Blog – Page 42 – Kentucky Youth Advocates

See Us, Support Us: October is Parental Incarceration Awareness Month

See Us, Support Us: October is Parental Incarceration Awareness Month

Did you know that in Kentucky more than 1 in 10 children have had a parent separated from them due to incarceration? This shared sentence is not only an Adverse Childhood Experience but research also shows that children of incarcerated parents are, on average, six times more likely to become incarcerated themselves. The traumatic experiences of young people who have a parent incarcerated are too often overlooked or misunderstood. Not only does having a parent [...]

By Crystal Willis|2022-10-19T15:49:13-04:00October 11th, 2022|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Justice, Race Equity|

Solutions to Prevent and Mitigate Educational Disengagement in Louisville

Solutions to Prevent and Mitigate Educational Disengagement in Louisville

"I wish maybe more people would have reached out. We need a lot more people involved to reach out to help kids that are experiencing challenges outside of school." - Louisville Young Adult Educational disengagement is one of the most critical issues affecting the Louisville community. Earlier this year, the Coalition Supporting Young Adults, Kentucky Youth Advocates, The Book Works, and several young adult stakeholders conducted research to better understand factors that lead to educational [...]

By Carli Mosby|2022-10-05T09:08:04-04:00October 5th, 2022|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Education|

Update on Kentucky’s Thriving Families, Safer Children Efforts

Update on Kentucky’s Thriving Families, Safer Children Efforts

Thriving Families, Safer Children (TFSC) is a first-of-its-kind effort of the U.S. Children’s Bureau, Casey Family Programs, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Prevent Child Abuse America, and the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for Disease Control Prevention. The partnership is working in 22 sites, including Kentucky, from coast to coast and a sovereign tribal nation. The Thriving Families effort seeks to demonstrate that intentional, coordinated investment in a full continuum [...]

By Valerie Frost|2023-06-13T10:12:07-04:00September 29th, 2022|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Race Equity|

Kinship Families Coalition of KY: Recognizing September as Kinship Care Month

Kinship Families Coalition of KY: Recognizing September as Kinship Care Month

September is National Kinship Care Month, and it is also recognized in Kentucky as Kinship Care Month by Governor Andy Beshear. It is important to continue lifting up the voices of our relative and fictive kin caregivers to ensure the children in their care have every opportunity to grow up to be successful and thriving Kentucky citizens. Kinship and fictive kin caregivers continue to step up for children in Kentucky to ensure they stay safely [...]

By Shannon Moody|2022-09-29T12:39:00-04:00September 29th, 2022|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Child Welfare & Safety|

A Look at the Mixed Delivery Preschool Model

A Look at the Mixed Delivery Preschool Model

The September meeting of the Early Childhood Education Task Force focused a large portion of its time gaining an understanding of the options for mixed-delivery preschool, which is a model defined as mixing two or more of the three major types of early childhood education: Private Child Care State-Funded Public Preschool Head start (for 3 to 5 year olds) or Early Head Start (for infants up to 3 years) This blending is an optional model [...]

By Sarah Vanover|2022-09-29T08:48:59-04:00September 29th, 2022|Blog, Economic Security, Education|

Much Needed Updates Proposed for KTAP

Much Needed Updates Proposed for KTAP

Access to cash is essential for families to handle everyday expenses and endure emergencies. It is especially important for very low income families who may not have the resources and savings needed when big purchases and unplanned expenses arise, such as a broken bone, car repairs, or school supplies. The Kentucky Transitional Assistance Program (KTAP) is a vital support for families living below the Federal Poverty Line, providing this cash support alongside the training and [...]

By Karena Cash|2023-02-14T09:48:39-05:00September 28th, 2022|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Economic Security|

Celebrating New Benefits for Child Care Employees

Celebrating New Benefits for Child Care Employees

With the help of the American Rescue Plan funds, Kentucky will begin awarding child care subsidies for all employees that work in licensed and certified child care programs regardless of the role that they work, such as teachers, kitchen staff, etc. After a year of brainstorming how to best retain and attract child care employees and strengthen the child care infrastructure, Kentucky is establishing this categorical eligibility support for certified and licensed child care employees [...]

By Sarah Vanover|2022-09-22T09:33:18-04:00September 22nd, 2022|Blog, Economic Security, Education|

The Latest Trends in Child Poverty and Health Insurance

The Latest Trends in Child Poverty and Health Insurance

Last week, the U.S. Census Bureau released its annual data on poverty and health insurance. This annual release of single-year data follows the release of the national KIDS COUNT Data Book, both highlighting key indicators of child well-being. Because we know that what gets measured gets changed, below are key data takeaways from the Census Bureau’s release. The data reveals that 22.1% of Kentucky children lived in poverty in 2021, which is not significantly different [...]

By Karena Cash|2022-09-21T18:08:46-04:00September 21st, 2022|Blog, Economic Security, Health, Race Equity|

Call to Action: Let’s Fund Justice!

Call to Action: Let’s Fund Justice!

What’s new at the federal level for justice related policies? Recently Matt Cartwright, representative of Pennsylvania, presented a bill that would direct federal funding to areas of commerce, justice, science, and related agencies. In other words, this bill will help provide essential resources to advanced criminal justice. House Resolution 8256 has been read twice and referred to the Appropriations Committee but unfortunately, no further progress has been made. Sometime soon, we hope to see this [...]

By Crystal Willis|2022-09-20T19:57:52-04:00September 20th, 2022|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Justice, Race Equity, Youth Justice|

What do Kentucky’s young people want from their Governor?

What do Kentucky’s young people want from their Governor?

Kentuckians will decide who they want for Governor in November of 2023 – whether that’s a second term for the current Governor Andy Beshear or his Republican opponent who will be chosen next May. While Kentucky kids cannot vote, they have a major stake in who gets chosen and what the Governor’s priorities will be. As we look ahead to the 2023 Governor’s race, we want to hear from young people directly about their hopes [...]

By Patricia Tennen|2022-09-26T11:18:13-04:00September 13th, 2022|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security, Education, Health, Justice, Race Equity, Youth Justice|