In this episode of Fostering Futures with CAHELP, Athena Cordero speaks with Tawnie Rice, Administrator at On the Rise Foster Agency in Barstow, California. Tawnie shares her unique perspective as both a former foster youth and a social work professional who has worked her way up through nearly every role within the agency.

Tawnie walks listeners through what foster family agencies do, how they differ from county placements, and why additional layers of support, such as trained visitation monitoring, advocacy, and trauma‑informed services can make a critical difference for foster children and families. She explains intensive services foster care, extended foster care for young adults, and the realities of supporting children who have experienced trauma.

Throughout the conversation, Tawnie emphasizes the importance of patience, hope, consistency, and presence. She offers honest insight into common misconceptions about foster youth, what it truly takes to become a foster parent, and why attachment is not something to fear, but something children deeply need. This episode highlights how lived experience, compassion, and community‑based support can change outcomes for foster youth and the families who care for them.

Highlights

• Tawnie shares her lived experience as a former foster youth and her journey to becoming an agency administrator.
• Insight into how foster family agencies differ from county placements in support and advocacy.
• Explanation of visitation monitoring and why trained supervision matters for children.
• Walkthrough of what it takes to become a foster parent and the importance of “checking your heart.”
• Discussion of trauma‑informed care, hope, and consistency in supporting foster youth.
• Real‑world examples of how agencies advocate for children’s mental health and behavioral needs.

Key Takeaways

• There are no bad kids, only children responding to trauma.
• Foster parents must be open to learning new skills and disciplinarian approaches.
• Attachment is not a risk; it is essential to healing and development.
• Hope is built through consistency, follow‑through, and showing up.
• Foster youth often deeply miss and love their biological families.
• Agencies provide critical guidance that helps foster parents navigate complex situations.

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In this episode, Athena Cordero sits down with Paul Durham, Program Coordinator for the Children Deserve Success Team at San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS), to explore what it truly takes to support foster youth through education, stability, and connection.

Paul shares his dual perspective as both a system leader and someone who personally experienced foster care, offering powerful insight into the realities that foster youth face, including frequent school changes, housing instability, and the emotional toll of starting over again and again. He explains how San Bernardino County has built a coordinated, prevention‑focused approach that brings together school districts, child welfare, probation, community colleges, universities, and community agencies to improve outcomes for foster youth.

The conversation highlights why school stability, mentorship, and belonging are critical to graduation and long‑term success. Paul also details innovative, data‑driven programs like school‑based mentoring, CASA partnerships, and college transition supports that are improving attendance, reducing discipline, and increasing graduation rates. Listeners will walk away with a deeper understanding of how systems can work better together and how individuals can get involved to make a meaningful difference.

Highlights

• Paul explains SBCSS’s coordinated approach to supporting foster youth.
• Shares lived experience navigating foster care and school instability.
• Why school stability is critical for foster youth academic success.
• Overview of mentorship, CASA, and school‑based support programs.
• How data and partnerships drive prevention‑focused systems.
• Ways community members can support foster youth.

Key Takeaways

• Foster youth outcomes improve when systems work together.
• Stability, belonging, and mentorship are as important as academics.
• Prevention is more effective than crisis response.
• One consistent, caring adult can change a young person’s trajectory.
• Housing and transitions remain the biggest challenges.
• Community involvement plays a powerful role in foster youth success.

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In this episode, Athena Cordero sits down with Jennifer Cork, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Doctor of Social Work, author, and keynote speaker who is also as autistic. Jennifer brings both professional expertise and lived experience to a powerful conversation about neurodiversity, mental health, and what autistic individuals truly need to thrive, especially during life transitions.

Jennifer shares her journey from elementary education into social work, disability services, and eventually private practice, where she now works almost exclusively with neurodivergent children, teens, and adults. She explains why many of the challenges her clients face, such as anxiety, depression, burnout, and trauma, cannot be addressed in therapy alone, but are rooted in systems that were never designed to support neurodivergent minds.

