By Margarett Alexander, Alexander Law Office For over twenty years, I have served as a Guardian ad Litem (GAL) and court-appointed counsel, primarily in Barren and Metcalfe counties. I stand in courtrooms on behalf of hundreds of children who did not choose to be there and who needed someone whose only job was to speak for their best interests. I became a GAL because I have spent my adult life [...]
Dr. Shannon Moody and Kosair for Kids Face It Movement partners discuss TEN-4 Day – bringing attention to the TEN-4-FACESp Bruising Rule annually on October 4th – and prevention strategies focused on keeping kids safe from abuse and supporting families. Guests include Dr. Nancy Weaver, a Professor at the College for Public Health and Social Justice at St Louis University and the founder of Support Over Silence for KIDS framework to address public child [...]
Dr. Shannon Moody and guests discuss the state of kinship care in Kentucky and the importance of a kin-first system. Guests include Norma Hatfield, kinship caregiver and President of the Kinship Families Coalition of Kentucky from Hardin County; Dr. Jay Miller, Dean of the College of Social Work at the University of Kentucky and a foster and kinship alum; and Angel Todd, nonprofit professional, entrepreneur, community advocate, and kinship caregiver from Jefferson County. [...]
By Sarah Kidder, Executive Director of Kentucky Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs On August 26th, Kentucky Attorney General Coleman led the charge in reaching a landmark multi-state $17.1 billion settlement with Meta holding them accountable for the harms caused to young people by the social media company. This historic settlement comes at a pivotal moment to address young people’s mental health, well-being, and safety. It will bring unprecedented child-safety protections to current [...]
Dr. Shannon Moody and guests discuss the recent settlement with Meta, the impact of social media on young people, and what’s next for ensuring Kentucky’s settlement funds are directed to youth programming and services that promote positive experiences and connections. Guests include Aleah Stigall, youth advocate and founder of Disconnect to Connect - Let’s Get Real; Elizabeth Gaines, Founder and CEO of the Children’s Funding Project which backbones Fund IRL; and Jaimee Seitz, a [...]
By Jennifer Nguyen, Intern at Kentucky Youth Advocates When I first ventured into my internship at Kentucky Youth Advocates (KYA), my understanding of the U.S. Census was fairly basic: it was a broad survey that happened every ten years, something the “adults” in my household handled, and a process that felt completely distant from my everyday life. During my first week, sitting down with my supervisor to dive into our [...]
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org LOUISVILLE, KY – Kentucky kids won big today with the multistate settlement with Meta. Kentucky will receive $358 million in one of the largest state consumer protection settlements in the country’s history. Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman has been at the forefront of ensuring that social media platforms are held accountable for their role in the youth mental health crisis and deliberate addictive platform design. In the agreement, settlements are to [...]
Dr. Shannon Moody is joined by three grantmaking partners in the Bloom Kentucky initiative: Allison Adams, President and CEO of the Foundation for Healthy Kentucky; Kristin Walker Collins, CEO of the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky; and Sonya Carrico, Director of Policy at Interact for Health. They discuss Bloom Kentucky’s five years of impact in policy change, community engagement, and youth empowerment. Learn more at kyyouth.org/bloom. [...]
By Claire Elmore, KYA Intern What is A Home for Every Child? Earlier this month, the federal Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announced that 50 states had joined “A Home for Every Child,” an initiative primarily focused on achieving a 1:1 ratio between available foster homes and children in foster care. The initiative launched in November 2025, with Kentucky among the first cohort of states to join. Beyond improving the ratio, the initiative [...]
Dr. Shannon Moody is joined by KYA’s Senior Policy & Advocacy Director, Alicia Whatley, and Data & Research Director, Karena Cash, to discuss their recent presentation to the Interim Joint Committee on Families and Children in Frankfort. They dig into Kentucky’s child well-being trends in the latest national KIDS COUNT Data Book and highlight the big opportunity for communities and the state to get ready for the 2030 Census. Learn more at kyyouth.org/data/. [...]
