Lets talk about sex.

FMC to Launch Web Series on Sex Education for Foster Youth On Tuesday, May 14th, Fostering Media Connections will host a launch party for its new web series entitled, "Let's Talk About Sex, With Foster Youth." According to Ryann Blackshere, a journalist with Fostering Media Connections, the purpose of the series is to address the current gap in information about sexual development and reproductive health among foster youth.

Recently, the importance of sex education among foster youth has received attention in the media. Additionally, Senator Leland Yee has introduced legislation which would require the child welfare system to ensure all youth in foster care receive information about sexual development and reproductive health. According to Blackshere, the web series would be easy way to bring this essential information to youth in foster care. Each episode consists of interviews with foster youth, their parents and experts on a range of topics covering sexual health, family planning and the psychological issues associated with sexuality.

Fostering Media Connections will screen its first episode on Tuesday, May 14th at the New Parkway Theater in Oakland at 6:00, followed by a panel discussion. According to Blackshere, the event is a good one for both youth and adults and is free of charge. For more information

Obama is helping us out!

Obama Budget Includes Funding for Pregnancy Prevention for Youth in Foster Care Last Tuesday, President Barack Obama released his federal budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2014, which for the first time includes funding for pregnancy prevention for youth in foster care. According to the budget document, “The proposal would create a new discretionary grant program to provide competitive funds to local and state child welfare agencies with the strongest and boldest plans that support interventions to reduce pregnancy for youth in foster care.”

In making the case for the investment, the budget cites the Midwest Study on the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth, which found that by age 21, 56 percent of foster youth had given birth to at least one child, a rate that is more than double the rate for the same-age general population. In California, SB 528 is working to address high rates of unintended pregnancy among foster youth by ensuring all youth in foster care have access to information about their sexual development and reproductive health starting at age 12.

To fund the $12 million program, the Administration proposes to cancel unobligated balances in Abstinence Education and repurpose them for comprehensive approaches to prevent pregnancy among youth in foster care. To read more about the proposal, check out a blog post by Sean Hughes in the Chronicle of Social Change.

EOPs is now Accepting aplication at SCC

Fill out a application and get involved!

Youth Employment Opportunity Program (YEOP

Need a JOB??? Get help from some pro's landing a great job. Don't pass this up!





http://www.edd.ca.gov/Jobs_and_Training/Services_for_Youth.htm

VSP is now hiring Seasonal Production Workers & Part-time Mail Openers

VSP is now hiring Seasonal Production Workers & Part-time Mail Openers Envision your future with a VSP Global company. Employees of VSP Global companies enjoy exceptional benefits, competitive compensation, and robust training and development programs. Minimum Qualifications: · Minimum one year experience in a production/manufacturing environment · Experience working in a fast-paced environment · Ability to meet standards for productivity and quality · Must pass a drug test · Ability to perform physical activities requiring bending kneeling and pulling/pushing · Ability to understand and follow procedures · Ability to lift up to 30 pounds · Ability to walk or stand up to 100% of the time April 1, 2013 Presentation begins at 10:00am Bring a resume. 3725 Marysville Boulevard Sacramento, CA 95838 R.S.V.P. (916) 286-8623 Begin the hiring process by e-mailing your resume to: gocegueda@gsul.org In subject line tag position you are applying for. ~*~Gricelda Ocegueda, MSW Workforce Development Manager ~*~Greater Sacramento Urban League 3725 Marysville Boulevard Sacramento, CA 95838,#(916) 286-8630 Fax (916) 915-1829 ~*E-mail: gocegueda@gsul.org

APRIL is National Child Abuse Prevention Month !!! Get Involved

https://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/preventionmonth/ This is such a good site to be involved with.

Bright Idea: How to look for signs of sex trafficking when young people come to your organization for shelter and support

