There is a swirl of speculation about the topic. Is the Governor going to call a special session, and – if so – what will be on “the call?” Or what are the priorities emerging at this very moment in Cabinet-level planning for the 2014-16 budget? Any talk about budgets offers us both hope and worry. Will it spotlight the very real need for fundamental and systemic changes in the state’s tax and budget structures [...]
The national rate of locking up young people in trouble with the law dropped by more than 40 percent over a 15-year period, with no decreases in public safety, according to a new report released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation today. The KIDS COUNT Data Snapshot indicates that the number of young people in correctional facilities in the United States on a single day fell to 70,792 in 2010, from a high of 107,637 [...]
This post originally appeared as a Letter to the Editor in the Courier Journal on February 27, 2013 A critical bill now stands before the Senate that would create a child fatality and near fatality review panel. The creation of this panel would be one of the biggest steps forward our state can take to identify trends and solutions to address child deaths and near deaths that occur as a result of abuse and neglect. [...]
Since 2009, I've spent many hours working with state and local officials and advocates on changing the way roads are designed and built to accommodate people of all ages and abilities. This concept, known as complete streets, means thinking strategically about how to make streets friendlier and safer for all users of the road including motorists, pedestrians, cyclists, public transportation users, etc. Many of the decisions made by our state on accommodating all users are contingent [...]
Marylee Underwood, staff attorney, Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs “We applaud the Kentucky House of Representatives for recognizing that human trafficking is a very real problem in Kentucky and unanimously passing House Bill 3 today. This bill will ensure that child victims get the services they need to heal and provide better resources for law enforcement officers and prosecutors.” Terry Brooks, executive director, Kentucky Youth Advocates “Today, the House showed bipartisan collaboration by unanimously [...]
Today, the House Judiciary Committee took an important step in protecting vulnerable children and youth from human trafficking in Kentucky by passing House Bill 3. We applaud the House Judiciary Committee for standing up for children today. We also want to thank Representative Overly, Representative Wuchner and the many other co-sponsors of this bill for their leadership and commitment to this issue. Kentucky Youth Advocates, along with more than fifty organizations in Kentucky, adopted this [...]
This post originally appeared as an Op-Ed in the Herald Leader here. A million years ago, when I was a high school student in Jefferson County, schools were overcrowded to the point where 200 to 300 students were clustered in an auditorium or cafeteria to watch instructional television as the means of teaching. Because of those outrageous student/teacher ratios, we frequently graded our own papers. Maybe it was just me, but a trend line emerged: My grades [...]
Guest Post by Gretchen Hunt, Training Coordinator, Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs The statistics are staggering. Nationally, between 100,000 and 300,000 children are vulnerable to being trafficked into commercial sex in the United States. Runaways and homeless youth are particularly vulnerable, with one in three being exploited in commercial sex in the first 48 hours of being on the streets. The average age of entry into prostitution in this country is between twelve and [...]
Jeffersontown, KY-The Governor’s forward looking message gives hope to Kentucky’s kids. The broad-based agenda around revenue and adequacy is an imperative, not an option. It is an imperative it we want to protect Kentucky’s kids from abuse and neglect. It is an imperative if we want Kentucky’s kids to emerge as world-class learners. It is an imperative if we want Kentucky’s families not to feel the high price of being poor. We applaud the Governor’s call for [...]
The following letter was printed in the Courier-Journal. You could not open The Courier-Journal last winter without recoiling at the latest tragedy and cover-up around child fatalities due to abuse and neglect. A turning point for me came on a snowy February Saturday morning when 300 Kentucky citizens from 80 counties came together around a summit, sponsored by Kentucky Youth Advocates, about this issue. That morning, there was genuine outrage as the Cabinet for Health and [...]
