In February, Carolyn Travis of California Youth Connection wrote an op-ed for The Imprint calling on Governor Gavin Newsom to keep his commitment to fair market support for youth who receive subsidized independent living placement (SILP) funds in extended foster care. 

Travis joined us on the podcast to talk about her own experience transitioning into extended foster care and then into adulthood, and how important her ability to save some money through SILP was as she entered the workforce during COVID-19. 

Carolyn Travis is the community advocacy coordinator for California Youth Connection, one of the nation’s oldest advocacy groups led for and by current and former foster youth. Travis is a graduate of the University of California Los Angeles.

Reading Room

Governors on Both Coasts Face Budget Shortfalls for Serving Children and Families Next Year
https://rb.gy/wapi7x

Carolyn Travis: California Governor’s Budget Breaks His Promise to Older Foster Youth
https://rb.gy/mp78ym

2023 Implementation Fact Sheet: Higher Monthly Payments for Foster Youth in SILPs Based on Local Housing Costs
https://jbay.org/resources/2023-fact-sheet-silp/

On this month’s headlines edition of the podcast, we discuss new federal data on foster care, the first state and tribe to get approved for kinship licensing, and what happened this year in the government spending deal. We also talk about a controversial law in Tennessee over foster parents’ views on sexual orientation, Minnesota’s African American Family Preservation Act, and more.

Reading Room
What’s In the 2024 Spending Deal for Youth and Families
https://bit.ly/43SWuNF

Michigan, Salt River Pima Tribe Approved for Federal Kinship Support
https://bit.ly/3U9gkkc

Federal Report: Foster Care Total Dropped Again in 2022
https://bit.ly/3TsQ3Mh

50-State Comparison of Mandatory Reporting Laws
https://coloradocpo.org/mandatory-reporting-resource/

Senate Approves Bill Establishing a Right to Foster, Adopt by Anti-LGBTQ Parents in Tennessee
https://bit.ly/4asVq5i

Idaho Legislature requests Office of Performance Evaluations investigation of Youth Treatment Homes
https://bit.ly/3VRHjlD

Short-Staffed New York Juvenile Facilities Place Detained Youth at Risk, State Investigation Finds
https://bit.ly/3VMdPWo

A Bill Once Again Before Minnesota Lawmakers Set Out to Preserve Black Families. This Year’s Version Would Apply to Almost Everyone in the Child Welfare System.
https://bit.ly/3xt8Obb

NAACP and Children’s Advocates Request Federal Civil Rights Investigation of Minnesota’s Child Welfare System
https://bit.ly/3vBuscP

Congressional Candidate Wants to Create a Place for Young Women ‘To Dream, To Fight and To Just Be’ 
https://bit.ly/43PBlDQ

Profiles in Youth Work: Lateefah Simon
https://bit.ly/3xqbVRg

Barry Krisberg, Lifelong Crusader for Youth Behind Bars, is Mourned Nationwide
https://bit.ly/43R0ga2

A new multimedia package produced by The Imprint and Voices of Monterey Bay takes readers, viewers and listeners deep inside rural Oregon’s Indian Country, where elders are Indigenizing social work through equine therapy for young people who have experienced foster care and youth justice systems.

“Horses take us all the way back to our history before our land was taken away,” explains John Doug Spence, who leads equine therapy sessions across Oregon. “It’s a way of taking back our power.”

The project, Healing the Children of Horse Nations, is a collaboration between The Imprint’s Indigenous Children and Families Reporter Nancy Marie Spears, an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma; podcast producers Julie and Mara Reynolds; and visual storyteller Josué Rivas, who is Mexica and Otomi.

To read Nancy Marie Spears' reporting for "Healing the Children of Horse Nations," visit: https://bit.ly/3J41mpr

For a collection of photography for this project by Josué Rivas, visit:  https://bit.ly/3U1xFeX

Healing the Children of Horse Nations, a new multimedia package produced by The Imprint and Voices of Monterey Bay, takes readers, viewers and listeners deep inside rural Oregon’s Indian Country, where elders are Indigenizing social work through equine therapy for young people who have experienced foster care and youth justice systems.

“Horses take us all the way back to our history before our land was taken away,” explains John Doug Spence, who leads equine therapy sessions across Oregon. “It’s a way of taking back our power.” 

Check out this episode of The Imprint Weekly Podcast for an interview with the people behind Healing the Children of Horse Nations, and check back on Wednesday April 3 for the official release of the project.

Join us in an illuminating episode of InnerViews as we delve into the profound topic of healing trauma through the lens of re-parenting, guided by the wisdom of Deborah D. Denzel. Drawing from her lived expertise and career in improving the child welfare system, Deborah shares transformative insights into her personal journey of resilience. Explore the pillars of re-parenting and discover empowering strategies for self-nurturing and growth. Through candid reflections and empowering moments, Deborah reveals how embracing the concept of re-parenting has paved the way for healing, joy, and personal empowerment. 

 Dr. LaShawnDa Pittman spent years studying the lives of dozens of grandmothers in the Chicago area for her book, Grandmothering While Black.

“Despite managing the simultaneity of love and coercion,” she writes, “the Black grandmothers in this study demonstrated their love for their grandchildren in their willingness to provide care, as an extension of parenting and sometimes in place of it.”

Dr. Pittman explored that balance of love and coercion and many other takeaways from her work.

