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Editor's Note
Things are heating up on Capitol Hill: the Senate Finance Committee is moving on it's SCHIP reauthorization proposal (despite the Bush Administration's opposition to a cigarette tax hike), a Ways and Means Subcommitee is reviewing foster care medical and mental health services, and the full House has passed the College Cost Reduction Act. No Child Left Behind and the Graduation Promise Act are also on the Congressional agenda.
To help organizations make the best use of new media and technologies, the Kaiser Family Foundation is hosting a July 19 "Digital Opportunity" forum. Check out this week's "Tools" section for more resources for your work from The Finance Project and The Forum for Youth Investment, and from the National League of Cities. State leaders should also check out the Building Partnerships for Youth professional development grant in the Reconnecting Youth section.
Keep up the good work, everyone!
Caitlin Johnson
weekly@connectforkids.org
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| Reconnecting Youth
 Core Principles for Engaging Young People in Community Change
Engaging young people as partners in community change is a compelling idea -- but translating it into effective practice requires focused attention to a range issues. This Forum for Youth Investment paper looks at important but simple principles for research and practice that can help schools, youth groups and community organizations strengthen youth leadership and youth involvement.
 Beyond City Limits: Cross-System Collaboration to Reengage Disconnected Youth
It takes more than a single agency or public system to meet the needs of disconnected youth and help them reconnect to school, work and the right supports and opportunities. Collaboration among city, school, county and state agencies is essential. This National League of Cities' Institute for Youth, Education and Families report has eight case studies exploring how city leaders can launch these collaborative efforts -- and what makes them work in the long run.
Lead a State Team for Positive Youth Development
Are you a state-level leader interested in collaborating to put positive youth development concepts to work in your area? Apply for this year-long professional development program from Building Partnerships for Youth. Teams of four to six youth and adults will network with peers from across the country and access a range of helpful resources. Applications are now online. The work begins in February 2008. For more information, please contact Karen Hoffman Tepper at karenht@ag.arizona.edu.
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| Child Welfare
 Hearing on Health Care for Children in Foster Care (July 19)
The Ways and Means Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support will hold a hearing on what needs to be done to ensure that children in foster care have access to timely evaluations and critical medical and mental health services. A recent U.S. Department of Health and Human Services study found that child welfare agencies failed to ensure adequate services in more than 30 percent of the cases reviewed -- and only one state met federal standards for service provision. The Subcommittee seeks submissions for the record. (The hearing will be held at 10 a.m. Eastern in room B-318 Rayburn House Office Building.)
Solutions for Cities in Transitioning Foster Youth Audio Conference (July 25)
New Ways to Work and the Municipal Network for Disconnected Youth are hosting this 12:30 p.m. Eastern call to help cities take the lead in transitional foster youth programs. Topics will include overcoming barriers, incorporating housing and employment programs into plans, re-engaging youth who have dropped out, and data analysis. To register, send complete contact information to becerra@nlc.org by July 23.
Listen Online: Making the Child Welfare System Work for Older Children
Materials are now online from the June 14 Chapin Hall Thursday's Child conference on foster care and older children. Listen to experts discuss the likelihood that older children in foster care will be reunited with families, adopted or age out; preparing youth for adulthood regardless of their permanency goals; and the benefits of post-adoption services for children and families.
 Child Protection: Using Research to Improve Policy and Practice
This Brookings Institution book reports on the results of the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being, the first nationally representative study of children reported to authorities as suspected victims of abuse or neglect and the public programs designed to protect them. It includes a broader policy context.
Save the Date (July 26): to launch the book, Brookings will hold a discussion of parent training and the child welfare system. |
| Education News
Students Benefit from Supplemental Education Under No Child Left Behind
A new RAND study finds that students in under-performing schools who received supplemental educational services like tutoring and remediation showed statistically significant gains in reading and math. Those who transferred to better-performing schools in the district -- as allowed under NCLB if a school does not make progress -- did not show significant improvement (although the authors caution that data on this were limited).
In Congress: the Graduation Promise Act
As Congress considers how to reauthorize No Child Left Behind, four national organizations -- the Alliance for Excellent Education, Naitonal Council of LaRaza, Center for American Progress, and Jobs for the future -- urge the passage of the Graduation Promise Act, to improve low-performing high schools and reduce dropout rates.
For more on graduation and college readiness, check out the Forum for Youth Investment's Ready by 21 initiative.