The conversation explores masking, emotional regulation, anxiety‑based behaviors, and how autism often presents differently in women and girls, leading many to be misdiagnosed or diagnosed later in life. Jennifer also discusses the curriculum she developed to address critical gaps in mental health care for neurodivergent clients and the research behind her book, What’s Your Anxiety Level?

As the keynote speaker for the April 14th Regional Captain X Conference, Jennifer previews her talk on navigating life transitions while supporting the mental health needs of autistic learners, highlighting why the transition to adulthood is one of the most vulnerable and overlooked periods. This episode offers clinicians, educators, parents, and autistic individuals practical insight, compassionate understanding, and hope rooted in possibility.

Highlights

• Jennifer shares insight as both an autistic individual and a licensed clinical social worker.
• Clear explanation of neurodiversity and neurodivergence for parents, educators, and clinicians.
• Discussion of anxiety‑driven behaviors and emotional regulation challenges.
• Why autism often presents differently in women and girls.
• Exploration of masking and its emotional impact over time.
• Preview of Jennifer’s keynote and clinician training on life transitions.

Key Takeaways

• Many mental health challenges stem from systems not built for neurodivergent minds.
• Anxiety in autistic individuals is often misunderstood as behavioral issues.
• Autism in women and girls is frequently missed or diagnosed later.
• Masking can help navigate systems but often leads to burnout.
• Life transitions require intentional planning and explicit supports.
• Autistic individuals need to hear possibility‑focused narratives.

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In this episode of Fostering Futures, host Athena Cordero welcomes Jennifer Rountree, a Program Specialist, and Melissa de Silva, an Intervention Specialist, both from the California Association of Health and Education Linked and Professions (CAHELP). With over two decades of combined experience in Special Education (SPED), Jennifer and Melissa dive into the complexities of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in honor of Autism Awareness Month. The conversation centers on understanding autism not just as a medical diagnosis, but as a neuro-developmental disability that uniquely impacts social communication and behavior across a broad spectrum of needs.

They explain the "spectrum" nature of autism, detailing how it affects individuals at varying levels—from those requiring minimal support (Level 1) to those needing intensive, day-to-day assistance (Level 3). They demystify the assessment process by discussing tools such as the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) and the differences between medical and educational identification.

Listeners will gain practical insights into how educators and parents can support students through structured routines, visual supports, and specific Evidence-Based Practices (EBPs). Melissa and Jennifer also address common misconceptions, such as viewing "stimming" or disruptive behaviors as intentional "naughtiness," reframing them instead as internal sensory needs or communication attempts. By highlighting resources like the Autism Focused Intervention Resources and Modules (AFIRM) website, the episode provides a roadmap for anyone looking to foster a more inclusive and supportive environment for autistic youth.

Highlights

• The 13-year professional history between Athena Cordero and the Special Education (SPED) team at the California Association of Health and Education Linked and Professions (CAHELP).
• Defining Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as a neurodevelopmental disability affecting social communication and repetitive behaviors.
• The difference between the three levels of support in a medical diagnosis.
• Why a medical diagnosis doesn't automatically trigger Special Education (SPED) services in a school setting.
• An introduction to the California Autism Professional Training and Information Network (CAPTAIN) and its mission.
• How the SELPA (Special Education Local Plan Area) Autism Implementation Team (SAIT) supports local districts.
• The "Power of the Visual": Using stop signs, schedules, and color-coding to reduce student anxiety.
• Understanding "stimming" and sensory processing as non-intentional behaviors.
• Real-world examples of "Prompting," from hand-over-hand physical guidance to simple gestures.
• Accessing free training through the Autism Focused Intervention Resources and Modules (AFIRM) website.

Key Takeaways

• Meet One, Meet One: If you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve only met one person; the spectrum is incredibly diverse.
• Function Over Form: Behavior is often a form of communication or a way to regulate the body, not a choice to be "bad."
• Structure as Safety: Predictable routines allow students to spend less energy on "what happens next" and more on learning.
• The Bridge of Coaching: Moving from theory in a workshop to "real-time" classroom coaching is essential for the successful implementation of Evidence-Based Practices (EBPs).
• Collaboration is Key: A strong partnership between parents, medical providers, and school assessment teams ensures the best support for the child.

