skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Help for Foster Youths During Stressful Holiday Season

play audio
Play

Monday, December 6, 2021   

DENVER - Some 24,000 teenagers in foster care across the nation officially become adults each year; in Colorado it happens on their 18th birthday. They are expected to move out and start their lives on their own.

But Katie Facchinello, communications director with the group Illuminate Colorado, said kids without a forever family face many challenges, including finding a job and a place to live, and the holiday season can be especially hard.

"Many of these young people that leave the child welfare system without a strong support system in place face homelessness and substance-use issues," said Facchinello.

Within two to four years after leaving foster care, studies have shown that four in ten young adults experienced homelessness or incarceration, and almost half did not graduate from high school or were unemployed.

Colorado's county case workers can provide financial support for housing and education until young people turn 21, and Facchinello said resources are also available at 'UnitedWayDenver.org.'

Michelle Mares - foster, kin, and adoptive parent training manager with the Kempe Center - said many young people who have aged out of foster care lack basic life skills, such as how to do laundry or cook dinner for themselves.

She said adult volunteers can make a big difference, just by being a reliable voice on the telephone or making time to meet up for coffee.

"Mentorship is so important," said Mares, "and it is not (necessarily) a lifelong commitment. There are a lot of people out in our communities who are willing and able to share some time and space with our young adults."

Facchinello said Colorado's child welfare system is working to transition into a child and family well-being network. The emphasis has shifted to strengthening families facing economic hardships, to ensure that kids don't end up exiting the system without a safety net.

"When we look at universal preschool, and access to child care, paid leave," said Facchinello, "those pieces are known to prevent child maltreatment. That's how we strengthen families. That's how we avoid children ending up without a family."




get more stories like this via email
more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


Social Issues

play sound

Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

Social Issues

play sound

Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


The U.S. teaching workforce remains primarily white while the percentage of Black teachers has declined. However, the percentage of Asian and Latinx teachers is rising.(WavebreakMediaMicro/Adobestock)

Social Issues

play sound

Education advocates are calling on lawmakers to increase funding for programs to combat the teacher shortage. Around 37% of schools nationwide …

Environment

play sound

New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021