Breadcrumb
- Federal Resources
Federal Resources
Share with Youth: Advice to Young Adults from Young Adults: Helpful Hints for Policy Change in the Mental Health System
This resource (PDF, 8 pages) can guide youth- and young adult-led organizations that want to make policy changes in the mental health system. Developed bythe Research and Training Center for Pathways to Positive Futures and Portland State University, it contains recommendations and quotes from a series of interviews with young adult leaders from advocacy groups that focus on mental health challenges or living in foster care.
Resource: Understanding Neurobiology of Psychological Trauma: Tips for Working with Transition-Age Youth
This resource (PDF, 8 pages), developed by Pathways Research and Training Center, introduces service providers to scientifically-informed findings about brain development and trauma specific to young adults, and describes the implications for trauma-informed interventions and trauma-informed engagement of young people in services.
Share with Youth: Changing the Rules: A Guide for Youth and Young Adults with Mental Health Conditions Who Want to Change Policy
This policy guide, developed by Pathways RTC (Research and Training Center), is written for youth- and young adult-led groups and organizations that want to make changes in policies related to mental health and other human services that affect them and other transition-age youth. The guide is intended for use by youth and young adults working together within a group or organization to make specific change, usually in partnership with other agencies, groups, or organizations.
Bureau of Land Management Youth Initiatives
This site describes looking to the future, The Bureau of Land Management's youth initiatives. These initiatives feature a variety of programs that engage, educate, and inspire and focus on youth from early childhood through young adulthood. The aim of the youth programs is to build on the spark of childhood wonder about the natural world, sustain interest through hands-on education and volunteer experiences during the school-age years, and develop into long-term engagement and stewardship, as well as pursuit of natural resource careers.
Children's Bureau
The Children's Bureau (CB) is one of two bureaus within the Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Administration for Children and Families, of the Department of Health and Human Services. The Children's Bureau seeks to improve the safety, permanency and well-being of children through leadership, support for necessary services, and productive partnerships with states, tribes, and communities. It has the primary responsibility for administering federal programs that support state child welfare services.
Upcoming Event: November is National Adoption Month
This observance aims to increase national awareness of the need for permanent families for children and youth in the foster care system. This year’s theme, “We Never Outgrow the Need for Family—Just Ask Us,” reflects a focus on the importance of identifying permanent families for the thousands of 15- to 18-year-olds in foster care who are currently less likely to be adopted or who may age out of the system without a stable home. A new tip sheet, Talking with Older Youth About Adoption (PDF, 2 pages) provides child welfare professionals with a framework for how to talk with older youth about permanency and includes suggestions for how to make these conversations more effective.
Report: Child Maltreatment 2015
This report from the Child Welfare Information Gateway provides state-level data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System on reports of abuse and neglect made to child protective services (CPS) agencies, the children involved, types of maltreatment, CPS responses, child and caregiver risk factors, services, and perpetrators.
Resource: Engaging Youth in Foster Care
This podcast shares the perspective of a youth formerly in foster care. It provides tips to caseworkers for engaging youth in developing their case plans and identifying supportive adults in their lives. This resource can help caseworkers as they work with youth who are in foster care or preparing to transition to adulthood.
Share with Youth: Being an Engaged and Involved Teen in Foster Care
This webpage provides information to teens in foster care about their permanency options, tools to help them transition to adulthood, and how to find support from other teens who have been in foster care.
Supporting Families Impacted by Incarceration — A Dialogue with Experts
This report, developed by the National Child Abuse and Neglect Technical Assistance and Strategic Dissemination Center, is the outcome of a meeting that convened national child welfare experts on families impacted by incarceration. It features key issues around this topic for practitioners and identifies needed resources and tools to support the workforce and families, along with a practical framework of intervention points from arrest to release.