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In this episode, Athena Cordero sits down with Derrik Delton, former Superintendent of the Oro Grande School District, to discuss the unique intersection of educational leadership and foster parenting. With 30 years of experience in education, ranging from a Special Education (SPED) teacher to an administrator across all grade levels, Derrik shares how his professional background informed his personal decision to become a foster and, eventually, an adoptive parent. The conversation highlights the innovative programs within the Oro Grande district, such as Riverside Prep, and the critical importance of creating supportive environments where foster youth can thrive both academically and emotionally.

Derrik shares the deeply personal story of his son’s journey from foster care to adoption. He reflects on the challenges of navigating the foster care system during the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the significance of dismantling systemic barriers for families, and the pride he feels in watching his son achieve milestones, such as joining the military as a National Guardsman while pursuing higher education.

The conversation explores the specific resources available to foster youth, including legislative supports, such as Assembly bills that provide credit flexibility for graduation, and the vital role of early college opportunities, such as dual enrollment. Derrik also offers advice for prospective foster parents on navigating the complexities of the system and ensuring that youth are aware of life-changing opportunities, such as tuition support for the California State University (CSU) system.

Highlights

• Derrik Delton’s 30-year journey from a Special Education (SPED) teacher to a district Superintendent.
• Why middle school is a "pivotal age" for reaching students and building lasting relationships.
• How the Oro Grande School District and Riverside Prep support foster and homeless youth.
• The "specials" program: Why art, music, robotics, and Physical Education (PE) remain vital in elementary school.
• Navigating the foster-to-adoption process and overcoming systemic paperwork barriers.
• The impact of Assembly Bills (AB) that allow foster youth to graduate with reduced credit requirements.
• Supporting a foster child’s transition to adulthood, college, and the military.
• The beauty of a diverse family dynamic and the importance of "choosing" family.
• How educational workshops can empower foster parents with knowledge about college grants and rights.

Key Takeaways

• Representation Matters: Professional expertise in education can help bridge the gap for foster families navigating complex systems.
• Consistency is Key: A stable home environment allows youth to shift focus from survival to academic and personal growth.
• Leveraging Legislation: Understanding state mandates for graduation credits can help foster youth stay on track with their peers.
• Holistic Support: Schools must look beyond the classroom to provide social-emotional learning (SEL) and basic needs like backpack giveaways.
• Mutually Shared Healing: The adoption process is a two-way street that brings rewards to both the parents and the child.
• Financial Literacy: Many foster youth carry unique concerns about debt; providing clear paths to funded higher education is crucial.

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In this episode, Athena Cordero sits down with Maria Bamba, a foster parent whose journey began through a family crisis and evolved into a lifelong calling. What started as stepping in to care for her nieces during an emergency became a five‑year journey of fostering teen girls, navigating trauma, building structure, and creating a home rooted in faith, love, and accountability.

Maria shares the deeply personal story that led her to fostering from her sister’s medical emergency, to becoming a single foster parent, to later walking through profound grief after the loss of her son. Rather than turning away, Maria leaned into service, using her pain to fuel purpose. Through county resources, counseling, education support, and unwavering commitment, she helped her girls heal, thrive academically, and envision futures they once couldn’t see.

The conversation explores what foster youth truly need to succeed: consistency, expectations, compassion, structure, and someone who refuses to give up on them. Maria also shares her long‑term vision building a ranch‑style foster environment with animals, gardens, and emotional‑support systems and how healing can flow both ways between caregiver and child.

This episode is a powerful reminder that fostering isn’t just about providing shelter, it’s about restoring dignity, building identity, and believing in potential.

Highlights

• The difference between foster care and kinship placement.
• How Maria became a foster parent during COVID while working full‑time.
• Supporting teens through trauma, grief, and academic challenges.
• County resources: counseling, tutoring, social workers, and parent support.
• How faith, structure, and communication anchor Maria’s home.
• Why teens in foster care need more structure, not less.
• The healing relationship between caregiver and child.
• Animals as emotional support and responsibility‑building tools.
• Maria’s vision for a ranch‑based foster care model.
• Why foster parents need ongoing peer support beyond training classes.

