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Federal Investments in School-Based Health

By Crystal Willis, MSSW Intern at Kentucky Youth Advocates In March, Congress made a commitment to the nation's most vulnerable children by investing in school-based health services. Signed into federal law on Tuesday March 15, the 2022 Omnibus Appropriations package includes $30 million for school-based health centers. This is a $25 million increase from fiscal year 2021, which will allow for more services to be provided and is a tremendous win for children and families [...]

By |2022-04-04T15:31:27-04:00April 4th, 2022|Blog, Education, Health|
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Update on Priorities for Kids in the Final Days of KYGA22

The 2022 Kentucky General Assembly has wrapped up Day 58 of the 60-day legislative session and there are many key Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children wins to already celebrate. These priority bills have passed the Kentucky House and Senate and have been delivered to the Governor: Senate Bill 8 to strengthen points of the child welfare system, from child maltreatment prevention to investigation to healing and out-of-home care – signed by the Governor! Senate Bill 97 [...]

By |2022-04-06T09:42:03-04:00March 31st, 2022|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security, Education, Health, Race Equity, Youth Justice|
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Removing Barriers for a Parent & Their Children to Leave an Abusive Relationship

By Shontelle Davis, MSSW Intern at Kentucky Youth Advocates Kentucky has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in the United States, with 45.3 percent of women and 35.5 percent of men experiencing domestic violence in their lifetime. Domestic violence can take many forms, including chronic yelling, controlling behaviors, isolation, threats of suicide or murder, threats involving weapons, threats to take the children, and serious injuries.  Survivors of intimate partner violence lose a total [...]

By |2022-03-24T09:40:43-04:00March 24th, 2022|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security|
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KYGA22 Blueprint Policy Mini Series: HB 499

Listen in as Karena Cash, Policy and Advocacy Analyst at Kentucky Youth Advocates, shares more on Blueprint for Kentucky's Children priority House Bill 499, which would establish the framework for the Employee Child Care Assistance Partnership. This measure offers Kentucky the critical opportunity to strengthen families’ access to high-quality child care so they can participate in the workforce. ADVOCATES urge the Senate Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor Committee to support this bill! Stay [...]

By |2022-03-24T09:49:28-04:00March 24th, 2022|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security|
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The Time Is Right to Support Social Workers

By Crystal Willis and Shontelle Davis, MSSW Interns at Kentucky Youth Advocates Although the field of social work is broad, we all have one common goal – to leave this place BETTER than we found it! The role of a social worker is to identify and address the needs of individuals, families, and communities. Social workers take on many roles that include advocating, educating, researching, lobbying, case management, therapy, and much more.  March is Social [...]

By |2022-03-22T18:57:10-04:00March 22nd, 2022|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety|
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The Primary Caregiver Law & Minimizing the Impact of Parental Incarceration

Having a loved one who is incarcerated impacts everyone, especially children. Kentucky has the 6th highest rate of parental incarceration with more than one in ten children having a parent who is incarcerated and more than half of all incarcerated adults – 64% of women and 55% of men – being parents. Parental incarceration is an Adverse Childhood Experience, or ACE, because it can negatively affect a child’s short and long-term behavioral, educational, and health [...]

By |2022-03-22T18:30:41-04:00March 22nd, 2022|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Justice|
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March Madness for Kids’ Nutrition

For most Kentuckians, March is a sacred time of basketball and brackets. For our school nutrition professionals and students, however, March is also the home of National School Breakfast Week and National Nutrition Month.  Throughout the pandemic, one slam dunk for kids has been the USDA Child Nutrition Programs, which ensure kids across Kentucky have access to at least two meals a day during the school year and one a day during the summer months. [...]

By |2022-03-10T16:02:57-05:00March 10th, 2022|Blog, Economic Security, Education, Health|
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Guest Blog: Benefits of Establishing the Employee Child Care Assistance Partnership

By Mandy Simpson Here's what we know: Kentucky families are struggling to afford child care. With annual costs reaching up to $11,000 for one infant, this is the largest expense in too many Kentucky homes. Parents are being forced to choose between their careers and caring for their children—and we know which choice they're making. A lack of access to child care is a primary contributor to Kentucky's labor shortage and chronically low workforce participation [...]

By |2022-03-10T17:16:26-05:00March 1st, 2022|Blog, Economic Security|
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Youth Voice: Preventing the Next Generation from Becoming Addicted to Nicotine

By Hannah Abdon Picture this: It’s another beautiful high school day when, after lunch, you need to wash your hands and get ready for the last of your classes. Going into the bathrooms at a time like this is almost asking for trouble. You enter and, sure enough, you are greeted with about half a dozen freshmen standing around the sinks using juuls and other E-cigarettes. Unfortunately, they don’t respond too well to outsiders and [...]

By |2022-06-30T16:13:26-04:00February 28th, 2022|Blog, Health|
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Children’s Dental Health Month & Policies for Good Oral Health

This blog was originally posted by the Kentucky Oral Health Coalition.   As the Kentucky legislature considers hundreds of bills and prioritizes investments in the next biennial state budget, it’s imperative that we as a Commonwealth ensure that all Kentuckians, including our youngest, have access to the support they need for their healthy development – and a healthy mouth. We know that health impacts every aspect of a child’s life and is a key component of [...]

By |2022-02-24T14:50:57-05:00February 24th, 2022|Blog, Health|
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