Week 3 Seminar HN 430 Advocacy for Families and Youth

Announcements/Reminders Project for Unit 2 was due yesterday at midnight I will be working on grading the projects over the next couple days Read the comments I provide with your grade to help you learn and grow Next project is due in Unit 4 – take a look and start thinking about it

Providing advocacy in the Foster Care system

Overview and Purpose of Family Services Agencies Child abuse investigations Child abuse assessments Case management for children and families in foster families Case management for families in crisis Case management and counseling for potential adoptive parents, adult adoptees and birth parents

The History of Foster Care in the United States The US Orphan Problem Attitudes toward children in the 1700 and 1800’s If families were unable to care for children, they could… Give them to relatives Apprenticeships or indentured servitude They would live on the streets

The History of Foster Care in the United States The Orphan Asylum If families were unable to care for children, they could place them in an orphanage for a small fee. By 1890, there were over 600 orphanages Most were privately run with government funding. Obedience was highly valued. Play was discouraged and even punished.

Foster Care: The Orphan Trains A program first developed to provide children with in-home care rather than institutionalized care. Rev. Charles Loring Brace believed that children would be better off in clean open spaces, not the streets of a major city in search of work. The Orphan Train program is considered the start of the foster care system that we know today. (Watch video)

The Current US Child Welfare System By 1980, there were no children left in institutionalized care Today, the majority of children are in foster care because of serious maltreatment Almost ½ want to return to their biological homes

Types of Child Maltreatment Physical (failure to provide food or shelter or proper supervision) Medical (failure to provide necessary medical or mental health treatment) Educational (failure to educate a child or attend to special education needs) Emotional (inattention to a child’s emotional needs, failure to provide psychological cares, or permitting a child to use alcohol or drugs)

Working with Children in Placement Permanency Plans Reunification with the biological parents Living with relatives Guardianship with close friends Short-term or long term foster care Emancipation (with older children) Adoption with termination of parental rights

Working with Biological Families Interventions & Goals Counseling Parenting classes Treatment for substance abuse Anger management Securing employment Securing housing Maintaining regular contact with children

Working with Foster Children Separation Loss, Grief, and Mourning Identity Issues Continuity and Family Ties Crisis

Working with Foster Parents Developmental needs of at-risk children Appropriate discipline for at-risk children Supporting foster children and their biological families Managing stress and working with a changing family

Reunification Preparing for transition Giving children a voice Monitoring in-home services Communication

Family Preservation Early intervention and prevention is key Teaching important parenting skills Family counseling Assistance with household budgeting Stress management Child development Cash assistance

Minority Populations and Multicultural Considerations Children of color comprise almost 60% of the foster care system. Placing children of color in Caucasian homes Placing children in “non-traditional” family environments (same sex parents, single parents, etc.) How important is culture in placement?

Discussion…. Watch the following video: Foster Care and Adoption Documentary What things struck you from this video about the Foster Care parents? What kinds of characteristics did the different families possess? What kinds of human services roles associated with Foster Care were mentioned? Did anything stand out to you as being unique or particularly interesting in the video?