Foster Quality Assurance Passes the House
The “Children’s Assurance of Quality Foster Care” package of bills, HB 5121, 5122, and 5123, have passed the State House with an overwhelming majority. The bills will now move to the State Senate
Representatives Jim Runestad (R-White Lake), Terry Sabo (D-Muskegon), and Patricia Hornberger (R-Chesterfield Twp) were the bill’s lead sponsors. If your representatives sponsored or voted for the package, call and thank them for supporting common-sense foster care reform!
Capitol Corner: Tax Reform Plan Fails Michigan Kids and Families
The House of Representatives and Senate have passed a tax reform package that not only misses an opportunity to thoughtfully support children and families through the tax code, but also threatens nothing short of drastic cuts to essential programs and services at both the federal and state level.
Read Mr. Gillard’s Capitol Corner here
Leading for Kinship Caregivers
Thousands of grandparents and other relatives assume the care of their child relatives without a foster care license and with little support from the state. What do they need, and what can be done to support them? Our intern, Sherry Boroto, explored the issues in kinship care and how other states are lending kinship caregivers a hand, and has written about the experience leading kinship care efforts at Michigan’s Children.
Read Sherry’s blog here, and make sure you check out our latest “Critical Issues in Foster Care: Kinship Caregivers”
Youth Opportunities: Prevention and Foster Care
Michigan’s Children continues to fight for policies that prevent adverse childhood experiences and postsecondary pathways for youth who have experienced foster care. Here are some youth voice and experience opportunities related to that work.
The CDC Violence and Prevention division is working to increase awareness, understanding, and commitment to violence prevention with its new “Tell Us About Your Hero” video series, highlighting people performing extraordinary acts of heroism to prevent violence types such as child abuse and neglect, bullying, or could be crosscutting about preventing multiple violence types.
Learn more about contributing to the series here
Youth in or formerly in foster care touch many systems, from MYOI to juvenile justice to homeless and dropout recovery programs. If you work in any of these areas and others, please share this incredible opportunity for youth for current and former foster youth to intern for a member of Congress in Washington, D.C. and have a real impact federal child welfare policy. The application deadline isJanuary 15.
