E-Kinnections

A Newsletter of the

Kinship Care Resource Center (KCRC)

A Community Program of the MSU School of Social Work

August, 2014

Welcome to the end of summer and the beginning of autumn,

This is the time of year when we soak up the last rays of summer and begin to prepare for the earlier days ahead. One of those preparations is getting children ready to go back to school. Included in this newsletter is information on how you can help families, resources and legislation that you might be interested in. Enjoy the last of summer and topics on how to get ready for fall. In addition, learning isn't just for children and youth we've included training opportunities for you as well as information.

Speaking of change, please help me welcome our new interns to KCRC. Krystle Preston has been with us since summer and will be here for the school year. Krystle is in the macro course of MSU's advanced masters of social work program. Jessica Duncan is our summer intern in the clinical course of MSU's advanced masters program. Welcome ladies to our dedicated kinship care team.

Sincerely,

- KCRC Staff

Is there a kinship topic you want us to cover more in-depth in a future newsletter? If so, let us know by e-mailing us at kinship@msu.edu.

Professional Training Opportunities

Child Welfare League of America

National Kinship Conference-building communities of caring for children and families- New Orleans, Louisiana- September 17-19 2014

www.cwla.org/conferences

MSU Continuing Education
-615-14- Treating and Supporting Adoptive Families: Change the Lens, Change the Life, Thursday, September 18, 2014 at 9:00 AM- 4:30 PM

-616-14- Assessing, Preparing & Supporting Adoptive Families & Children to Achieve & Maintain Permanence, Friday, October 17, 2014 at 9:00 AM- 4:30 PM

Classes can be registered online at http://socialwork.msu.edu/ceu/register.php or send your application to:

MSU-School of Social Work

655 Auditorium Road

Baker Hall Room 212

East Lansing, MI 48824

NASW-MI Chapter Continuing Education

-Legislative, Education & Advocacy Day (LEAD)-10/30/2014
9:00am-4:15pm

Classes can be registered online at:
http://www.nasw-michigan.org/?page=164

If you have an upcoming training related to kinship caregiving that is open to anyone please let us know!

Information Resources -

National Foster Parent Association

To support foster parents in achieving safety, permanence and well-being for the children and youth in their care.

The National Foster Parent Association is a champion for the thousands of families that open their heart and their home to the over 400,000 children in out-of-home placement in the US.

NFPA believes in the importance of family-based care for foster children and that every child deserves a permanent family.

Supporting foster, adoptive and kinship parents nationally.

http://www.nfpaonline.org/

Generations United

Generations United's National Center on Grand families works to enact policies and promote programs to help grand families address challenges. Despite facing many barriers, research shows that the children in grand families thrive (see Grandfamilies Statistics). Caregivers also experience benefits like an increased sense of purpose in life.

http://gu.org/OURWORK/Grandfamilies.aspx

AARP

National Grandparents Day - September 8th - is an opportunity to spotlight the significant role grandparents play in the lives of their families. - See more at: http://states.aarp.org/grandparents-day-extra-special-for-grandparents-raising-grandchildren-aarp-provides-resources-for-grandfamilies/#sthash.fH7xYYSg.dpuf

Grandparents raising grandchildren face unique challenges. In Connecticut, the non-profit group Community Renewal Team developed a special community devoted to their needs. CRT Generations is a neighborhood community with 24 grand families.

http://video.aarp.org/video/Generations-of-Love

Brookdale Foundation

The National Group Respite Program supports community-based efforts to develop and sustain social model group respite and early memory loss programs for people with Alzheimer's disease and their families.

The Relatives as Parents Program (RAPP) promotes the creation or expansion of services for grandparents and other relatives who have taken on the responsibility of surrogate parenting.