 Web Chat: Supreme Court's Impact on School Policies (July 19)
On July 19 at 3 p.m. Eastern, Education Week is bringing together legal experts for a live Web chat about the policies that schools will need to change based on U.S. Supreme Court decisions issued in the past year - including the most recent decisions on student speech and using race as a factor in assigning students to schools. Submit questions in advance.
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 Higher Ed
Houses Passes the College Cost Reduction Act
The bill cuts some $19 billion from lender subsidies and "redirecting the funds into college financial aid programs," according to the National Parent Teacher Association (PTA). It also increases Pell Grants for low-income students, reduces student loan interest rates, and lowers monthly payment caps for all borrowers. It's not clear when the Senate will act, or whether a similar bill can pass. (Thanks to our friends at PTA's "This Week in Washington" newsletter for this information. You can subscribe online.)
Squeeze Play: Parents and the Public Weigh in on College
A recent public opinion survey found that most Americans think college is the key to a brighter future -- but a growing number worry that the opportunity may not extend to all qualified students. Costs were a major barrier, with 78 percent of respondents agreeing that students borrow too much.
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| Health and Health Care
SCHIP Moves in Senate, Questions Remain
The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) is a popular bipartisan program that provides health care coverage to about 4 million children. Congress has to renew it this year. The Senate Finance Committee's bipartisan reauthorization proposal would raise the cigarette tax to $1 per pack in order to give SCHIP an additional $35 billion. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) calls this a good start but says $50 billion is needed to reach some 6 million children who are eligible but unenrolled (of the roughly 9 million kids who currently lack insurance coverage in the U.S.).
 More on SCHIP, from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities:
 State-By-State SCHIP Fact Sheets
The American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Academy for State Health Policy recently released a set of state-by-state fact sheets to inform legislators and the public about. SCHIP -- including: enrollment, eligibility, benefits and related issues.
 Kaiser Launches Health Care '08
Calling health care a top domestic issue in the 2008 presidential election, The Kaiser Family Foundation has launched a new Website featuring analysis of health policy issues, public opinion surveys, news, candidate interviews and campaign coverage. You can also sign up for a weekly email.
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| Tools to Promote and Sustain Your Work
The Digital Opportunity: Using New Media for Public Education Campaigns (July 19)
 How can nonprofits or government agencies tap into new media trends for marketing and communications? Find out in this Ad Council and Kaiser Family Foundation for a lunchtime forum in Washington, D.C. at 12 p.m. Eastern. Topics will include social networking, user-generated content, gaming and understanding the youth perspective. RSVP is required. Contact Theresa Boston at tboston@kff.org or (650) 854-9400.
 Successful Public-Private Partnerships for Youth Programs: Audio Conference (July 25)
Creative public-private partnerships can help sustain youth programs. What makes a successful partnership? Tune in to this audio conference, sponsored by The Finance Project and The Forum for Youth Investment, for a discussion of the principles and characteristics of partnerships, and how two promising initiatives are working to improve outcomes for youth and their communities. Time: 2 to 3 p.m. Eastern. Register online. Questions? Contact sbhat@financeproject.org.
Background Materials:
Cities: Apply for Children and Youth Plans Technical Assistance
Through NLC (with support from MetLife), cities can apply for help creating comprehensive agendas, youth master plans or specific issue plans. Deadline: August 10. For more information, contact Leon Andrews andrews@nlc.org. |
 From the Field
From Personal Experience to Action in Ohio
Ohioan Cindy L. Slavens writes to tell us that she has been working with State Representative Robert Hagan on a suicide prevention program bill that would require local Boards of Education to develop a policy for offering suicide prevention services for all students in grades 5 through 12.
She writes, "My personal experiences include having a child with a mood disorder, who at one point expressed the desire to complete suicide. Being an educated parent, I knew how to react in a crisis situation. My fear then became, 'What about parents who did not have those tools nor the educational background/training I do?'"
Slavens circulated the draft throughout the state to get feedback. The bill does not require specific funding for the prevention plan. Slavens calls this "a beginning for safety and well being of our children."
For more information or to contact Slavens, send a note to info@connectforkids.org.
Dads & Daughters Seeks Executive Director
Our friends at DADs are looking for a full-time Executive Director
based near New York City. If you know someone who would be interested
in this strategic leadership position, let them know -- but do it
quickly: the application period is set to end today (July 18)! |
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