skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Tuesday, May 6, 2025

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

Trump admin to halt new grant funding to Harvard; Environmental groups fight plan to add warehouses in CA's Inland Empire; Detroit area pollution worsens, as 'clean vehicle' debate rolls on; Appreciation can go a long way for AL teachers under pressure.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Trump administration offers $1,000 to undocumented migrants to self deport. Democrats oppose Social Security changes and Trump's pick to lead the agency, and Congress debates unpopular easing of limits on oil and gas drilling on public lands.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rural students who face hurdles going to college are getting noticed, Native Alaskans may want to live off the land but obstacles like climate change loom large, and the Cherokee language is being preserved by kids in North Carolina.

Family Preservation Project helps keep VA families together

play audio
Play

Wednesday, January 3, 2024   

Virginia legal advocates are partnering on a program to keep families together.

The Family Preservation Project is a collaboration between the Virginia Poverty Law Center and the Virginia Legal Aid Justice Center. The goal is to create a better approach to family separation cases with improvements to the whole system.

An Annie E. Casey Foundation report found neglect is a growing reason Virginia kids are placed in foster care.

Valerie L'Herrou, deputy director of the Center for Family Advocacy at the Virginia Poverty Law Center, said sometimes, it is a different story.

"Something like an eviction, or some other legal matter, can precipitate children going into foster care when their families have done nothing wrong," L'Herrou pointed out.

The two organizations say they are bringing a holistic approach to legal work, providing wraparound legal services for evictions and family separation, along with parent advocates who've been through the system guiding others through separations.

Virginia's Promoting Safe and Stable Families program also helps connect families and children to necessary services to get through a crisis.

One sticking point L'Herrou and others want to change is the price attorneys are paid for taking on family separation cases. The flat rate of $120 per case has turned into a deterrent for those who charge much higher rates for hourly services. She said this creates a lack of proper legal representation for families.

"Attorneys are just not accepting the cases because basically, they can't afford to," L'Herrou acknowledged. "Even when they do, they're not doing anything -- they're not putting any time into it -- because in their minds simply, showing up to court is enough. So, one of the recommendations is to raise that $120 flat fee to $445."

For the first time in 20 years, the Virginia State Bar Association will be advocating at the Virginia General Assembly on the matter, seeking methods to improve the quality of legal services for certain child dependency cases. The association's request will go before the state Supreme Court for approval.

Disclosure: The Virginia Poverty Law Center contributes to our fund for reporting on Civil Rights, Housing/Homelessness, Poverty Issues, Social Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
The Ohio Education Association estimates Ohio public schools would be underfunded by $2.75 billion under the House version of the state budget. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

As Ohio lawmakers debate the state budget, advocates for public schools are voicing concerns proposed cuts and policy changes could harm children's …


Environment

play sound

A big warehouse project proposed for the Inland Empire is being challenged in court Wednesday by a coalition of environmental justice groups…

Social Issues

play sound

Groups fighting hunger in Oregon are urging residents to speak up if they are concerned about the cuts Congress could make to food, health care and …


Eduardo Mata Montessori in Dallas received a technology award package valued at $1,000, which included their choice of tech "essentials," such as laptops, keyboards, projectors, headphones and speakers. (wavebreak3/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Across Texas, 63 schools are participating in a Parent Teacher Association digital literacy program known as "PTA Connected: Ready, Tech, Go!." The …

Social Issues

play sound

Seattle's City Council voted last week to put the city's Democracy Voucher Program on the ballot to be renewed in August and supporters of the program…

The Agriculture Enterprise Area Program, under the Farmland Preservation program, offers additional financial incentives for communities who commit to keeping land in agriculture use for a specified period. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Wisconsin's investment in preserving its agricultural land is offering some solace to farmers and landowners while helping them save money amid a clim…

Social Issues

play sound

Minnesota law requires K-12 school libraries to be staffed by a licensed media specialist but survey results indicated almost half of districts have d…

Environment

play sound

Today, the Republican budget package on the nation's energy policy gets a closer look from the House Natural Resources Committee in Congress…

 

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