Breadcrumb
- Federal Resources
Federal Resources
Q&A: Helping Families Protect Themselves From Recurring Trauma
Produced by the National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth, this interview with Laurel Kiser, of the University of Maryland’s Family-Informed Trauma Treatment Center, discusses the potential negative effects of anticipatory stress and highlights Strengthening Family Coping Resources, a multi-week program that Kiser and her colleagues facilitate that helps families deal with recurring stressors.
Research Roundup: What Do We Know About Hispanic Youth and Teen Dating Violence?
This article highlights recent research that analyzes dating violence among Hispanic teens. It draws from the research to provide an overview of the prevalence of dating violence among Hispanic teens, the kinds of help-seeking behavior these teens exhibit, and what makes prevention programs successful in reducing teen dating violence among this group of young people.
Read the Key Lessons of the RPG Program
“The Final Synthesis and Summary Report: Grantee Interviews” (PDF, 35 pages) captures lessons learned and stories from the Regional Partnership Grant (RPG) Program. The RPG is the broadest federal program ever launched to assist states, tribes, and communities across the nation to improve the well-being, permanency, and safety outcomes of children who are in, or at-risk of, out-of-home placement as a result of a parent's or caregiver's methamphetamine or other substance abuse.
Runaway and Homeless Youth Training and Technical Assistance Centers - Community of Practice
This site is a meeting place that provides members of the RHYTTAC CoP with opportunities to participate in discussion forums, member profiles, photo gallery, file storage, and more.
Spotlight on NYTD: New Videos Released
The Administration for Children & Families released three videos featuring young people discussing the National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD), the first national data collection effort on youth aging out of foster care. These data track their outcomes during their transition and capture their feedback about their time in the foster care system. The videos describe the NYTD initiative, encourage state welfare agencies to administer the survey, and explain why youth should complete it.
The Economic Well-Being of LGB Youth Transitioning Out of Foster Care
This report describes the characteristics and economic well-being of young people aging out of foster care who identify themselves as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB).
The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act: 40 Years of Safeguarding America’s Children
This report commemorates the 40th anniversary of the passage of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act and the impact this legislation has had on the field of child maltreatment.
Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month Resources
This page provides information about Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month (TDVAM), TDVAM training and awareness events, and teen dating violence–related resources for young people, educators, and youth workers.
The National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW): Implications for Child Welfare Evaluations
Developed as part of the Child Welfare Evaluation Virtual Summit Series, the Children's Bureau has released this video, "The National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW): Implications for Child Welfare Evaluations," which illustrates ways that the NSCAW can provide a meaningful comparison group for those interested in assessing in their jurisdictions outcomes of child and adolescent well-being.
Using Social Media in Child Welfare
The “Using Social Media in Child Welfare” page offers tips and resources for social workers, youth, and foster parents on the safe and effective use of social media.
Use of Research Evidence: Building Two-Way Streets
This video from the Child Welfare Evaluation Virtual Summit Series challenges researchers and evaluators to think differently about the ways that research is acquired and used and suggests steps that they can take to close the gap between research and practice.
Watch: Youth Describe Their Most Meaningful Relationships
In a new video series from the National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth, four youth talk about the adults who helped change their lives. The first video in the series features Marcus, a former foster youth, describing how his adoptive mom has helped and supported him.
Youth Leadership Toolkit: Strategic Sharing
Foster youth have precious and hard-earned stories. Strategic Sharing teaches youth how to present their stories with meaning and purpose.
Youth Leadership Toolkit: Youth Engagement
Young people are valuable contributors in the planning and implementation of programs that impact them. This section of the Toolkit discusses strategies for increasing the effectiveness of their participation and engagement in the process.
Improving Attachment Between Mothers and Children
This article describes a recent study on whether new mothers dealing with past trauma would be able to develop an attachment to their babies. If the mothers could develop an attachment, the study examined if addressing the mother’s issue would help with bonding. The results show that all the mothers in the study who were dealing with past trauma had trouble bonding with others and over 75% of the mothers with unresolved trauma had insecurely attached infants. The researchers found that being in the process of dealing with past trauma can help mothers form secure bonds with their children, despite the mothers themselves having difficulty attaching to others around them.
5 Tips for Providing Trauma-Informed Sex Education
This article highlights the work of two researchers who are pioneering changes in sex education that bridge the gap between sex education and trauma-informed care by better understanding how sex education could be more sensitive to students’ traumatic experiences. This article also offers tips, based on this research, for implementing a trauma informed approach to sex education.
Slideshow: 5 Collaborations to Ensure Trauma-Informed Care for Youth and Families
This slideshow highlights five types of professionals that runaway and homeless youth program managers can collaborate with to support youth who have experienced trauma.
Brief: Developing a Trauma-Informed Child Welfare System
This issue brief provides an overview of trauma and its effects, and describes some of the primary areas of consideration for state or county child welfare systems as they design and implement approaches that are more responsive to trauma.
Brief: the Needs of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ) Youth in Child Welfare Settings
A recent brief from the Permanency Innovations Initiative highlights how research is contributing to a better understanding of the needs of LGBTQ youth in child welfare settings. The brief presents findings from qualitative interviews conducted with youth participating in the Recognize, Intervene, Support, and Empower (RISE) project, funded through a grant from the Children’s Bureau to the Los Angeles LGBT Center.
Videos: Real-Life Stories — Authentic Voices
These videos share the stories of foster and adoptive parents, children, youth, and child welfare professionals, including their perspectives about issues of belonging, connection, development, and normalcy for children and youth in out-of-home care. Developed as part of the Real-Life Stories collection, these Authentic Voices Videos were created to raise awareness and provide resources to promote normalcy for children and youth in foster care and to support the implementation of provisions in the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act that relate to participation in age-appropriate experiences that allow for healthy development.
Resource: National Foster Care Month Promotes Positive Connections Between Fathers and Their Children
This blog post discusses how improved connections with a father or father figure can be a critical protective factor for youth in foster care that yields positive outcomes and help prevent homelessness and encounters with law enforcement.
Resource: Family-Based Approaches to Preventing Teen Dating Violence Research
This article analyzes research describing and evaluating two family-based approaches to preventing teen dating violence, Families for Safe Dates and Moms and Teens for Safe Dates.
Resource: Narrative Writing Exercises for Promoting Health Among Adolescents: Promises and Pitfalls
This resource describes a literature review that explores the potential mental health benefits and concerns of using narrative writing with youth and young adults.
Report: Family and Youth Services Bureau Highlights in 2014 & 2015
This report shares FYSB’s key accomplishments over the past two years specifically related to ending youth homelessness, domestic violence, and teen pregnancy.
Resource: Health-Care Coverage for Youth in Foster Care and Beyond
This issue brief reviews the eligibility pathways for youth in foster care to receive Medicaid or other health-care coverage. It also examines some of the newer benefits now mandated through the Affordable Care Act, especially those for older youth in, or formerly in, foster care.