APPLY NOW
The Center for the Study of Social Policy seeks to honor innovative initiatives that reach cis and trans young women and girls of color and create opportunities for their well-being and success. These innovations disrupt the trajectory experienced by too many young women and girls from the negative effects of gender, gender identity and racial discrimination; personal and community violence; and involvement in foster care, juvenile justice and other public systems.
 
The Accelerating Change Award celebrates the most compelling and creative interventions making a difference in young women and girls' everyday lives. Selected recipients will join a network of partners to share ideas and help accelerate positive change for young women and girls of color nationally.

If your organization is interested in submitting an application for the Center for the Study of Social Policy's 2017 Accelerating Change Award , please apply here . The deadline to apply is May 8th, 2017
 

NEWS & RESOURCES

REGISTER NOW: Promoting Child and Family Well-Being through Civil Rights Compliance

Federal civil rights laws protect children and families from unlawful discrimination in the administration of child welfare programs, activities and services. Yet, racial and ethnic disparities and disproportionality persist in child welfare systems across the country.
 
In a joint webinar, hear from the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights about their joint efforts to link federal civil rights principles to child welfare practice .
 
The webinar will take place on June 8, 2017, 2:00-3:30 pm EST. Register here.

A Right-Wing Think Tank is Trying to Bring Down the Indian Child Welfare Act. Why?

Si nce 1978 the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) has been protecting American Indian children. The Goldwater Institute disagrees and asserts ICWA subjects American Indian children to racial discrimination similar to Jim Crow. Learn more  here .
 
How Prison Disproportionately Hurts the Health of Minority Children
Research shows that the incarceration of a parent can lead to negative health outcomes for children. However, these negative  outcomes are particularly disparate in the United States which has a  higher rate of incarceration than any other country. According to researchers, "[t]he emerging literature on the family and community effects of mass incarceration points to negative health impacts on the female partners and children of incarcerated men, and raises concerns that excessive incarceration could harm entire communities and thus might partly underlie health disparities both in the U.S.A. and between the U.S.A. and other developed countries." Read more  here

From Denial to Desperation: Misrepresentations on Child Welfare and Race 

In his latest piece for The Chronicle of Social Change, Richard Wexler addresses misrepresentations of The Alliance for Racial Equity in Child Welfare, "inference peddling" and myths about the child welfare and race more broadly. Read the full column  here .


LISTEN NOW
 
NEW Podcast Series: Protective Factors Part 1 & 2

Child Welfare Information Gateway recently released a  two-part podcast series
highlighting protective factors. The series features Cailin O'Connor, senior policy analyst at CSSP and Tabitha Kelly, division chief of the Division of Child and Family Services, Arlington, VA. 

Protective Factors Part 1 delves into protective factors definitions and how professionals can identify and recognize protective factors when engaging parents. Protective Factors Part 2 covers why a protective factors approach was identified and valued by the agency, how staff are trained and reinforced to execute a protective factors approach and lessons learned about how agency leadership can lead staff to embrace the shift toward protective factors.

Access both podcasts and related resources below: 

Protective Factors Part 1

Protective Factors Part 2



PUBLICATION

 
Let Her Learn: Stopping School Pushout for Girls in Foster Care

Girls across the country are being pushed out of schools as a result of discriminatory discipl inary policies and the continued failure of schools to identify and adequately address trauma. This is increasingly alarming for girls of color involved in the child welfare system as they are likely to experience frequent residential and school changes and face added layers of trauma and increased difficulty staying in school as a result.  According to the National Women's Law Center, Black girls are 22.9 percent of the girls in foster care but are  the largest group, or 35.6 percent, of girls experiencing more than 10 residential  placements.

The National Women's Law Center provides an overview of the experiences of girls in foster care in their new report, Let Her Learn: Stopping School Pushout for Girls in Foster Care. The report is a part of a larger series addressing the educational barriers girls face and offering recommendations to address them. Read the report here
 
Access the entire series here


UPCOMING

Join the Network
The Alliance for Racial Equity in Child Welfare has formed the Social Service Administrators Racial Equity Network to facilitate information sharing and strategy building among a community of child welfare and social service administrators committed to achieving equity for children and families involved with the child welfare system.
Through this network, child welfare and social service administrators dissect the range of effective policies and system improvement strategies that promote racial equity and improved outcomes for children and families of color. The network includes thought leaders and administrators from social service and human service systems, as each of these broader systems provides critically important supports and services.

Please contact Precious Graham at the Center for the Study of Social Policy if you're interested in joining this network.

About the Alliance
Established in 2004, the Alliance for Racial Equity in Child Welfare provides national leadership in support of improved outcomes for children and families of color involved with the nation's child welfare system. The Alliance is guided by a coalition of national organizations, state and local leaders, judges, researchers, practitioners, policymakers, advocates and parents, as well as alumni and youth who have directly experienced the child welfare system. 

 

The Alliance is supported by funding from the Annie E. Casey foundation and is managed by the Center for the Study of Social Policy.