Posts Tagged: Parent Advocacy

Peer Pressure – How parents are changing the child welfare system

November 28, 2018 by

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BY KEYNA FRANKLIN and JEANETTE VEGA

For decades, parents in the child welfare system have felt powerless, demonized, silenced and alone. Things have begun to change in places where parents have united to use their shared experience to support one another and work for change.

 Today, according to the Birth Parent National Network, there are organizations of child welfare-affected parents in California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, Oregon, New York, New Jersey, Minnesota and Washington.

In … Read More

Plan of My Own — I didn’t think I needed services but I did them anyway

May 07, 2018 by

I will never forget the day I returned home from an appointment and saw a note on my door saying that my children had been removed from home. I thought, “Did they take all of my kids?”

When I opened the door none of my six children were inside.

I immediately called the worker and found out that she had taken the two youngest, my 8-year-old son and my 4-year-old daughter because they were home alone.

I was … Read More

Peer Support

May 07, 2018 by

One of the biggest challenges for parents affected by child welfare involvement is planning. When you are in crisis, your mind can’t focus on planning. That can make it even harder to keep track of the many mandates, appointments, visits and court dates that come with foster care.

Here are some suggestions from parents about how to make the service planning process more manageable.

 

Ask as many questions as it takes to understand the status of your … Read More

Partners in Planning — When parents and caseworkers work together, families move in the right direction

May 07, 2018 by

Toni Miner and Sherry Tomlinson, parent advocates in Jefferson County, Colorado and Columbus, Kansas, discuss how parents can work effectively with their caseworkers to get the services they want and need.

Q: What can parents do if their worker isn’t helping them find services?

Miner: Workers are supposed to help parents gain whatever resources they need—not necessarily call all the programs, but at least get families going in the right direction. It’s also a worker’s responsibility to … Read More

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