The Brookdale Leadership in Aging Fellowship Program

encourages and supports emerging leaders in the field of aging.

http://www.brookdalefoundation.org/

Legislative Notices

Do you have a relationship with your federal congressional member? If so, here are some pieces of legislation that may impact the families you work with that you may want to speak with them about. The bills mentioned in this issue are all in Congress, 113th session. Here are a few links to find your congressional representative, current bills and there status:

-http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/ to find your representatives

-http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm to find your senator and bills in the senate

-https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/browse to find bills in the house

Bills stuck in Congressional House committees and/or Senate committees

-HR102-Rehab and Ahmed Amer foster care improvement act, to amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to require States to follow certain procedures in placing a child who has been removed from the custody of his or her parents.
introduced-1-3-13, referred to the Ways and Means Committee then referred to the Subcommittee on Human Resources 1-15-13

-HR2036-Foster children opportunity act, to amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to require States to help alien children in the child welfare system apply for all available forms of immigration relief, and for other purposes
introduced-5-16-13, referred to the Committee on Ways and Means and the House Agriculture Committees department operations, oversight, nutrition 5-16-13

-HR2979-Guardians children's act, to amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to preserve the eligibility of a child for kinship guardianship assistance payments when the guardian is replaced by a successor legal guardian named in the kinship guardianship assistance agreement.
introduced-8-2-13, referred to the committee on Ways and Means 8-2-13

-HR3124-Investing in permanency for youth in foster care act, to amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to extend the adoption incentive payments program to incentive payments for foster child exits to reunification, adoption, and guardianship, and for other purposes.
introduced-9-18-13, referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 9-18-13

-HR3205-Promote adoption and legal guardianship for children in foster care act, to reauthorize and restructure the adoption incentives grant program, and for other purposes
introduced-9-27-13, passed House 10-22-13, referred Senate Committee on Finance 10-28-13

Agreed to Simple Resolution/Joint Resolution- Senate

-SRES456-a resolution to recognize national foster care month as an opportunity to raise awareness about challenges of children in the foster care system, 5-22-14

-SRES294-a resolution to express support for the goals of National Adoption Day and National Adoption Month, 11-13-13

-SRES173-a resolution to designate September as National Child Awareness Month, 6-18-13

-SJRES37-Propose an amendment to the constitution of the U.S relating to parental rights, Constitutional Amendment - States that the liberty of parents to direct the upbringing, education, and care of their children is a fundamental right. 6-4-14

Update on Michigan Legislation

-HB5343, HB5139- Still in House committees
-HB4659, 4660, 4661, 4662- Stuck in Committee on Families, Seniors, and Human Services
-HB4649, 4650-Passed the House on 5-27-14, referred to Senate Committee on 5-28-14 on Families, Seniors, and Human Services

Pass on to Families -

Summer camps

There is still time and every child deserves a chance to have a summer camp experience and every caregiver deserves some respite care. The link provided is a quick and easy tool to find any and all summer camp programs in Michigan.

http://www.kidscamps.com/summer_camps/michigan-summer-camps.html

YMCA Summer Camps

YMCA offers camps across the state and has financial aid available to assist low income families. It can be a good idea to pass this along to families you work with to ensure that their children get some fun outdoors experiences this summer. More information can be found at the link below.

http://www.michiganymcacamps.org/?gclid=COe-45L89rwCFQ5gMgodugcAYQ

End of summer

The end of summer can make any happy kid sad and anxious about going back to school. Here are tips on how to help your kids beat those summer blues.

http://www.parents.com/kids/development/behavioral/end-of-summer-blues/

Summer safety tips

Warm weather brings more opportunity for outdoor activities. Whether they are young children or teens, keep your kids safe and healthy while they enjoy the summer fun.

http://www.cdc.gov/family/kids/summer/

Back to school- Resources

If you need back to school uniforms or supplies check with 211. Most public schools will know if there are any free backpack giveaways in there community. Some local religious affiliations also have free school supply giveaways, one does not need to be a member or even a practitioner of that faith to receive the supplies. The backpack giveaways usually give back packs full of school supplies away for free. United Way website is www.uwmich.org/get-help

Kinship Care Resource Center