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May is National Foster Care Month Each May, the Annie E. Casey Foundation/Casey Family Services salutes the compassionate people who make a difference by serving as parents, relative caregivers, mentors, advocates, social workers, and volunteers to children in foster care. read more>

New Haven Together! Casey is working with stakeholders throughout New Haven, Connecticut, to create a strong community that supports families. Learn what’s happening in the latest issue of New Haven Together! read more>

National Convening on Youth Permanence More than 600 child welfare professionals, as well as youth and parents, are gathering on May 1 and 2 in Washington, D.C., to promote the power, possibility, and priority of lifelong families for youth in foster care. read more>

Casey Offering Tax Preparation Help for Working Families For more than 20 years, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance programs have helped working families file their tax returns and increase their financial stability. As part of this effort, Casey Family Services is sponsoring a number of tax preparation clinics this season throughout New England. read more>

Grants Aimed at Supporting New Haven Families As part of a citywide strategy to improve the lives of vulnerable children and families, the Annie E. Casey Foundation/Casey Family Services are seeking applicants for its New Haven, Connecticut, Direct Service Grants Program. This year’s funding effort focuses on increasing the economic stability of families. read more>

Recommendations for Permanency Research Available Casey Family Services has released a report from the research roundtable held during the last National Convening on Youth Permanence. The report offers an overview from national experts of how to document and understand youth permanence strategies for children in foster care. read more>

National Adoption Day 2007 On National Adoption Day 2007 – Saturday, November 17 – an unprecedented number of courts and communities across the nation came together to finalize thousands of adoptions of children from foster care and to celebrate all families who adopt. Casey Family Services is a national partner in National Adoption Day, which brings together judges, attorneys, child welfare professionals, and advocates who are dedicated to creating forever families for waiting children. This year, on November 16, the President and First Lady held a special White House event for the occasion. read more>

Casey Launches Youth Permanancy Enewsletter The Annie E. Casey Foundation/Casey Family Services proudly announces the launch of Connections Count. Featuring best practice resources, hands-on tools, and innovative strategies for transitioning youth from foster care to families, this enewsletter is for child welfare directors, social workers, the legal community, legislators, policymakers, community partners, families, and youth. more

May is National Foster Care Month National Foster Care Month focuses attention on the needs of children and youth in foster care. The Annie E. Casey Foundation and its direct services agency, Casey Family Services, are among the partner organizations involved in the annual campaign. more

Mayo es el Mes Nacional de la Crianza Temporal Ahora es el momento de cambiar la vida de un niño en crianza temporal. more

Casey Foundation Announces New Haven Grants Fourteen organizations will receive support for programs helping vulnerable children and families in the Elm City. more

Foster Care and Its Lasting Impact Family for life sets foundation for first Casey kid. more

Racial Equity and Subsidized Guardianship A national alliance that includes the Annie E. Casey Foundation/Casey Family Services is promoting racial equity in child welfare and recently released this issues brief on subsidized guardianship policies and practice. more

Tufts University Students Release Study Graduate students at Tufts University, with guidance from Casey Family Services, recently released a study that offers an analysis of subsidized guardianship in New England and recommendations for implementation and strengthening programs in each New England state. more

Grants Aimed at Supporting New Haven Families The Annie E. Casey Foundation and its direct service agency, Casey Family Services, is seeking applications for its direct service grants program. more

Casey Foundation and Yale University Release Report Improving the Well-Being of Our Children is a report that follows up on a 2005 symposium on deepening the synergy between research and policy in child welfare. more.

New Study Shows State Lawmakers Active on Foster Care Adoption Commissioned by the National Adoption Day Coalition, a new Urban Institute study examines trends in foster care adoption legislation. more

National Adoption Day is November 18 National Adoption Day is a collective effort to raise awareness of the 114,000 children in foster care waiting to find permanent, loving families. more

Forum on Legal Representation in Connecticut "Their Day in Court," set for November 20, is an educational opportunity for policymakers, attorneys, and advocates involved with the child protective services system. more

Highlights of the National Convening on Youth Permanence The Convening was hosted by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and its direct service agency, Casey Family Services, to raise the need for lifelong families for older children and youth in foster care to a national platform. Resources now available online include an overview, reports from the policy briefing and research roundtables, and press materials. more

