Kinship diversion, an alternative to foster care, is a common response to allegations of child abuse and neglect, yet little research has been conducted on this practice. An estimated 100,000 to 300,000 children are diverted from foster care to live with relatives each year. However, few jurisdictions collect data on the practice, making it challenging to understand these children’s experiences—and to decide whether kinship diversion is beneficial. For several years, with the support of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Child Trends has sought answers to key questions about kinship diversion…
Fact Sheet, Brief
Children and youth who have been abused or neglected need safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments to recover from the trauma they've experienced. If you are parenting a child or youth with a history of abuse or neglect, you might have questions about the impacts and how you can help your child heal. This factsheet is intended to help parents (birth, foster, and adoptive) and other caregivers better understand the challenges of caring for a child or youth who has experienced maltreatment and learn about available resources for support. (Author abstract)
In this second edition of the annual State of Grandfamilies in America report, Generations United identified key State laws and policies specifically designed to address barriers and better support the diverse and unique population of grandparents and other relatives raising children. All 50 States and the District of Columbia were evaluated based on the availability of these laws and policies. To identify States with the most promising laws and policies to support grandfamilies, Generations United used the following criteria: percentage of children in foster care who are placed with…
This report presents the recommendations of the Working Families Task Force that sought to identify ways to strengthen the protections in place for Chicago’s workers. The task force examined three issues: paid sick leave, schedule predictability for shift workers, and paid family and medical leave. After 6 months of research, community engagement, and deliberation, the task force is proposing a framework for expanding access to sick leave and family and medical leave while recommending further research and discussion on schedule predictability before any legislative action is taken. The…
Report, Other
This paper discusses three key policy areas regarding incarcerated mothers and fathers in Oregon: prison nurseries and community-based residential parenting programs; foster care laws; and parenting programs for incarcerated fathers. After reviewing background and best practices associated with policy implementation in each area, the paper explores ways in which policymakers, stakeholders, and advocates might address each policy area in Oregon, and suggests the formation of a legislative task force to address these issues. It emphasizes the need for increased policy attention to be focused on…
Discute cómo los padres de crianza y adoptivos pueden ayudar a niños y adolescentes que han experimentado abuso sexual. Ofrece información básica sobre qué es el abuso sexual y enlaces a otra información para ayudar a los padres a aprender sobre el tema. La hoja informativa incluye sugerencias acerca de cómo establecer directrices para la seguridad y privacidad familiar, como también sobre cuándo se debe buscar ayuda profesional y dónde buscar tal ayuda. Discusses how foster and adoptive parents can help children and adolescents who have experienced sexual abuse. It provides basic information…
Analiza la naturaleza del trauma (particularmente trauma causado por abuso o negligencia), sus efectos en niños y jóvenes y las maneras de ayudar a un niño que ha experimentado trauma. Los padres biológicos o de crianza que no entienden las consecuencias del trauma pueden malinterpretar el comportamiento de su hijo, y sus intentos de lidiar con un comportamiento problemático pueden no ser efectivos y, en algunos casos, hasta pueden causar daño. Al aumentar su comprensión sobre el trauma, los padres biológicos y de crianza pueden apoyar mejor la sanación de su hijo, de la relación padre-hijo,…
With the rise in heroin and other opioid use, more relatives are raising children because the parents have died, are incarcerated, are using drugs, are in treatment or are otherwise unable to care for their children, according to the report. After years of decline, the numbers of children in foster care are increasing. Experts say the opioid epidemic is responsible for this trend. Alcohol and drug use are the most common reasons for removing children from their homes, next to neglect. More than 1/3 of all children placed in foster care because of parental alcohol or drug use are placed…
This report begins by urging support for the reauthorization of the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), legislation that will encourage communities to engage juvenile offenders in programs proven to help steer them away from a life of crime. The report then reviews the current situation resulting from placing juvenile offenders in residential facilities with other troubled youth, including a cost of more than $5 billion to keep juvenile offenders in facilities. The benefits of providing community services and family coaching to juvenile offenders is discussed, and…
Through this issue brief, young people who are in, or have been in, foster care offer their insights and aspirations to help guide the actions of child welfare systems as they seek to provide more normal experiences for these youth. The brief begins by explaining new provisions in the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act that promote normalcy, including the requirement for States to implement a “reasonable and prudent parent” standard that allows caregivers to make more daily decisions for young people in their care; a mandate that child welfare systems engage all young…
