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- Federal Resources
Federal Resources
EEOC Joins Federal Partners in Creating New Guide on Hiring People with Disabilities
EEOC and multiple federal partners have released Recruiting, Hiring, Retaining, and Promoting People with Disabilities (PDF, 26 pages), a new guide for employers that compiles key federal and federally funded resources related to the employment of people with disabilities.
Mental Health: The First Step to Well Being
This collection of articles from the National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth analyzes some of the most prominent mental health issues facing at-risk youth in order to provide youth workers with insight into the prevention and treatment of mental health challenges. Post-traumatic stress disorder, the risks and uses of psychotropic medications, and postpartum depression in teen mothers are discussed.
Online Sexual Health Resources
The Department of Health and Human Services’ National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth released this list of recommended resources on sexually transmitted diseases, including information geared specifically to teens and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth.
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.
Trauma and the Teen Brain
The National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth conducted an interview that educates readers about the effect that trauma can have on teen brain development. Research suggests that the brains of teens who experience homelessness or abuse can develop differently than the brains of their peers who grow up in safe and supportive homes.
Voices from the Field: Why People Take Risks
This podcast features Dr. Carl Lejuez of the University of Maryland discussing his research on risk taking and the implications of his findings for traumatized youth.
What Promotes Resilience Among Alaska Native Youth?
This article describes the findings of a recent study that looked at the everyday struggles of Alaska Native teens and how they have dealt with these challenges. The authors of the study found that the means through which Alaska Native youth found strength during difficult times, such as helping their families and giving back to their communities, reflect unique cultural values and provide insight into how providers can promote health among this population.
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.
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.
Resource: Helping Youth Prevent Suicide Among Their LGBTQ Peers
This article highlights free resources educators and youth service providers can use to implement the Trevor Project’s Lifeguard Workshop, a program encouraging young people to be “lifeguards” for one another by having the knowledge to help in a crisis. Professionals can request a free, in-person workshop or use the resources highlighted in the article to create personalized trainings.
Resource: Integrating Medical and Mental Health Care for Teen Moms
This article describes the mental health challenges teen moms face and highlights a Denver-based program that integrates mental health screening and treatment into their existing medical care.
American Red Cross and FEMA: Helping Children Cope with Disaster
This booklet was created to assist parents and caregivers in helping youth cope with disasters and emergencies. The guide also provides information on preparing family emergency plans and discussing these plans with youth.
FEMA Preparedness Tips for Parents and Guardians
This resource contains tailored, practical suggestions on preparedness and links to tools and resources for parents and guardians. Resources are pulled from FEMA, the Department of Education, CDC, and practitioners in the field. This resource helps parents and guardians better understand school emergency policies and will not only help parents and guardians recognize what safety measures are being offered in school, but it can also highlight areas where they can bolster their own emergency planning.
FEMA Catalogue of Youth Disaster Preparedness Education Resources
The Catalogue of Youth Disaster Preparedness Education Resources was created to assist individuals and organizations with locating preparedness resources tailored to youth of all ages (preschool through college). Research has shown that youth disaster preparedness education is vital to building and maintaining resilient communities—especially when incorporating key recommended practices.
Helping Youth Prepare for Disasters
Helping kids learn the importance of disaster preparedness is easier through this website, provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
National Preparedness Directorate
The National Preparedness Directorate (NPD) provides the doctrine, programs and resources to prepare the nation to prevent, protect, mitigate, respond to and recover from disasters while minimizing the loss of lives, infrastructure and property. NPD is responsible for enhancing the nation’s readiness through a comprehensive preparedness cycle of planning, organizing and equipping, training, exercising, evaluating and improvement planning.
Ready.gov
The Ready Campaign of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, educating and empowering Americans to prepare for emergencies.
Individuals with Disabilities and Others with Access and Functional Needs
The Ad Council and FEMA launched a public service advertisement (PSA) as part of a series of videos that illustrate how people with disabilities can take charge to prepare themselves and their families for emergencies. The new PSA, which will be available on the Ad Council’s and FEMA’s YouTube channels, as well as in the FEMA media library, emphasizes the Ready.gov campaign’s four building blocks of preparedness: Be Informed, Make a Plan, Build a Kit, and Get Involved.
Charting the Course: Supporting the Career Development of Youth with Learning Disabilities
This Guide was developed to help youth service professionals better understand issues related to learning disabilities so that they can help youth with learning disabilities develop individual strategies that will enable them to succeed in the workplace.
Guideposts for Success for Youth with Mental Health Needs
The Guideposts for Success are a framework to assist the multiple organizations that need to be involved to meet the needs and improve the transition outcomes of all youth, including youth with disabilities. The guideposts discuss school-based services, career preparation, leadership opportunities, community services, and family involvement supports for youth with mental health needs. These documents were developed by the National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability, which is supported by funds from the Department of Labor.
Tunnels and Cliffs: A Guide for Workforce Development Practitioners and Policymakers Serving Youth with Mental Health Needs
This guide provides practical information and resources for youth service professionals. In addition, it provides policymakers, from the program to the state level, with information to help them address system and policy obstacles in order to improve service delivery systems for youth with mental health needs.
Resource: Personal Competencies for College & Career Success
This guide describes strategies postsecondary professionals can use to assist all students, including those with disabilities, to develop personal competencies that will increase their chances of success.
Resource: National Dialogue with Youth People with Disabilities
This resource (PDF, 36 pages) provides a summary of the recent online event “YouthACT Transition Truths,” which provided an opportunity for youth with disabilities, as well as allies of the disability community, to virtually share ideas about the strategies and supports that can help young people with disabilities successfully transition to adulthood.