Jim Casey Initiative
JIM CASEY YOUTH OPPORTUNITIES INITIATIVE
North Carolina stakeholders began engaging in the Jim Casey Initiative in 2020 to explore a possible partnership.
In 2021, Children’s Home Society and the Strong Able Youth Speaking Out (SaySo) program became the lead agency and began engaging stakeholders.
The Uniting Stakeholders for Change workgroup developed and recruited stakeholders that had interest in increasing permanency outcomes for adolescents. Our workgroup specifically addresses placement stability and length of time in care as two areas that need improvement to assist our adolescents with achieving permanency.
Uniting Stakeholders for Change is interested in looking at both areas with a racial equity lens to specifically focus on increasing outcomes for adolescents of color.
During 2021, the workgroup developed the pilot and chose pilot sites and in 2022 our focus was on implementation. Our implementation process focuses on increasing knowledge and skills sets of professionals and caregivers working with this population through a series of training.
In addition, our group has started working on the development of a LINKS toolkit to promote and support engagement with adolescents through the LINKS program.
If you are interested in joining our work please contact Erica Burgess @ eburgess8017@gmail.com.
ONLINE TRAINING ON ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT
This series focuses on how caregivers can support healthy development in adolescence. It also explores ways to support youth whose development has been disrupted by trauma. Participants will learn about brain development at this age, developmental milestones for teens, how to promote teens’ healthy development and how attachment and parenting styles influence the outcomes teens experience.
VIEW OUR RECENT TRAININGs:
Integrating Adolescent Brain Development Into Child Welfare Practice with Older Youth
LEARN FROM ROCKY - FORMER FOSTER YOUTH AND ADVOCATE
Learn from Rocky- Former Foster Youth and Advocate
LEARN About adult guardianship
Adult guardianship is a legal process. It exists to protect our most vulnerable citizens, including people who have intellectual and developmental disabilities, mental health conditions, traumatic brain injury, significant cognitive impairment due to advanced age, and for youth in foster care. But guardianship takes away people’s right to make the most basic decisions for themselves—such as where they will live and what they will do in the course of a day. Guardianship should be considered as a last resort — a less restrictive alternative may work best for you. Learn more by visiting the link below.