Breadcrumb
- Federal Resources
Federal Resources
SCOTUS Decision Supports LGBT Behavioral Health
This blog post by SAMHSA Administrator Pamela Hyde describes the importance of the Supreme Court’s historic ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, which states that the Constitution requires LGBT couples be allowed to marry no matter where they live, and marriages performed in one state must be recognized in every state. The post also highlights other steps the federal government has taken this year to improve the health and well-being of LGBT people.
NCFY Voices: Does It Get Better for LGBTQ Teens?
In this podcast, Michelle Birkett, a researcher at Northwestern University's Feinburg School of Medicine, describes a study she co-authored on the mental health and victimization of LBGTQ youth and how it progresses over time.
5 Online Resources to Help Domestic Violence Programs Offer Inclusive Services to LGBTQ People
NCFY has compiled a list of resources that can help anti-violence programs provide inclusive services to LGBTQ youth. This information is pertinent to organizations that receive funding authorized through the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013, as they are required to provide mainstream services to survivors who identify as LGBTQ.
Increasing Visibility of Low-Income LBGTQ Hispanic Families
In an effort to help programs and policies better serve low-income Hispanic children and families, the National Research Center on Hispanic Children & Families developed this article, which describes the composition of low-income LGBTQ Hispanic families.
Research: Does Sexual Orientation Affect Teen Pregnancy Risk?
This article describes a study that used data from the 2005, 2007, and 2009 New York City Youth Risk Behavior Surveys to understand how sexual orientation affects high-school students' risk of getting pregnant or getting someone pregnant. Results show that a young person’s sexual orientation and the gender of their sexual partners was strongly linked with risk of getting pregnant or getting someone pregnant, suggesting that adolescent pregnancy prevention efforts focused exclusively on heterosexual young people may be too narrow.
Report: Ending Conversion Therapy: Supporting and Affirming LGBTQ Youth
This report presents research, clinical expertise, and expert consensus on therapeutic practices related to children's and adolescent's sexual orientation and gender identity, and makes the case for eliminating the use of conversion therapy among this population.
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.
Share with Youth: This Free Life
This campaign aims to prevent and reduce tobacco use among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) young adults, ages 18-24, who are occasional smokers. As highlighted in a recent blog post describing the campaign, LGBT young adults in the United States are nearly twice as likely to use tobacco as other young adults.
Resource: LGBTQ Youth: Voices of Trauma, Lives of Promise
This video features the voices of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth describing their experiences with trauma related to their identities and how mental health professionals have helped them.
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.
Report: Health-Related Behaviors among Students
This study aims to understand the health-related behaviors that contribute to negative health outcomes among sexual minority youth and how the prevalence of these behaviors compares with that of nonsexual minorities. Data came from the 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, which for the first time included questions about sexual identity and sex of sexual contacts. The report found that sexual minority youth experienced substantially higher levels of physical and sexual violence and bullying, and were at increased risk for suicide.
Sexual Risk Behavior Differences Among Sexual Minority High School Students — United States, 2015 and 2017
This report uses data from the 2015 and 2017 cycles of the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey to examine differences in eight sexual risk behaviors between subgroups of sexual minority youth and nonsexual minority youth, as well as within sexual minority youth.
ACYF Protective Factors Framework
The final report and materials from the ACYF Protective Factors Framework project are now available. The project, conducted by Development Services Group (DSG) from FY2011 through 2013, involved conducting a systematic literature review to identify protective factors across five ACYF populations (children and youth who are victims of child abuse or neglect; runaways and/or homeless; in or transitioning from foster care; exposed to domestic or community violence; pregnant and/or parenting teens) and developing a protective factors conceptual model and tools that can be useful to the field. Building on the literature review and input from experts and practitioners, development of the conceptual model included the preparation of: (a) crosswalks identifying and synthesizing the protective factors identified for ACYF populations, the populations and developmental stages for which they are most relevant, and evidence to support their inclusion and (b) models that depict the relationships between the identified factors and positive outcomes. The executive summary, literature review, appendices (with crosswalks and models), and accompanying research brief are available.
Advice on Applying for Local Funding
This blog entry from the Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Family and Youth Services Bureau, contains tips from staff of the William T. Grant Foundation on applying for local and regional funding.
Ask NCFY: 'How Do I Help Clients Try to Clear an Arrest Record?’
Many young people who have arrests on their record may have difficulty obtaining a job or securing housing. In this blog post, a lawyer provides advice for youth-serving professionals who help their clients move on by clearing their arrest records.
Analyze Data in Two Easy Steps
The new Simple Crosstab/Frequency tool from SAMHDA allows users to create their own tables and graphs using SAMHSA behavioral health data. No prior experience with the data is needed as users can simply choose variables from the presented options and click the submit button to create tables and graphs.
Child Welfare Information Gateway Logic Model Builder
The Child Welfare Information Gateway has developed two new Logic Model Builders, Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention and Family Support Programs and Postadoption Services Programs. These Logic Model Builders can help programs define their goals, outcomes, and indicators of success and select appropriate evaluation instruments.
CDCynergy
CDCynergy is a multimedia CD-ROM used for planning, managing, and evaluating public health communication programs. The tool was originally created for use within CDC. In addition to the basic edition, CDC program and partners have created additional versions of the tool focused on specific health topics. Copies of the CD can be ordered from the Public Health Foundation.
Community Mapping Connects Youth to Their Neighborhoods
This podcast from the National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth describes the work of a nonprofit organization that uses a tool called community mapping to help young people understand the assets and deficits that exist in their communities
Creating a Vision for Afterschool Partnerships
This tool is intended to help the growing number of new after school partnerships create a shared vision for their work.
Children’s Bureau Spotlight Videos
The Children’s Bureau has developed a suite of seven new videos that feature Children’s Bureau staff and leadership discussing their work with states, tribes, grantees, and community organizations and sharing insights about what they have learned through this work.
Coordinated School Health Program
Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Student (WSCC), is recommended by CDC as a strategy for improving students' health and learning in our nation’s schools. These site outline the rationale and goals for WSCC, provide a model framework for planning and implementing WSCC, and offer resources to help schools, districts, and states improve their school health programs.
Evaluation Manual: Step 1 – Engage Stakeholders
This 10-page document outlines typical stakeholder groups in public health programs, explains why stakeholders are important to evaluations and their role in evaluations, and also includes a checklist for steps in engaging stakeholders as well as a number of worksheets to help identify key stakeholders and determine what program related issues matter to them.
Enhancing Cultural Competence in Social Service Agencies: A Promising Approach to Serving Diverse Children and Families
This brief from HHS's Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation summarizes the state of the field on cultural competence in social services and provides service providers and administrators with concrete strategies for ongoing self-reflection and development. The brief also includes links and references for additional relevant resources, tools, and information.
Evidence-based Practice 101
This series of articles from the Department of Health and Human Services, Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB), National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth, articulates the FYSB’s position on implementing evidence-based practices in youth programming, provides the perspective of an FYSB grantee on implementing an evidence-based program, and discusses working with researchers to illustrate the effectiveness of programs.