Reading Room

Grandmothering While Black: A Twenty-First Century Story of Love, Coercion, and Survival
https://www.drlashawndapittman.com/

Family Ties: Analysis From a State-By-State Survey of Kinship Care Policies
https://www.aecf.org/resources/family-ties

White House Announces Slate of Actions on Child Welfare
https://bit.ly/3ZFa7h

On this week’s episode we talk to Rob Geen, who is leading the new Child Welfare Initiative started by the Bipartisan Policy Center. Some of the initiative’s early activities have included:

-A national survey on public attitudes and views about the child welfare system and how it should operate

-A landscape assessment based on interviews with those working for, involved with, and directly affected by child welfare policy.

-A review of state child welfare legislative activity in recent years.

Geen talked to us about the origins of the initiative, findings from its early activities, and his view on what “bipartisanship” means in the context of child welfare policy. 

Reading Room

The American Public Weighs in on Our Nation’s Child Welfare System
https://bit.ly/49KD8ML

Bipartisanship Across the Nation: A Review of State Child Welfare Legislation
https://bit.ly/48JEQfT

Key Findings from BPC Child Welfare Landscape Assessment
https://bit.ly/48PjEoG

On this week’s podcast, we discuss some new legislation aimed at drawing more interest in extended foster care, long-sought data on compliance with the Indian Child Welfare Act, and the use of federal funds for family justice. We also break down yet another child welfare-related lawsuit in New York, and concerns over the precedent set by the conviction of Jennifer Crumbley.

Reading Room

Bipartisan Bill Would Expand Federal Extended Foster Care Program
https://bit.ly/3Uum8FC

Fostering Adults: The State of Care
https://imprintnews.org/special-series/fostering-adults-state-extended-care

Biden Proposes New Federal Data on ICWA Compliance
https://bit.ly/3OUriXL

Keeping The Kids: Native American overrepresentation in foster care in Montana.
https://montanafreepress.org/keeping-the-kids/

Most States Now Access Federal Funds for Family Court Lawyers
https://bit.ly/3uN543q

New York City Class-Action Lawsuit Defends Parents’ Rights in CPS Home Visits — A Rare Constitutional Challenge
https://bit.ly/48HyRrO

The Trouble With Convicting Parents for Their Children’s Violent Crimes
https://bit.ly/3Injhan

Bill Tracker: Protecting Benefits for Foster Youth
https://bit.ly/3uqHgCe

Healing Generations: Nurturing the Inner Child Through Reparenting - A Journey with Dr. Alison Davis

Welcome to InnerViews, a new monthly podcast from the Youth Voices Rising program at Fostering Media Connections!

InnerViews is not just a podcast; it's an intimate exploration led by Ivory Bennett, a seasoned professional with 17 years of lived foster care experience. Each episode is a deep dive into topics surrounding trauma, mental and emotional health, well-being, and the unique challenges faced by Black women in the realm of healing.

Join Ivory Bennett on "InnerViews" for powerful conversations, lived expertise, and a journey towards holistic well-being. Subscribe now and become part of a community committed to understanding, healing, and thriving. Your story matters, and Ivory is here to guide you on the path to inner transformation.

In the inaugural episode of "InnerViews," join host Ivory Bennett in a profound exploration of trauma, healing, and the well-being of Black women with esteemed guest Dr. Alison Davis. Delve into crucial topics such as generational trauma, misogynoire, and the significance of culture in mental and emotional health. Discover empowering insights on parenting, re-parenting, and the transformative journey towards intentional living. Together, let's embark on a path of healing and understanding, where courageous storytelling paves the way to a softer, more empowered life.

About the host:
Ivory Bennett, a national interdisciplinary equity advocate, brings over 8 years of experience in classroom instruction, curriculum design, and department leadership. With a focus on trauma-informed pedagogy, Ivory is committed to achieving education and child welfare equity, especially for youth with marginalized identities. 

As the Program Manager for Youth Voices Rising, Ivory develops comprehensive training programs that prepare and empower youth to tell their stories. Ivory also advocates for policy improvements within the child welfare sector. Ivory's vast experience includes roles as Manager, Community Impact Coach for Teach for America in Dallas, Project Manager for Fostering Families Today, and serving as Special Program Board Chair for The Leaders Readers Network.

On this week’s episode we first talked to Kat McCloud about the new season of “Self-Taught,” a podcast from foster youth, for foster youth that just joined our SafeCamp Audio Network. McCloud talks about the first season of the show, what to expect in the second (which is now out) and how she decides what she is comfortable sharing publicly.

Bruce Lesley, president of First Focus on Children, joins us to discuss a new tax reform bill that includes a big proposal to provide more financial support for low-income parents and children, as well as federal budget deliberations and what states are doing related to child spending. 

Bruce Lesley is president of First Focus on Children. Prior to his work at First Focus on Children, he served as Senior Health Policy Advisor on the Senate Finance and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committees for U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman. 

Reading Room

Self-Taught: Former Foster Youth on Sex, Health, and Life
https://safecampaudio.org/show/self-taught/

Money and Maltreatment
https://bit.ly/3hcelIU

New Research Links Increased Minimum Wage to Reduced Child Maltreatment
https://bit.ly/2RvAqr7

Support Grows For No-Strings-Attached Cash For Families To Prevent Foster Care Removals
https://bit.ly/3DD1NUY

Let the Child Tax Credit Work
https://bit.ly/3aALZHh