmes now lives in transitional apartments in Killeen, provided by Texas Youth Services' Project F.U.T.U.R.E., which stands for "focuses upon training, utilization of resources, and employment."
Help for foster kids
Oklahoman – October 29, 2008
This fall, Congress and the president acted to improve the lives and futures of children and youth in Oklahoma’s — and the nation’s — foster care system. The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act will help more children leave foster care for permanent families.
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