Hello Friends of Grandfamilies,
Below you will find some recent updates and resources from the field. If you know anyone who may be interested in receiving these alerts, please forward this to them and/or encourage them to sign up here.
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2022 State of Grandfamilies Report Release Event
- Just One Week Away!
Generations United will release our 2022 State of Grandfamilies report, Together at the Table: Supporting the Nutrition, Health, and Well-Being of Grandfamilies, on Wednesday, November 2. The report release event will feature highlights from the report, a conversation with members of grandfamilies facilitated by author and journalist Michelle Singletary, and the presentation of Generations United’s Grandfamilies Champion Award.
The event will be held in-person at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., and it will also be simultaneously live-streamed. It will take place on Wednesday, November 2, from 12:30-1:30 p.m. ET. Register today!
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The 22nd Global Intergenerational Conference is coming
- July 26-28, 2023
Generations United's Global Intergenerational Conference will be held July 26-28, 2023 in Washington, D.C. Be sure to save the dates and start planning to join us. This will be our first in-person conference since 2019 and the first time back in D.C. in 10 years. Bookmark the conference website for updates. Want to help make the 2023 conference an incredible success? Join our Program Committee! Please complete this form to volunteer.
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Exemplary Kinship/Grandfamilies Policy, Practice, and Program Designation
The Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network: A National Technical Assistance Center (Network) is seeking to identify and designate exemplary kinship/grandfamilies policies, practices, and programs to elevate good work and share exemplary strategies with others. The Network encourages applications from government agencies in states, tribes, and territories, as well as private kinship navigator programs and other community-based organizations that serve grandfamilies and kinship families. Apply today! For more information, check out the application.
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Legal Relationships and Public Benefits
for Kinship/Grandfamilies Webinar
Our Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network: A National Technical Assistance Center (Network) will host a webinar that will take place on Thursday, November 10, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET. The presenters for this webinar are Ana Beltran, JD, the director of the Network, and Heidi Redlich Epstein, the director of Kinship Policy and State Projects at the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law. Register today!
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Calling all Indian Child Welfare Act Supporters
The United States Supreme Court will hear oral arguments of Haaland v. Brackeen, the case concerning the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). The Supreme Court’s decision will ultimately determine whether the 44-year-old law that ensures Native children remain connected to their familial network, culture, and community will remain intact.
Here are three things you can do today:
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Share a @ProtectICWA post. ICWA is still unknown or misunderstood by so many. Share a message from the Protect ICWA Campaign on your social media. You can find it on Instagram and Twitter.
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Save the date: Wednesday, November 9. Join NICWA in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, November 9, 2022, for an in-person event during the Supreme Court oral arguments. Please feel free to invite families, leaders, singers, dancers, traditional practitioners, elders, knowledge keepers, youth, and allies to join as they respectfully demonstrate support for ICWA on that important day. Please register on Eventbrite
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The Administration for Community Living is Now Accepting Comments on the National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers
Comments received from the public will be used to inform the ongoing work of two Congressionally mandated caregiving advisory councils, as well as to inform future updates to the strategy. Comments can be submitted via an online form.
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Kinship Navigator Programs
Around the Country
The Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network: A National Technical Assistance Center (Network) has compiled a list of kinship navigator programs. The list includes entries for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Below the name of each kinship navigator program entry, there is information on locations served, a list of available services, eligibility criteria for families, and a link to the program website or other contact information. Two of the programs included in this list have been rated by the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse: Arizona Kinship Support Services and Ohio's Kinship Supports Intervention/ProtectOHIO. Access the list here.
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Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): Facts for Grandfamilies and Kinship Families
This fact sheet, produced in partnership with our subject matter experts at the Food Research & Action Center, Alexandra Ashbrook and Susan Beaudoin, contains three sections: Background Information, Frequently Asked Questions for Grandfamilies and Kinship Families, and Resources to Get Started. It is designed to serve as a resource that both providers and kinship/grandfamilies can use. Access the fact sheet here.
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LEGACY Funding Included in FY 2022 Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program Funding Opportunity
For the first time in over 15 years, funding is available through LEGACY (Living Equitably: Grandparents Aiding Children and Youth), the only federal law to specifically create affordable housing opportunities for grandfamilies. On September 21st, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released a Notice of Funding Opportunity for Section 202 Elderly Housing, which includes $15 million to support the development of intergenerational dwelling units for grandparents and relatives age 62 and older raising children. The application deadline is January 25, 2023. To learn more about LEGACY and its past funding, see Generations United’s 2019 State of Grandfamilies Report, A Place to Call Home. See the funding opportunity here.
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Grandparents and other Relatives with Eligible Dependents can Qualify for 2021 Child Tax Credit
The Internal Revenue Service reminds families that some taxpayers who claim at least one child as their dependent on their tax return may not realize they could be eligible to benefit from the Child Tax Credit (CTC).
It's important for people who might qualify for this credit to review the eligibility rules to make sure they still qualify. Taxpayers can use the Interactive Tax Assistant to check eligibility. Taxpayers who haven't qualified in the past should also check because they may now be able to claim the credit. To receive it, eligible individuals must file a 2021 federal tax return. Read more here.
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Can ‘Kinship Care’ Help the Child Welfare System? The White House Wants to Try
The Biden administration proposes spending $20 billion over a decade to help grandfamilies navigate the child welfare system. The administration wants to increase the numbers of kinship placements- incentivizing states to place children with relatives, putting more money into supportive programs, and expanding a tax credit to include those who take legal guardianship of younger family members. Deputy Executive Director, Generations United, Jaia Lent is quoted in a New York Times piece on the proposal. Read more here. Photo credit: NYT/Chet Strange
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Thanks for reading this newsletter. If you have anything you would like included in future newsletters, please send them to Jamarl D. Clark at jclark@gu.org. We’d love to hear your thoughts on this newsletter. Feel free to reply with any feedback or comments.
Best,
The Grandfamilies Team
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