John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood
The John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood (the Chafee program) provides funding to support youth/ young adults in or formerly in foster care in their transition to adulthood. The program is funded through formula grants awarded to child welfare agencies in States (including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and participating Tribes. Chafee funds are used to assist youth/ young adults in a wide variety of areas designed to support a successful transition to adulthood. Activities and programs include, but are not limited to, help with education, employment, financial management, housing, emotional support and assured connections to caring adults. Specific services and supports are determined by the child welfare agency, vary by State, locality and agency, and are often based on the individual needs of the young person. Many State or local agencies contract with private organizations to deliver services to young people.
National Center for Safe Routes to School
The National Center for Safe Routes to School assists states and communities in enabling and encouraging children to safely walk and bicycle to school. The National Center serves as the information clearinghouse for the federal Safe Routes to School program. The organization also provides technical support and resources and coordinates online registration efforts for U.S. Walk to School Day and facilitates worldwide promotion and participation.
Videos: Reminding Kids About Street Safety Ages 5-18
Pedestrian Safer Journey has created videos for multiple age groups that can help teach young people about pedestrian and bike safety. Each video is accompanied by a quiz or discussion and resources for educators. Access materials on pedestrian safety for ages 10-14 and 15-18 and resources on bike safety for ages 10-14 and 15-18.
Food and Nutrition Service List of State Distributing Agency Contacts
These contacts provide information about partnership with the National School Lunch Program, the Child and Adult Care Food Program, and the Summer Food Service Program. They can also provide organizations with access to food during times of disaster.
Food and Nutrition Service Faith-Based and Community Organizations
This site provides information about programs and grants that faith and community groups are eligible for within FNS, as well as technical assistance for interested organizations.
Nutrition Assistance Programs
This site lists links to program information for Nutrition Assistance Programs through Food and Nutrition Service.
Team Nutrition
Team Nutrition is an initiative of the USDA Food and Nutrition Service to support the Child Nutrition Programs through training and technical assistance for foodservice, nutrition education for children and their caregivers, and school and community support for healthy eating and physical activity. Team Nutrition's Goal is to improve children's lifelong eating and physical activity habits by using the principles of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and MyPyramid
Resource: Summer Meals
This resource kit is designed to be used by summer meal site operators to teach kids and families about healthy habits. It uses music, games, art, and movement to motivate kids and families to make healthy food and drink choices, exercise, and limit screen time.
Resource: Federal Food Assistance
This webpage features English- and Spanish-language resource guides to help connect food insecure families to food assistance resources.
Resource: Local School Wellness Policy Outreach Toolkit
This toolkit provides communication resources such as flyers, presentations, newsletter articles, and social media posts that schools can use to educate and engage staff and parents in school wellness. Many of the tools can be tailored to represent Local School Wellness Policy activities.
Resource: Web-Based Prototype Application for Free and Reduced Price School Meals
This electronic prototype application serves as a model for how state and local program operators can develop effective and fully-compliant web-based applications for school meal benefits.
Resource: Summer Food Service Program
This website provides information on the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), which provides nutritious meals to low-income children when school is not in session. Local organizations can use this website to learn how to be a part of the program. Families can use the search tool to find local sites serving meals.
Report: Point-in-Time Estimates of Homelessness: 2016 Annual Homeless Assessment Report
This annual report (PDF, 96 pages) provides a snapshot of homelessness, both sheltered and unsheltered, on a single night in late January in the U.S., including estimates for particular populations such as youth. The data show 35,686 unaccompanied homeless youth were counted. Eighty nine percent were between the ages of 18 and 24, and 11% were under the age of 18. There were 9,800 parenting young adults between 18 and 24 years of age, and 92 parents under the age of 18.
Military Youth on the Move
This site helps military youth cope with a deployment or move.
Identifying and Serving LGBTQ Youth: Case Studies of Runaway and Homeless Youth Program Grantees
This report from the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation and the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) highlights the findings from case studies of four agencies receiving grants from the ACF Family and Youth Services Bureau’s Runaway and Homeless Youth Program. It includes information on the collection and use of sexual orientation and gender identity data, needs and capacities among LGBTQ runaway and homeless youth, approaches to serving this population, and gaps in research and services for practitioners and policymakers to consider.