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Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare Integration Certificate Program/Breakthrough Series Collaborative
The Georgetown University Center for Juvenile Justice Reform (CJJR) and Casey Family Programs are partnering to test innovative ideas to improve and reform the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. This program begins with a five day certificate program in July for teams from seven jurisdictions. The teams will then return home and prepare for a Breakthrough Series Collaborative (BSC) project on juvenile justice and child welfare Integration. The BSC is a quality improvement method designed to enable teams to make dramatic improvements over a short period of time by filling the gap between what has been identified as best practice and what is actually practiced in the field. The teams will appoint interagency teams in their home jurisdictions to initiate strategies and tests to improve outcomes for children in both systems. The interagency teams will spend the next year engaging in a series of learning sessions and action periods.
» Get more information and apply.
America’s Promise Alliance Launches National Dropout Prevention Campaign
On the 25th anniversary of the landmark education report, A Nation at Risk, the America’s Promise Alliance warns that “our educational system remains in peril—with more than one-third of high school students dropping out before graduation.” On April 1, 2008, the Alliance launched a two-year national campaign that will include more than 100 summits nationwide to prepare youth for college, work, and life.
» Get more information about the campaign.
The Importance of Creating Human Resources Standards for Family Organizations
As family organizations develop beyond the grassroots level, the importance of creating human resources (HR) standards becomes vital. A recent topic on the National Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health Listserv focused on separations of employment and the issues surrounding how to protect your organization from disgruntled employees. This document summarizes the strategies that were discussed and offers additional resources that could be of assistance to family organizations that are working to develop their own HR standards.
» Read more about this issue.
New Blog Will Promote Juvenile Justice Connections
The U.S. Department of Justice's National Institute of Corrections (NIC) has established a blog to facilitate the exchange of information among juvenile justice professionals. Juvenile Justice Connection will feature news from NIC, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and other Federal, state, and local sources, including information about professional training opportunities and juvenile justice-related research. The blog also offers RSS and other syndication feeds.
» Access the blog.
Chartbook Reports New Finding from the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs
This new Chartbook highlights major findings on the prevalence of special health care needs among children, both nationally and within each state, and on access to and satisfaction with health care among children with special health care needs (CSHCN) and their families. The survey, sponsored by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau and carried out by the National Center for Health Statistics, provides information about six core outcomes used to measure progress toward the Healthy People 2010 objectives to increase the proportion of states that have integrated service systems for CSHCN.
» View the Chartbook.
New Generation of Tobacco Products Threatens Efforts to Reduce Tobacco Use
This press release from the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids documents the new and “insidious” ways that the tobacco industry is using a lack of federal regulations to their advantage in order to entice children and youth to use tobacco products. The release sites examples such as cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, and cigars being introduced in an array of candy, fruit and alcohol flavors. The article warns that these new tactics are threatening efforts to reduce underage tobacco use in the United States.
» Access this article.
New Drug and Alcohol Services Information System (DASIS) Report: Adolescent Admissions Reporting Inhalants: 2006
Data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) have shown that the primary abusers of inhalants are adolescents aged 12 to 17. One major finding is that there was a higher likelihood of co-occurring substance abuse and psychiatric disorders among adolescents entering substance abuse treat¬ment who reported inhalants than among those who did not report inhalants. This finding calls for more prevention activities around the use of inhalants.
» Access the report (PDF).
Homeboy Industries Provides Successful Alternatives to Gang Life
Homeboy Industries, which owns a group of small businesses in Los Angeles, is demonstrating that there is life after being involved in gangs. Through Homeboy Industries support, former gang members are employed running a successful t-shirt company, bakery, café, and maintenance company. The revenues from these services are being used to subsidize free community services including mental health therapy, housing assistance, job development, counseling, and tattoo removal. While involved in the program, participants receive valuable mentoring and training to help them become employable in the commercial marketplace.
» Learn more about Homeboy Industries.