PathWays PA Policy Blog

The Foster Child Opportunity Act seeks to ensure that abused and neglected immigrant children have an opportunity to obtain the legal immigrant status to which they are entitled prior to aging out of the foster care system. Immigrant children involved in the child welfare system are often eligible for special forms of immigration relief, including Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) but early identification is critical given that a child can lose SIJS eligibility once the court terminates jurisdiction over the youth. More often than not, court and child welfare officials are unaware of immigration relief options available, leaving these children at risk of deportation at any time and drastically limiting their educational and work opportunities when they "age out" of the system. Sign-on here . The deadline is 6PM tomorrow! Email Shadi Houshyar atshadih@firstfocus.net to sign your organization on to the letter.

The  Uninterrupted Scholars Act , passed over the summer by Congress, addresses inconsistent provisions of federal law. It now allows the caseworker legally responsible for the care and protection of the child to gain access to the educational records. They may re-disclose information to other agencies only for the purpose of meeting the child's educational needs. Additionally, education records may be released pursuant to court order without notice to a parent when a parent is a party to a court proceeding in a dependency matter. Nonparty parents would still have to be notified before records could be released. With this charge, foster children will no longer face the prospect of repeating classes or even grades due to undisclosed records and allow them to continue with their normal educational path. The President is expected to sign the bill in the coming days.

SUPPORT EARNED SICK DAYS IN PHILADELPHIA The common cold. Chicken pox. The stomach flu. Besides making you sick and risking your health, these illnesses have something else in common: they could make you lose your job . In Philadelphia, over 200,000 workers have no access to earned sick days when they or their family members come down with an illness. Whether a child is running a fever or a waitress has been hit by a truck door on her way to work, the choice for these employees is the same: to either put someone's health at risk or to jeopardize their own economic security. But there is a solution. Cities across the country have passed bills ensuring that all workers have the ability to earn sick days on the job. Giving access to earned sick days: saves cities money in lower health and emergency room costs   saves businesses money through higher productivity and lower turnover  saves the financial security of workers who otherwise had to risk their jo...

Passage of the Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act means that states will be better able to invest in initiatives that help improve child safety and family stability as well as move children from foster care into safe permanent homes. The law reauthorizes two important child welfare programs and incorporates improvements to ensure that children can safely remain with their own parents or be supported by other caring adults. The law renews child welfare waiver authority to allow more states to invest in new ways of serving children at risk of abuse and neglect. In addition, the law establishes a process to create child welfare data standards that can help drive further improvement to foster care systems. The Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act is the second major piece of child welfare reform that has become law in recent years. The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act in 2008 also provided significant progress in e...

Students at the Achieving Independence Center, where PathWays PA provides services, were honored for overcoming the tremendous obstacles that occur when aging out of the foster care system. Without a strong support system, young men and women, leaving foster care are more likely to experience unemployment, dependency on public assistance and homelessness. If you would like to learn more or mentor youth aging out, please call PathWays PA at 215-574-9194.

(Thanks to The Advocates Agenda and Cathy Palm for this post.)   Welfare Reform Act of 2011 Unveiled Caps spending on means-tested programs (e.g., Head Start, Title IV-E Foster Care, TANF, SSI, EITC, etc.) March 17th - Earlier today members of the Republican Study Committee (RSC) , which began the 112th Congress with the Spending Reduction Act and a push for at least $100 billion in immediate cuts to federal spending – unveiled the Welfare Reform Act of 2011 . The legislation is being championed by RSC Chairman Jim Jordan as well as Congressmen Tim Scott and Scott Garrett . In unveiling the legislation they cited a speech from President Franklin Roosevelt in 1935 that “launched the American welfare state.” At that time FDR said, “Continued dependence upon relief induces a spiritual and moral disintegration fundamentally destructive to the national fibre. To dole out relief in this way is to administer a narcotic, a subtle destroyer of the human spirit…” RSC offi...

