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- Federal Resources
Federal Resources
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.
Parents’ Influence on the Health of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Teens: What Parents and Families Should Know
CDC’s DASH developed the factsheet, “Parents’ Influence on the Health of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Teens: What Parents and Families Should Know," which provides information for parents on how they can support and promote healthy outcomes for their LGTBQ teens.
The Association Between School-Based Physical Activity, Including Physical Education, and Academic Performance
The report indicates that school-based physical activity may help improve students' grades and test scores and positively affect other factors that influence academic achievement. The report also concludes that adding time during the school day for physical activity does not appear to take away from academic performance.
Ways to Influence Your Teen's Sexual Risk Behavior: What Fathers Can Do
CDC’s DASH has developed the factsheet, "Ways to Influence Your Teen's Sexual Risk Behavior: What Fathers Can Do," which offers resources and tips for dads on helping their children avoid risky sexual behaviors.
Resource: 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) Results
This survey monitors six types of health-risk behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death and disability among youth and adults. The 2015 release includes data from the 2015 National YRBS and YRBS data from 37 state and 19 large urban school district.
Resource: Youth Online
This data access application allows users to analyze national, state, and local Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) data from 1991 to 2015. Researchers and other professionals can use this resource to filter and sort YRBSS data on the basis of race/ethnicity, sex, grade, sexual orientation, sex of sexual contacts, or site; and create customized tables, maps, and graphs, and perform statistical tests by site and health topic.
Resource: Parent Engagement
This webpage provides an overview of parent engagement in schools, a promising protective factor that has been linked to better student behavior, higher academic achievement, and enhanced social skills. It also features fact sheets and other resources on parent engagement for school districts, school administrators, teachers, other school staff, parents, and families.
Youth Advisory Councils
Youth Advisory Councils (YACs) provide ongoing advice and support to school districts on policies and practices that affect students. This webpage provides a detailed overview of Youth Advisory Councils (YACs). It describes the role YACs play in improving the schools and communities they serve, discusses how they can use data to make decisions and create action plans, and outlines the structure of a YAC.
Grants.gov
Grants.gov is a secure, reliable entry way to discretionary federal grants from multiple agencies. Applicants can use a single comprehensive site to discover and apply for opportunities from all 26 federal grant-making agencies.
How Americans Are Expanding Their Use of the Internet (2001) Chapter 5: How Young People Have Embraced Computers and the Internet
A report by the U.S. Department of Commerce: Children and young adults have embraced new information technologies in large numbers. More than any other age group, these younger age groups use computers and the Internet widely for many of their daily activities.
How Access to Technology Benefits Children
This site includes a report, created by the Department of Commerce, which contains 11 stories about people who are working hard to ensure technology will enhance the lives of children.
Creating and Maintaining Good Relationships Between Juvenile Justice and Education Agencies
This tip sheet (PDF, 3 pages) from NDTAC aims to assist state and local juvenile justice and education agency administrators, including State Part D coordinators and the practitioners. The tip sheet helps to create strong working relationships that facilitate the development of high-quality education programs within juvenile justice settings.
NDTAC’s Fast Facts Web Pages
NDTAC’s Fast Facts web pages present national and state data tables and graphics reflecting program and funding data, as well as demographics for students enrolled in Title I, Part D, Subpart 1 and Subpart 2 programs. These pages include longitudinal data from school years 2010–11 through 2012–13, as reported by states in ED’s Consolidated State Performance Report.
NDTAC Explores What It Takes To Make Youth in Justice Settings College and Career Ready
In response to the Departments of Education and Justice’s Correctional Education Guidance Package, which includes recommendations and federal requirements for education programs in juvenile justice facilities, NDTAC will kick off a series of N&D InFocus programs. These programs will explore high-quality correctional education aligned with the five guiding principles that states and localities are implementing to prepare youth in their care for college and careers. The first event in the series, was held on March 18, 2 -3:30 p.m. EST, featured facilities and programs from around the country, as well as experts in the field and staff from the Departments of Education and Justice, who are leading the charge for quality correctional education.
Quality Education Services Are Critical for Youth Involved With the Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare Systems
In May 2010, the Center for Juvenile Justice Reform at Georgetown University released the monograph ”Addressing the Unmet Educational Needs of Children and Youth in the Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare Systems” (PDF, 74 pages), which examines a number of topics relevant to the education and experiences of youth in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. This new practice guide (PDF, 27 pages) developed by NDTAC examines the principle included in the monograph that quality education services are critical for youth involved with the juvenile justice and child welfare systems, and offers a range of practices and strategies that juvenile justice, child welfare, and education professionals can use to improve education programming and outcomes for youth in their care.
2015 NDTAC National Conference Materials
NDTAC held its 2015 National Conference, “Looking Ahead: Preparing for the Future of Your State Title I, Part D Program,” in Arlington, Virginia, in May 2015. The conference brought together Title I, Part D coordinators, experts in the field, and ED and NDTAC staff to explore federal and state topics related to effective program administration and the education of youth who are neglected, delinquent, or at risk. The session descriptions, slides, and handouts are now available on the NDTAC website.
Data Dashboards to Support Title I, Part D Program Administration: A Step-By-Step Guide
This resource provides an overview of data dashboards and demonstrates how dashboard data can be used to support Title I, Part D administration.
Selecting Appropriate Pre-Posttests
This tip sheet highlights key questions and areas to consider for Title I, Part D administrators regarding the selection of an appropriate pre-posttest for tracking student progress in reading and mathematics. It focuses on students receiving educational services in juvenile justice and child welfare settings.
Tip Sheet: Federal Resources and Initiatives for Youth Who Are Neglected, Delinquent, or At Risk
NDTAC released this tip sheet providing an overview of relevant federal offices and programs, as well as data sources, that can be used to support state- and local-level decision-making and planning efforts of programs for youth who are neglected or delinquent. It also offers key questions that program administrators and practitioners can use to dig deeper into federal datasets and initiatives.