Featured
Saying Goodbye to My Friend Becky Weichhand
On Nov. 12, I paid a visit to Becky Weichhand, a friend and colleague battling a terrible sort of cancer. It was a rainy night in Washington, D.C. I alighted from my rideshare and ran […]
Fostering Media Connections
Featured
Beyond Family First: Congress Should Boost Funding to Prevent Child Abuse and Neglect
Last week, national TV news was filled with images of newly elected Members of Congress descending on Capitol Hill for their “freshman orientation.” My hope is that this change – and momentum on the heels […]
Analysis
Foster Care, Hamilton and America’s Devolving Compact with Vulnerable People
On February 9, President Donald Trump signed into law the most significant reform to foster care since the federal government got into that business. This fundamental re-ordering of the government’s role in child welfare extends […]
Child Welfare
AUDIO: Child Deaths Test L.A.’s Recently Installed Child Protection Chief
Seven months into his role leading the nation’s largest child protection system, Bobby Cagle is facing the kind of high-profile child deaths that can drive foster care numbers up and leave political appointees like him […]
Featured
Brothers, Separated by Violence and Trump Immigration Policy, May Be Reunited Soon
In the age of “zero tolerance,” even the family members of America’s most dedicated citizens aren’t protected. Take the case of a 28-year-old American citizen from Honduras named Suamhirs Piraino-Guzman and his little brother Yordi. […]
Featured
To Fend off Family First Act, L.A. Hires Lobbyist Who Helped Write It
In mid-April, former Senate Finance staffer-turned-lobbyist Becky Shipp sent an e-blast to dozens of key child welfare insiders inviting them to an intimate conversation focused on health care and child welfare policy. The named participants […]
Los Angeles
New UCLA Research Center Will Focus on Preventing Entries into Foster Care, Needs of Foster Youth
Thanks to a $10 million philanthropic donation, the University of California, Los Angeles will establish a new research center dedicated to addressing the complex needs of children in foster care, particularly related to the educational […]
News
Lawsuit: Lesbian Couple Who Did Not ‘Mirror the Holy Family’ Denied Chance to Foster Refugee Kids
Catholic Charities of Fort Worth (CCFW), a Texas faith-based organization that helps find foster care placements for refugee children, recently sought out the help of Fatma Marouf, a 41-year-old law professor who heads up the […]
Education
Scarcity Pits Education Against Foster Care in Rhode Island
Earlier this month, a Rhode Island state senator introduced a bill that would compel the state’s foster care agency to split the cost of transporting foster youth to school with the education system. This is […]
Analysis
Trump’s Top Child Welfare Official: Family First a Good First Step, but True Prevention is Key
Last week, Congress passed and the President signed into law the Family First Prevention Services Act. It is an encompassing and complex piece of legislation that will take some time for states to figure out […]