The 2012 Michigan Teen Conference registration is open!

Workers are encouraged to begin talking with foster youth, caregivers and caseworkers about attending the 2012 Michigan Teen Conference Take Charge of Your Journey! Youth In Transition funds can be used to cover costs for youth attending and a portion of the chaperone costs. Get requests for the funds in early and save $$!

The Teen Conference will be held at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, MI.

Find the announcement and registration form to download below, along with details about Sponsor Options. Sign up today!

Doors open at 7:00 PM Friday, February 17, at the Woodside Bible Church, 6600 Rochester Road, Troy (North of Square Lake Road). This special Comedy for a Cause features comedians Anthony Griffith and Ron Pearson and raises funds to benefit long-time Federation Member Promise Village Home for Children.

Download the attached flyer for more information.

The DHS Office of Family Advocates' Stacie Bladen and Seth Persky present a video case review of a child fatality. This month's example involves a 5 month old who died as a result of accidental suffocation. In addition to reviewing areas of interest in this fatality, they reinforce infant safe sleep practices.
To view the video click here.

The DHS Office of Family Advocates' Stacie Bladen and Seth Persky present a video case review of a child fatality. This month's example involves a teen male who died as a result of suicide. To view the video click here.

Stacie Bladen
Director, Office of Family Advocate
Department of Human Services

Detroit News— It was just a few months ago that LaKeisha Johnson and her small children slept in a car when they couldn't count on a relative or a friend to provide them with a place to stay.

On Thursday, Johnson, 24, showed off her new two-bedroom apartment at Oakman Place Apartments, part of a program to house young, homeless adults, as well as those who have aged out of the state's foster care system.

"This is beautiful," said Johnson, as she showed off the expansive ground floor apartment, fully furnished with new furniture. "It doesn't seem real."

The 24-unit, three-story complex on Oakman Boulevard near Woodrow Wilson includes gated parking and a washer and dryer in each apartment.

The $5.1 million development is the result of a partnership that includes Lutheran Child & Family Service of Michigan, Focus:HOPE and Michigan State Housing Development Authority MSHDA.

Robert G. Miles, president and CEO of Lutheran Child & Family Service of Michigan, said the Oakman Place program provides adequate housing and other support services for homeless youth and those who "age out of the welfare system."

"Very few of our own children make the transition into adulthood without ongoing support and supportive services," Miles said. "Through this development, we have become more sensitized to the number of families who are challenged to find adequate, safe and affordable housing."

Miles said Thursday he hopes the residents will "love each other, support each other and become a community."

Selecting the first families to live in Oakman Place was a difficult task for social worker Carolyn Rayford, the deputy regional director for Lutheran Child & Family Service.

January 19, 2012 - The Michigan Department of Human Services Centralized Intake: Statewide Implementation

January 24, 2012 - Child Development and Abuse: What Every L-GAL Must Know

The Child Welfare Services Division is pleased to announce the first webcasts in its 2012 series of webcasts on child welfare topics. These webcast series, which began in 2008, are funded by the Court Improvement Program’s Federal Training Grant and the Governor’s Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect, and cosponsored by the Department of Human Services (DHS).

Based on a True Story: Best Practice for Child Welfare Professionals
March 14, 2012 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Hall of Justice, Lansing, Michigan

This training presents best practices for child welfare professionals. The training curriculum is based on an actual Michigan case about a child who was placed in care based on incomplete medical evidence. Facilitators will highlight various stages of the legal process to demonstrate what each child welfare professional involved in the case could have done differently to return the child home earlier. The facilitators will use videotaped interviews of the family involved in the case to illustrate the consequences to families when decisions are made based on incomplete medical information.

Target Audience: Judges, referees, attorneys for children and parents, and caseworkers for the Michigan Department of Human Services, tribes, and private agencies.

Self-Care for Child Welfare Professionals: Avoiding Burnout
March 16, 2012 9:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Hall of Justice, Lansing, Michigan

This half-day workshop is designed to help child welfare professionals identify the behavioral, psychological, and physical symptoms of their personal and professional stressors. Professionals in this field are intimately exposed to the grief and loss that children experience. The workshop presenter will discuss tools for managing stress by recognizing how our personal needs are met by the work we do, setting clear boundaries, and committing to the goal of self-care. Participants will have opportunities to identify their own signs and symptoms, to exchange ideas with others, and to problem-solve on how to reduce stress and increase well-being.

Target Audience: Attorneys working in child welfare, Child Protective Services and Foster Care caseworkers for the Michigan Department of Human Services, tribes, and private agencies.

Teens in foster care face considerable individual and family challenges that place them at an elevated risk of becoming a teen parent. Child Trends has released a new research brief, Teen Parents in Foster Care: Risk Factors and Outcomes for Teens and Their Children, which reviews existing research literature on teens in foster care and examines analyses of primarily regional data to assess the extent to which teens in foster care are at risk of teen pregnancy and parenting. Existing studies suggest that teens in foster care have higher rates of teen pregnancy and parenthood than youth not in care. More than 160,000 of the children in foster care were over 12 years old in 2009.

On the basis of the research highlighted in this brief, Child Trends identifies several challenges to reducing rates of pregnancy and childbearing among teens in foster care and to preventing negative outcomes for these teen parents and their children. With this brief, we hope to increase understanding of this high-risk population; to inform strategies to reduce teen pregnancies in foster care and support teen parents in foster care and their children; and to identify issues that need further research.

This research was supported by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

The Federation is pleased to present its Annual Report to the Membership • September 2011. Please see the attachment below.

LANSING, October 6, 2011 – Child and Family Charities (formerly Child & Family Services, Capital Area) publicly announced the organization’s name change and new logo with an unveiling of their new sign on Monday, October 3, 2011 at the agency’s main office building located at 4287 Five Oaks Drive, Lansing, MI 48911.
Attending the festivities were community leaders, board members, volunteers, and agency staff. This year marked Child and Family Charities’ 100 years of service to the mid-Michigan region, established in 1911 as Lansing Associated Charities. Michelle Reurink, President, Child and Family Charities Board of Directors, stated, “It was the significance of the anniversary combined with long- standing name ambiguity that compelled us to action in selecting a name that better reflects the agency’s focus and cultivates stronger community support.” Jim Paparella, Executive Director, added, “The new name and look takes us back to the very roots of our founding purpose as a charitable organization: to serve as an effective partner for social change through programs and initiatives which benefit children, families, and community. At the same time, the change recognizes years of strategic growth through collaboration and alliances, from the advent of Angel House to recent mergers with Lansing Teen Court and Child Abuse Prevention Services.”
The agency’s core divisions include Child Welfare Services, Family Services, Child Abuse Prevention Services, Juvenile Justice Services, and Residential Services. If you would like more information about Child and Family Charities, please call Demphna Krikorian at (517) 882-4000, extension 126 or email: demphna@childandfamily.org.

The 16th Annual Governor's Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect Summit: "Calling all Dads! The Importance of Fathers in Children's Lives"

October 20-21, 2011 at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Target Audience: Attorneys, Judges, Social Workers, and other child welfare professionals.