Casey-CSSP Alliance for Racial Equity Release Report Author Dr. Robert B. Hill recently released "Synthesis of Research on Disproportionality in Child Welfare: An Update." more

Close-up with Harry Spence Massachusetts DSS Commissioner speaks on reforming child welfare. more

Call to Action: An Integrated Approach to Youth Permanency and Preparation for Adulthood
The Casey Center has published a compelling guide to creating an integrated approach to meeting the complex needs of youth in foster care.
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Adoption and Foster Care in the US
More than 530,000 children and young people are currently in foster care.

• The average age of foster children is 10.2 years.
• Most of them live in foster homes.
• The average time in care is 32 months.
• About a quarter of foster children are eligible for adoption. In 2002, 53,000 of those children were adopted.
• Each year, about 20,000 young people "age out" of the foster care system.

Where they live...

Foster family homes (non-relative)	243,505		(46%)
Foster family homes (relative)	124,036		(23%)
Institutions	54,472		(10%)
Group homes	45,464		(9%)
Pre-adoptive homes	24,960		(5%)
Trial home visit	18,809		(4%)
Runaway and homeless shelters	9,459		(2%)
Supervised independent living	5,676		(1%)

Source: US Dept of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Preliminary Estimates for FY 2002 as of August 2004 and the CWLA NDAS, 2000 (latest figures available).

For more information go to:

• The Administration for Children and Families
• Child Welfare League of America
• National Adoption Information Clearinghouse
• National Adoption Day
• National Foster Care Month

Campaign to Encourage Adoption of Foster Children Launched
AdoptUSKids, the Ad Council and the Children's Bureau have launched a national campaign to promote the adoption of foster children. The campaign features print and broadcast ads with the tagline: "You don't have to be perfect, to be a perfect parent."
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Permanence for Young People: Framework and Measures Released
The Casey Center collaborated with the National Resource Center for Family-Centered Practice and Permanency Planning at the Hunter College School of Social Work to develop a framework and measurements to guide states in improving permanency practices for older youth throughout the country. These materials were developed during a June 2004 meeting of national youth permanency experts that included parents, youth and professionals.

National Collaboration for Foster Children
Four of the nation’s leading foster care organizations are partnering with Capitol One to determine how more Americans can be motivated to help foster children succeed.
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Generation Excellence: A New Foster Care Alumni Network is Born!
Ginny Stephens, Casey foster alumna, describes the new steering committee of former foster youth that is creating a national alumni network of former foster children.
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Post-Adoption Services Papers Published
The Casey Center has published three Strengthening Families and Communities white papers that highlight key aspects of post-adoption services needs.

An Approach to Post-Adoption Services
Executive Summary (pdf) | Full Report (pdf)

Creative Strategies to Finance Post-Adoption Services
Executive Summary (pdf) | Full Report (pdf)

Promising Practices in Adoption - Competent Mental Health Services
Executive Summary (pdf) | Full Report (pdf)

For printed copies, contact info@caseyfamilyservices.org

Probate Court Study Spurs Reform
Just one month after Casey Family Services' study of the Connecticut Probate Court System was released, a pilot regional children's probate court was created to address some of the shortcomings it identified. The 73-page report, A Study of Connecticut's Probate Courts and the Management of Children's Matters Involving Custody and Guardianship, reviewed the operation of the State's Probate Courts from the point of view of various shareholders and studied Probate Courts outside Connecticut for ideas about how the needs of children could be better met.

"This really brings together all of our strengths," says Casey Family Services Executive Director Raymond Torres. "Through our direct work with families, we knew the courts could do better for children. Through our research department, we were able to conduct a comprehensive study of the system with concrete recommendations for making it work better. Through our continuing work with policy makers and families, we will be able to make sure the outcomes do, in fact, improve the way the Court deals with children and families."
Download a copy

West Haven Probate Court Project: A Collaborative Endeavor

	At Casey Family Services in Lowell, other programming is targeted to kids moving out of state care. "It is tough, but there's a lot of attention now being paid to kids who are aging out of the system," (Francyne) Fuller said. "Kids need to know they have a place to belong."