D grade for California on Child Wellbeing Report / Public News Service

A new report shows that all 13.5 million California children are suffering as a result of the pandemic.

It gives the state low marks for child care, foster care, mental health support and preventive health screenings. The new 2022 California Children’s Report Card from the nonprofit Children Now showed that children of color, in particular, are susceptible to absorbing toxic levels of stress.

Harold Goldstein, executive director of Public Health Advocates, a statewide research and advocacy organization, noted that the suicide rate among teens of color has increased following police killings, worsening poverty and separation from friends during COVID.

“The suicide rate among black youth has doubled in the past six years and continues on a very disturbing upward trajectory.”

According to the report, only about one in four infants with Medi-Cal coverage received a checkup in 2019. And doctor visits for children have dropped significantly during the pandemic.

On the plus side, California gets “A” grades for covering children with health insurance regardless of immigration status, and for providing record funding for transitional kindergarten for all four-year-olds. .

However, Goldstein added, the state gets low marks due to a lack of affordable child care and low pay rates for caregivers.

“If qualified, quality child care is not available for young children, they can be harmed and it will affect them for the rest of their lives,” Goldstein said.

The report’s authors also concluded that California needs to do more to find stable homes for adoptive children, with nearly 40 percent being placed in three or more homes over a two-year period.

get more stories like this via email

While Ohio trails the nation in outcomes for older youth in foster care, a new report also suggests there’s reason for hope.

According to the Children’s Defense Fund-Ohio, the state is in the bottom 10 percent nationwide on four measures of well-being for 21-year-olds who were in foster care as teenagers.

Young people in Ohio are less likely to graduate from high school, get a GED, find a job, or enroll in school, and more likely to be involved in the justice system.

Deanna Jones, a licensed social worker and former young adoptee, said she understands the experiences of children in care.

“As a teenager, I definitely felt ignored, undervalued, even silenced about my own situation when I was in care,” Jones recounted. “And there are still those young people who don’t feel heard. Young people need to be heard, and we need to show them that their voice matters.”

The report noted that Ohio has implemented major initiatives to improve outcomes, including the creation of an office of youth ombudsman to investigate complaints. Jones acknowledged that it will give hope to those who have had bad experiences in foster care.

The report also called for better data collection from young people while in care.

Laila-Rose Hudson, a law student at Ohio State University and a former foster child, says data is vital. She explained that the rate of abuse in foster homes in Ohio is less than 1%, which she says cannot be accurate.

“Just my story alone, multiple forms of abuse in multiple different homes over 10 years,” Hudson recalled. “If those numbers were accurate, I’d be a statistical impossibility, so we know those numbers are wrong.”

Instead of using exit interviews to learn more about placement experiences, the research suggested using quarterly youth experience surveys and using the data to identify areas where further investigation is necessary. Ohio’s strengths in the report include measures of permanency, placement stability, and a recent decline in the number of young people aging without support.

get more stories like this via email

The Texas Freedom Network is calling on people to join a new campaign against what it calls “education censorship” across the state.

The movement, made up of more than a dozen organizations, follows efforts by local and national politicians to limit racial and LGBTQ representation in schools, as part of their own political ambitions.

The group said making education so partisan ignores the needs of children.

Val Benavidez, executive director of the Texas Freedom Network, said students need policies that ensure diverse populations are represented in their school environment.

“Support students by proactively organizing in your local school boards, attending regular meetings, testifying before the state school board,” Benavidez emphasized. “And let your state officials know that you will not tolerate politically motivated bans that attempt to silence our communities.”

Benavidez emphasized that the goal of the “Teach the Truth” campaign is to create communities where everyone feels included, regardless of race or sexuality.

Texas lawmakers have passed bills in recent years restricting discussion of racial history and LGBTQ-related topics in schools.

The coalition argued that removing some books from library shelves ends up making education one-sided and avoiding the truth about difficult topics in order to put some students or their parents more at ease.

Hedreich Nichols, educational consultant and author of children’s books, thinks a little discomfort is necessary for a balanced education.

“We’re doing our students a disservice,” Nichols argued. “Sometimes the truth is uncomfortable; as a parent, I want my son to be able to face uncomfortable truths.”

Ricardo Martinez, executive director of Equality Texas, said his group questioned the Texas Education Agency last fall about various attempts to remove more than 800 books from schools. Some 60% focused on LGBTQ topics, 8% on race, and 13% on sex education.

Martinez sees a longer-term impact on student mental health.

“The young people of Texas see their very humanity challenged, time and time again, by those in charge of their safety and education,” Martinez said.

He added that books and “true history” are important in schools, and said anyone can report concerns about what is happening in their school district on the campaign website.

get more stories like this via email

Iowa’s child welfare system is feeling the brunt of the pandemic, with some counties in dire need of foster families. At the same time, those involved in the removals say the state remains focused on reducing the cycle of trauma for children.

Iowa Lutheran Services (LSI) said areas surrounding cities such as Council Bluffs and Sioux City have the biggest gaps in foster care.

Danette Morgan, initial training coordinator for LSI, said last year that more than 520 children in western Iowa were in need of foster care. She noted that the pandemic has created roadblocks in families accepting more referrals. Another dilemma is the closure of some emergency shelters, which has added to the uncertainty.

“Every time we move, I think it brings up the questions again: ‘How long am I going to stay here? What happens next?’ “Morgan explained. “And I think that sets the child back, maybe, in terms of healing and development.”

As Lutheran Services calls for more households to become foster parents, they said Iowa recognizes the importance of family care. Thanks to a federal law passed in 2018, states have financial flexibility to perform services aimed at keeping at-risk children with loved ones.

And there are preventative efforts to avoid removing children from their homes. The Iowa Family Care Program began last year.

Morgan pointed out that the program is a big help because of the extra hoops parents or trusted family friends have to go through to become adoptive parents of a loved one. They receive temporary financial support throughout the process.

“It’s a long process, and it takes time,” Morgan observed. “If finances were a concern for the family in this program, it makes it a little easier for them, and at the same time [it] give the child a home.”

Meanwhile, LSI noted that of the 520 children in need of placement last year, about half of the cases involved siblings. Morgan added that the limited availability makes it difficult to keep them connected, and his team is doing its best to find homes close to each other.

get more stories like this via email