This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, we discuss opportunity youth--young people ages 16 to 24 who are neither employed nor in school--including new research, policy recommendations, and program developments across the state. Thank you to our panelists: Kate Arthur, Community and Youth Services Director at Brighton Center; Dawn Carson, Street Outreach Supervisor at the Brighton Center; Roan Head, youth leader; and Darryl Young, Executive Director of the Coalition Supporting Young Adults. [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, we discuss updates relating to child nutrition and access to food, including summer EBT, federal investments, and more. Thank you to our panelists: Karena Cash, Advocacy Coordinator with Feeding Kentucky; Leigh Dixon, Community Support Advisor Kentucky Department for Community-Based Services; and Michael Halligan, CEO of God’s Pantry Food Bank and Chair of Feeding America’s Federal Policy Advisory Board.Families can text "food" to 877-877 to identify summer meals in [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual forum, we discuss the 2021 national KIDS COUNT Data Book, which was recently co-released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Kentucky Youth Advocates. We review Kentucky data included in the book and discuss federal and state recommendations to improve child well-being and ensure an equitable and expansive recovery from the pandemic. View the Kentucky State Data Profile Sheet (Spanish), and read our press release.  View the slideshow presentation featured [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, we discuss young children with special needs, including early identification of special needs and how communities, service providers, and policymakers can support these kids and their families. A special thank you to our panelists: Ivy Alexander, Executive Director of CHFS Office for Children with Special Health Care Needs; Judith Bradley, Founder of Jack Be Nimble; and Kristen Williams, Executive Director of Play Cousins Collective. Learn more about [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, we discuss how school districts are developing their trauma-informed plans, what needs to be included, and how plans will be implemented. As a result of 2019's Senate Bill 1, the School Safety and Resiliency Act, each local board of education must develop a plan for implementing a trauma-informed approach in its schools by July 1, 2021. A special thank you to our panelists, including Dr. Joe Bargione, [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, we discuss teens in foster care and the importance of fostering teens. Thank you to our panelists: Christa Bell, Director of the DCBS Division of Protection and Permanency; Eltuan Dawson, member of True Up and former foster youth; Kelly Pullen, Executive Director of the Aetna Better Health of Kentucky SKY program; and Sarah Stalker, foster parent with experience fostering teens.Learn more about foster care in Kentucky at kyfaces.ky.gov [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, we discuss caring for, and working with, kids and youth who have experienced trauma of any kind, including the trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic and racialized trauma. Thank you to our panelists: Samantha Behmke, Head Start Behavior Intervention Specialist with Ohio Valley Educational Cooperative; DeShara Doub, school mental health practitioner and Founder/CEO of Vision of Promise LLC; Jill Gay, Director of Programs and Services at Family Nurturing [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, we discuss supporting youth aging out of foster care in Kentucky. Thank you to our panelists, including Nikki Thornton, Executive Director of True Up; Paula Garner, President and CEO of Maryhurst; and Cynthia Schepers, a young adult who aged out of foster care. As of April 2021, True Up is officially an affiliated initiative of Kentucky Youth Advocates to expand on the organization's successful track record of [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, we discuss updates on the state of child care in Kentucky. Topics include how the American Rescue Plan funds will be spent, update on Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) enrollment and outreach efforts, the plan for staffed family child care networks, and a lookahead to the 2022 state legislative session. Thank you to our panelists: Dr. Sarah Vanover, Director of the Kentucky Division of Child Care; Senator [...]

This week on our Advocate Virtual Forum, Dr. Terry Brooks discusses child abuse prevention efforts and supporting Kentucky kids and their families with Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services Secretary Eric Friedlander. We also hear remarks from Governor Andy Beshear and Keith Inman, president of Kosair Charities, which founded and funds the Face It Movement. Learn more about the Face It Movement and view child maltreatment prevention resources and events at faceitmovement.org. [...]