The young woman first contacted Bellefaire JCB, a social service agency in Cleveland, complaining of a toothache. Later, she returned because she’d received a card about the organization’s trafficking program from the team that responded to her call. Letting her approach the program on her own terms was key to getting her in the door, says Karen McHenry, director of homeless youth and street outreach programs. “Some of the kids aren’t ready to come in,” she says. “We get many calls on our homeless youth hotline every day, but it’s whether the teen feels they can really trust us and that we can help get them to a different situation that matters the most." McHenry says a young person’s entry into a program is a key opportunity to identify whether he or she has been sexually exploited. But youth workers have to simultaneously exercise patience and vigilance. Sexual exploitation can be difficult to recognize, especially because most youth don’t see themselves as victims. Staff who recognize the signs of trafficking and know how to respectfully gather information, McHenry says, can better identify sexually exploited youth and direct them to the right services. “These kids’ pain and these wounds are very much beneath the surface,” she says. “You really need to be skilled in asking the right questions in a very non-threatening way.” Recognizing the Signs of Trafficking Enrolling workers in training programs for human trafficking and trauma-informed care can help them sensitively probe for answers that may not come up in a basic assessment of young people’s situation and needs, says Jennifer O’Farrell, director of the anti-human trafficking programs at Operation SafeHouse, a youth shelter in Riverside County, CA. When staff understand that major events like divorce and death may make teens more vulnerable to trafficking, she says, common intake questions about parental history take on more meaning. Learning about the underlying issues behind trafficking, such as a desire for love and belonging, can also help youth workers understand young people’s reluctance to leave their traffickers. Other warning signs to look for in a young person: •Is brought to your facility after being found at a local motel or truck stop. •Has a cell phone that rings constantly, often showing calls from an unknown number. •Arrives with large amounts of cash. •Seems overly distracted or tired. •Has untended physical or medical needs. Going Off-Script Trained staff members can also more easily steer the conversation in a new direction if they sense any signs of human trafficking. A good example, O’Farrell says, is the question "Do you have any tattoos?" Instead of recording the answer and moving on, youth workers can ask clients about the meaning and history behind their tattoos, which may be a sign of “branding” by a pimp or trafficker. At Bellefaire JCB, staff members often learn helpful information about a youth’s living situation by asking them if they have a house key. If the youth doesn’t have one, staff members ask what the youth needs to do to be invited inside. No matter what you ask, always keep the conversation nonjudgemental, O’Farrell and McHenry say. Of course, learning what youth have been through can take time. Operation SafeHouse staff mark the files of youth who they suspect have been trafficked by placing them in a different colored folder. Then, when the youth has become more comfortable at the shelter, O’Farrell talks to them one-on-one.

Foster Youth Services (FYS)

Foster Youth Services Website: www.sacfys.org Primary Contacts Virginia D'Amico, Project Specialist (916) 228-2746 vdamico@scoe.net Linda Zall, Project Specialist (916) 228-2243 lzall@scoe.net Trish Kennedy, Director (916) 228-2730 pkennedy@scoe.net -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Sacramento Foster Youth Services (FYS) Program is part of a statewide system of programs designed to meet the unique educational needs of foster children and youth. The intent of the Foster Youth Services Program is to provide educational support services for children and youth in the foster care system to promote their academic and personal success. The Sacramento County Office of Education (SCOE) FYS Program services include: liaison services between placement and educational agencies; notification to districts regarding placement of students in foster care; training for schools, partner agencies, foster families, and group home staff; assistance for school districts to design and implement support services for foster children; data collection to monitor and evaluate services; advocacy services to foster youth that increase academic achievement; and maintenance of a secure database containing basic education and health information for all foster children and youth in the county. Participants Sacramento County foster children and youth from Sacramento County school districts, SCOE Special Education and Court and Community Schools Publications and Materials Foster Youth Services Program Brochure This brochure offers information about the countywide program and its services. This publication may be requested by phone. What School Office Staff Need to Know about Foster Care This pamphlet provides basic information for school site staff to assist foster children and their caretakers, and outlines legal issues, how the system of care works and the various agencies and adults involved in the foster child's life.This publication may be requested by phone. Partners Foster youth organizations, school districts, health and human services agencies, probation and law enforcement agencies, courts, foster care agencies and other interested groups and individuals

Support Parenting Youth in Foster Care.

Young parents in the foster care system face both the
challenges of being in foster care as well as the
challenges of being a young, often single, parent.
Studies of both groups have found that they will
experience higher than average rates of poverty,
unemployment and low educational attainment. While
this has long been the case, the issue of parenting
youth in foster care has become more pressing with the
implementation of extended foster care in California.

Fortunately, California State Senator Leland Yee
has introduced Senate Bill 528, legislation that will
make important changes to how the foster care
system serves parenting youth.

SB 528 does four things:

ensures that there is adequate planning for
pregnant youth in foster care by implementing
specialized conferences that have been piloted
in Los Angeles;
prioritizes children of parenting foster youth for
subsidized child care, allowing the youth to
pursue their education;
ensures that all children in foster care have
access to medically-accurate, age-appropriate
reproductive health education to prevent
unintended pregnancy;
requires the State of California to track the
number of parenting youth in foster care;
currently we do not know how many parenting
youth are in foster care.

SB 528 has the potential to make a real difference
in the lives of young parents in foster care. SB 528
will be heard in the Senate Human Services
Committee on April 9th. To support SB 528, there
are three things you can do:

1. Send a letter of support by March 29th
2. Endorse SB 528, as an individual or an
organization
3. Attend the Senate Human Services hearing on
Tuesday, April 9th

And of course- please forward this information
along to others interested in improving outcomes
for parenting youth in foster care.

SB 528 is sponsored by the Alliance for Children’s
Rights, Children’s Law Center of California, the
John Burton Foundation and Public Counsel.

Free job workshop at SCC

Thursday march, 21. 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
Place: 2115 12th ave North corner of campus.