Key Takeaways

• Trauma doesn’t define a child; environment and belief do.
• Teens in foster care are at a pivotal crossroads and need stability now.
• Structure, accountability, and love can coexist.
• Healing is mutual. Foster children often help caregivers heal, too.
• Foster parents need real‑world mentorship, not just certification classes.
• Long‑term vision and consistency change outcomes.
• Foster care is not charity, it’s legacy work.

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In this episode, Athena Cordero welcomes mediator, law professor, and conflict‑resolution expert David Dowling for a thoughtful conversation about Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and how families and schools can navigate conflict in special education more constructively. Drawing on his professional expertise and his personal experience as a parent of a child on a 504 plan, David breaks down what ADR really means, why the word “alternative” can be misleading, and how communication, negotiation, facilitated IEPs (Individual Education Program), and mediation fit along a spectrum of dispute resolution.

David explains how parents can retain voice, control, and relationships by resolving concerns early rather than jumping straight to due process. He explores how bias, body language, culture, and emotional triggers can unintentionally derail IEP conversations and offers practical strategies to help parents stay grounded, organized, and heard. Through a powerful personal story about advocating for his son, David reminds listeners that even experts struggle with their own children, and that parental emotion often stems from love, fear, and a desire to protect.

This episode provides parents, educators, and administrators with real‑world tools to reduce conflict, improve communication, and keep the focus where it belongs: on the child.

Highlights

• David explains ADR as a spectrum of dispute resolution from informal conversation to due process.
• Why “alternative” dispute resolution can be misleading and unintentionally intimidating.
• The importance of control: who makes decisions in mediation vs. due process.
• How confirmation bias, defensiveness, and past school experiences shape parent reactions.
• Why listening to understand (not respond) is one of the hardest and most important skills.
• The unintended message devices and body language can send in IEP meetings.
• David’s personal experience advocating for his son with Tourette’s through the 504 process.
• Why do even experienced mediators struggle emotionally when it’s their own child?
• Practical preparation tips for parents: binders, photos, notes, highlighters, and questions.
• Cultural and socioeconomic differences that affect communication in IEP meetings.
• The difference between an IEP and a facilitated IEP, and when facilitation can help.
• Why facilitated IEPs and mediation are free resources parents often don’t realize they can request.

Takeaways

• Parents have more voice and control when conflict is addressed early before due process.
• Listening well requires intention, presence, and fewer distractions.
• Emotions in IEP meetings are normal and often rooted in fear, grief, and love.
• Preparation reduces anxiety and helps parents advocate more effectively.
• Cultural background, past experiences, and power dynamics shape how conflict shows up.
• Facilitated IEPs help reframe language, rebuild trust, and keep conversations productive.
• Due process should be a last resort, not the first step.
• Strong relationships between families and schools ultimately benefit the child most.

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In this episode, Amanda Gingerich and Maurica Manibusan welcome Maria Guzman, a foster parent whose journey began overnight when she was asked to take in six young girls ranging in age from newborn to eleven years old. What started as a call to help family quickly became a life‑changing experience for Maria, her husband, and their teenage son, transforming a household of three into a household of nine.

Maria shares what it truly looks like to become a foster parent without warning: preparing her home, navigating licensing, enrolling children in school, managing finances, attending medical appointments, coordinating long‑distance family visits, and building trust with children who arrived with trauma, fear, and little sense of stability. She speaks candidly about the emotional weight of fostering loving children, knowing they may not stay forever, and the difficult balance of preparing to let go while still showing up fully every day.

Through her story, Maria highlights the rewards that make it all worthwhile: watching children grow in confidence, try new activities like sports and cheer, feel safe enough to trust again, and begin to believe in themselves. This episode offers listeners an honest, compassionate look at foster parenting not as an abstract system, but as a lived, daily commitment to love, structure, and hope.

