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Question of the Week
Q: We are working with a youth who would like to reenroll in community college, but has incurred student debt from when he enrolled and received the Pell Grant, and then dropped out and did not pay the financial aid back. He reports that the debt has gone into collections. Will he be able to reapply for financial aid? Any advice on how to deal with the debt so he can reenroll in school? For the answer, follow this LINK.
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State Releases Guidance to Counties on Child Care Bridge Program for Foster Children
The California Department of Social Services has released guidance to counties about administering the Emergency Child Care Bridge Program for Foster Children established by the 2017-18 budget trailer bill. The Bridge Program addresses lack of child care as a barrier for potential families seeking to take in a foster child, and for foster youth who are parents themselves.
The 2017-18 state budget allocated $15.5 million to provide eligible families with a time-limited monthly payment or voucher for child care, and a child care navigator to assist with finding a child care provider, securing a subsidized child care placement if eligible, completing child care program applications, and developing a plan for long-term child care. The funding additionally covers trauma-informed care training and coaching to child care programs participating in the Bridge Program.
Eligible families include resource families and families that have a child placed with them in an emergency or for a compelling reason; licensed foster family homes or certified family homes; approved homes of relatives or nonrelative extended family members; and parents under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court (both minors and nonminors).
Counties that intend to participate in the Bridge Program starting January 1, 2018 through June 30, 2018 are instructed to submit a plan to the Child Care Programs Bureau by November 30, 2017. To read the ACL, which includes a list of minimum allocations by county and a form for the county plan, follow this LINK. To participate in a conference call to review the All County Letter for the Emergency Child Care Bridge Program for Foster Children, follow this LINK.
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New Year, New Law: SB 612
Over the next several weeks, JBAY will feature a law that passed during the 2016-17 legislative session in each newsletter. The first law that will be discussed is Senate Bill 612 (Mitchell), which clarified and updated the Transitional Housing Placement Plus Foster Care (THP+FC).
The interim regulations that THP+FC is currently operating under were established in 2012 and built on the Transitional Housing Placement Program (THPP) regulations for minors ages 16-17, which created restrictions and obstacles in serving non-minors. SB 612 establishes that THP+FC is a program separate from THPP by authorizing transitional housing placement providers to operate either a “Transitional Housing Placement program for minor foster children” or a “Transitional Housing Placement program for non-minor dependents.”
Further, SB 612 permits THP+FC programs to allow NMDs to co-sign apartment rental agreements. The bill also authorizes a certified family home or resource family of a Foster Family Agency (FFA) to be concurrently certified as a host family, if the home is certified by the same organization licensed to operate the THP+FC program and FFA.
SB 612 also requires that a program manager possess a master’s degree or higher in specified areas and a minimum of two years of experience in a public or private child welfare social services setting, or other equivalent education and experience, however authorizes California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to grant exceptions.
Lastly, SB 612 requires CDSS to adopt THP+FC regulations that include an expansion of the provisions related to the persons with whom a participant may reside. The law goes into effect January 1, 2017. To read the bill language, follow this LINK. To find a THP+FC program in your area, follow this LINK.
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What Happens to Children When Parents Are Deported? Attend Next Children's Advocates' Roundtable
With the Trump administration, millions of unauthorized immigrant parents living in the United States live in constant fear of being deported, their children subjected to the trauma of deportation to a foreign country, or of separating from their parents and sometimes entering the child welfare system.
To learn more about this topic, attend the next Children’s Advocates’ Roundtable, “Immigration and the Impact on Children,” on Thursday, November 30th from 12:00 to 3:00 p.m. at the California Endowment in Sacramento. This roundtable will feature an expert panel to discuss aspects of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the health impacts of deportation on children. Those interested in attending should RSVP to Melanie Delgado by November 27th. To download a flyer for the roundtable, follow this LINK.
To learn more about how the Trump Administration’s actions impact families and children, review a recent web seminar hosted by John Burton Advocates for Youth, featuring the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. This webinar also discussed protections for immigrant families in the child welfare system, including Senate Bill 1064 (de León), the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Parental Interests Directive and Confidentiality of Juvenile Records; and provided an overview of immigration relief options for children and families, including updates on Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and DACA.
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New Guide Answers the Question: What is Housing First for Youth?
What is Housing First for youth? How is it the same as the approach for older homeless individuals and what features are distinct? These questions are more an address by The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness and A Way Home Canada in their guide, “THIS is Housing First for Youth: A Program Model Guide.”
As the guide explains, Housing First is an approach to quickly and successfully connect individuals and families experiencing homelessness to permanent housing without preconditions and barriers to entry, such as sobriety, treatment or service participation requirements.
Housing First for Youth (HF4Y) is an adaptation of Housing First, based on the understanding that the causes and conditions of youth homelessness are distinct from adults, and therefore the solutions must be youth-focused. HF4Y is grounded in the belief that all young people have a right to housing and that those who have experienced homelessness will do better and recover more effectively if they are first provided with housing.
The new guide revises and refines core principles, includes an expanded discussion of HF4Y as a program vs. philosophy, and provides deep discussion of models of accommodation and support. It also includes new sections on service delivery, outlining how the program should work on the ground, data, and case studies. To download the 2017 guide, follow this LINK. To download the 2014 guide, follow this LINK.
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