A city in Arkansas has taken steps to address the pitfalls facing young people who age out of foster care, sometimes with a financial stipend but without the adequate supports that a traumatized, late-adolescent really needs in order to thrive.
I can't tell if the organization involved here thinks of their work as trauma-informed, but as a CASA volunteer of a transition-age youth, I can tell you that this approach has the hallmarks of trauma-sensitivity as it relates to the needs of this population.
In my experience and the shared experience of my CASA cohort-mates, even when housing is made available to transition-age youth, they frequently slide into homelessness, often in the form of draining "couch-surfing" situations and too often, even on the street. They end up in this situation largely because of the issues that this Life School approach will address.
The article doesn't state how many transition-age youth they have in this town, but I'm sure that out of an entire caseload of 590 CPS cases, there are more than 22 transition-aged youth. I wish for this program that they can obtain funding for enough apartment complexes for all transition age youth, and provide these trauma-sensitive services. And of course, if not already doing so, develop a consciously trauma-informed approach!
Excerpt:
"A lot of things in life are being in the right place at the right time, but sometimes it’s also about networking, and these kids don’t have that,” Moffett said. “We will ask them ‘What does success look like to you?’ Because it could be a bachelor’s degree or a job with a small apartment or house. Whatever is is, we will help them get there.”
Being a “family sponsor” may be as simple as having them over for dinner once a week to talk about their life and how things are going, Moffett said. Holding a birthday party for them or taking them hunting or fishing are other suggestions. Providing the former foster children a “sense of inclusion” could mean the difference between their success and failure, Moffett said."
- See more at: http://swtimes.com/news/indepe...sthash.O0xkTBCO.dpuf
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