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to Florida Foster Care Review!

FFCR staff member mentors Florida Youth SHINE's Miami Chapter
Cody details foster care placement issues and recommendations at Florida Youth SHINE's quarterly meeting in Tampa.

 

Cody and Colesha, both young adults studying at Miami Dade College, are members of the Miami Chapter of Florida Youth SHINE (FYS), an advocacy organization led by youth currently or formerly in foster care. FFCR's Marissa Leichter and Robert Latham from the University of Miami Law School are FYS mentors dedicated to providing guidance and support to the FYS Miami Chapter members as they advocate for children in foster care in their communities.


Marissa and Robert recently traveled with Cody and Colesha to the FYS quarterly meeting in Tampa where they joined current and former foster youth from across the state to discuss the issues that affect them most. Elections were held during the meeting to choose new leadership, and Cody was chosen as the statewide secretary! He will help coordinate the organization's statewide strategy for Children's Week 2016, where FYS will speak to state legislators about issues that affect youth in foster care, like discrimination against LGBTQ youth, Extended Foster Care adjustments, and tuition waivers, to name a few. 


The next FYS Miami chapter meeting will be held at the FFCR offices in August.

Success Story: Connecting children with the services they need

 

Karen and Carlos, ages 10 and 12, were briefly removed from their home due to domestic violence and their father's substance abuse. A shelter hearing was scheduled to determine whether or not the children should be placed in foster care. The judge decided that Karen and Carlos could return to live with their mother. The mother then took Karen and Carlos to live with her at her sister's house in Tampa, and the family was placed under state supervision.
When the children came before FFCR's Citizen Review Panel (CRP) last month, we discovered that their mother had moved out of their aunt's home to live with a new boyfriend. Since the aunt was not listed as a custodian, she couldn't legally take care of Karen and Carlos, nor could she take them to their required medical, vision and dental appointments or act on their behalves in an emergency. Furthermore, the children's mother had been taking them to stay overnight at homes not approved by the court. The CRP was also concerned about the lack of documentation regarding the children's services.

As a result of these issues, the CRP recommended that a home study be completed on the aunt so she could be approved as the children's legal custodian, and that the children be taken to complete their medical, vision and dental exams. The court accepted the CRP's recommendations and the CRP scheduled a Post Judicial Review for 45 days later. By the time of the Post Judicial Review, the agency had already fulfilled all of the court's orders.
Back to school supply drive  
for foster and children  

The South Florida Foster and Adoptive Parent Association (SFFAPA) is collecting back-to-school items for foster and adoptive children. These supplies will be given away at their annual drive on Saturday, August 8th. Please call FFCR staff member Yani Sanchez at 305.206.9061 by August 5th if you are interested in donating school supplies. 

If you want to donate but don't have time to shop, you can buy a Supply Pack online!
News and Community 
Guardian Ad Litem Newsletter, June-August 2015

Youth SHINE Newsletter, April-June 2015

Report: Promoting normalcy for children and youth in foster care

DCF: Nearly 1,400 new foster homes licensed in 2014 

Potential wins for foster youth in No Child Left Behind rewrite

How childhood trauma could be mistaken for ADHD

Medicaid continues to improve its coverage for children with disabilities


Foster Youth Weekly, FFCR's Online Newspaper
Like being in the know? FFCR curates Foster Youth Weekly, an online paper focusing on resources useful to and supportive of youth in foster care and young adults recently in care. Check it out for employment information and more.

To receive it in your inbox, be sure to subscribe!


 

Be the safety net abused and neglected children and youth need. Donate or volunteer today.

About Florida Foster Care Review 

Established in 1989 by a United Way committee, Florida Foster Care Review promotes the safety, well-being and long-term success of abused and neglected children in our community. Through special recruitment and training, volunteers review cases of youth in foster care to ensure they are safe and receiving needed services, intensively promoting positive outcomes. Together with child welfare professionals, Florida Foster Care Review also works to ensure that children and youth leaving the foster care system have someone they can call family. Through all its programs, Florida Foster Care Review tracks and analyzes outcomes in order to advocate for system changes that improve children's lives.