The rights of children and young adults in foster care were protected with the passage of two bills by the Pennsylvania legislature. The Children in Foster Care Act and Senate Bill 1360 address obstacles in current foster care and adoption legislation that can keep children and families from enjoying the full benefit of their rights. The Children in Foster Care Act was passed by unanimous vote and if signed into law by Governor Rendell as expected, will ensure that foster children, parents, and caseworkers are presented with a comprehensive and easy-to-understand document outlining the rights and freedoms afforded to foster children under state laws and regulations. The Act mandates that the document will be explained by caseworkers to foster children when they are placed with a foster family. The majority of children in foster care are not aware of their rights, and therefore do not know when their rights are violated. The hope is that this act will increase foster children’s awa...

In the last few days available for the House to consider bills, an important piece of legislation promoting child adoption remains on the table. Senate Bill 1360 , a cost-neutral bill which provides for voluntary post-adoption contact agreements, still needs approval. Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children has a sign-on letter you can use to support this bill today. The policies proposed in SB 1360 (which have already been adopted in 23 other states) are not new. Many children in foster care, especially youth, are reluctant to be adopted because they don't want to lose all contact with close birth relatives. About ten years ago the federal government encouraged states to amend adoption law to encourage the use of voluntary post-adoption agreements; and the Joint State Government Commission made a similar recommendation to the General Assembly. These agreements both promote the adoption of children from foster care and provide children the opportunity to maintain appropriate ...

The Pennsylvania Council of Children, Youth and Family Services Invites You to a Community Forum on the Future of Child Protection and Prevention Services for Philadelphia’s Children, Youth and Their Families Wednesday, July 14, 2010 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania 1709 Benjamin Franklin Parkway Philadelphia, PA Participants include elected officials, public and private agency leadership, child advocates, foster parents, and consumers. Discussion will focus on fiscal and environmental challenges in delivering services to our city’s most vulnerable children and youth. RSVP to Southeast@pccyfs.org . Please contact Margaret Zukoski with any questions at 215-931-4482.

Every year in Pennsylvania, more than 31,000 young people are served through the foster care system. For those young people, the time spent in foster care may be confusing and scary as they go from day to day without knowing who will care for them and where they will be living. Foster care is also confusing for the birth parents and caregivers involved, as they may not fully understand their rights and responsibilities. The combined uncertainty makes it even more difficult to support children and keep them safe. Much of the uncertainly stems from the fact that children and their families must know and understand requirements that are scattered among various laws and regulations. When there are issues or questions, knowing where to find the information can be difficult. In Pennsylvania, the Children in Foster Care Act (HB 2338) has been introduced to take steps towards ensuring that children and their caregivers are fully informed. The bill will provide easy-to-understand infor...

The Achieving Independence Center (AIC) wants caring and supportive adults willing to build a friendship with a foster care youth. You can be that big brother or sister a youth in foster care needs by sharing your life experiences, time, and friendship. Having a shoulder to lean on when times get tough helps young people stay focused and not lose hope. Whether it is providing them with caring support, friendship, or helping them with their aspirations (personal and professional), the AIC Mentoring Program can match you with a young person between the ages of 16-21 who could benefit from your knowledge and experience. The AIC is a “one-stop” center designed to assist young people ages 16-21 achieve their future goals of self-sufficiency. The AIC is dedicated to providing support and real life tools for youth who want to make an investment in their future! Help a youth build their self-esteem and achieve their personal goals. You make a difference by simply getting involved. For additio...

Thanks to everyone who attended our April 22 Forum, the Economic Stimulus Impact on Children, Child Welfare, and Families! For those of you who couldn’t make it to hear our speakers - Estelle Richman, Secretary of Public Welfare, John Sciamanna, Co-Director of Government Affairs of the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA), and Christine Balka, Director of Child Care and Budget Policy with Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY) - here are the highlights.. Secretary Richman’s compelling presentation included information on how the federal stimulus money allowed DPW to maintain programs that otherwise would have been cut, such as Pay for Performance. At the same time, she expressed concerns about replacing that funding when the stimulus money is no longer available. John Sciamanna compared what support will be given for Child Welfare programs in Pennsylvania with other states under the federal stimulus package. He also spoke about CWLA’s goal to reestablish the White House...