Highlights

• Maria explains how she became a foster parent overnight after being asked to take in six sisters.
• Transitioning from a family of three to a household of nine, including a newborn.
• Preparing a small home to meet placement and licensing requirements.
• Navigating the foster care licensing process and home inspections.
• Enrolling five children in school and working with educators during major transitions.
• Managing finances, food costs, clothing, and extracurricular activities without extra support.
• Supporting children through trauma, boundaries, and adjustment to structure.
• Coordinating long‑distance family visitation twice a month.
• The emotional challenge of attachment and the possibility of reunification or removal.
• Building trust through routine, family meals, prayer, consistency, and presence.
• The joy of seeing children grow in confidence, self‑esteem, and happiness.
• Maria’s heartfelt advice to others considering foster parenting.

Takeaways

• Foster parenting often begins unexpectedly and requires immediate flexibility.
• Love, routine, and consistency help children feel safe after instability.
• Financial and emotional challenges are real, but community support matters.
• Children thrive when treated as full members of the family.
• Attachment is both the hardest and most meaningful part of fostering.
• Reunification is the ultimate goal, even when it’s emotionally difficult.
• Foster parenting isn’t about recognition or compensation, it’s about impact.
• Small wins—confidence, joy, and belonging are the greatest rewards.

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In this episode, Athena sits down with Daysi Silvas Ramirez and Zach Perez, two peer support associates with San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS) who use their lived experience in foster care and homelessness to inspire and guide youth across the county. At only 21 and 24 years old, they already serve as powerful advocates, mentors, and truth-tellers. Bringing authenticity, vulnerability, and empathy to every space they enter.

Daysi and Zach open up about their early years: surviving homes marked by addiction, domestic violence, instability, and emotional neglect. They describe being separated from siblings, bouncing through multiple foster placements, and enduring both supportive and harmful foster homes. Their stories reveal the often-overlooked emotional reality of foster care: isolation, distrust, a desire for connection, and the small acts of kindness that become lifelines.

Together, they reflect on what makes a good foster parent, why intention and empathy matter, and how their work today allows them to offer youth what they wished someone had offered them. They share the moments when they recognized themselves in the students they support, the conversations that shifted a young person’s outlook, and the resilience required to break cycles and rewrite their futures.

This episode is a heartfelt reminder that trauma shapes, but does not define a child. Daysi and Zach embody hope, and their message to adults and youth alike is simple: Your circumstances do not decide your destination. With compassion, consistency, and belief, lives can change.

Highlights

• Lived experience leadership: Daysi and Zach explain how their foster care journeys now shape their roles speaking to students and educators.
• Raw childhood realities: Violence, addiction, instability, unsafe homes, and multiple removals from biological parents.
• The good and the harmful: Examples of both supportive foster parents and emotionally damaging placements.
• The weight of trauma: How kids laugh and play at school but often carry emotional burdens no one sees.
• Isolation in a crowded room: Why foster youth can feel alone despite being surrounded by adults.
• What kids remember: Simple acts. Being fed, being included, being treated like family—often become the most powerful moments.
• Advice for prospective foster parents: A child with trauma requires patience, intention, emotional skill, and the willingness to stay.
• Moments of impact: Zach reconnecting a youth with her foster sister; Daysi seeing students open up after hearing her story.
• Their futures: Daysi’s plans for a master’s degree and mentorship; Zach’s ambition to become a business owner and build a large, loving family.
• Parting messages: Give youth grace. Offer hope. Be intentional. And never let your past decide your future.

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In this powerful new series, we take an honest, unfiltered look into the foster care system and its challenges, its heart, and the people who make a difference every day.

Through real conversations with foster youth, foster parents, and the dedicated professionals who support them, this series reveals what life in the system truly looks like. From stories of resilience and healing to the unseen struggles many face, each episode highlights the human side of foster care that often goes untold.

You’ll hear firsthand experiences about navigating trauma, finding stability, building trust, and redefining family. The series aims to educate, inspire, and spark meaningful dialogue about the realities of foster care, while uplifting the voices of those who have lived it.

This is more than a series. It’s a chance to learn, connect, and understand the ins and outs of a system that impacts thousands of lives every day.

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