Young Advocate Leadership Training on Saturday, Nov. 7th

The Ohio Children's Defense Fund is partnering with Central State University to host the first annual Young Advocate Leadership Training® program. This intensive organizing training will bring together over 100 student leaders from across the state.

Training Date: Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009

Training Location: Central State University, 1400 Brush Row Rd., P.O. Box 1004, Wilberforce OH 45384, in the Auditorium of the Center for Education & Natural Sciences Building, Room 114.

CDF-Ohio will provide meals and coordinate transportation for all successful applicants. This might be particularly helpful for youth who are over the age of 18/emancipated and actively involved in local and statewide youth advisory efforts.

Kelly Knight receives the Mary Ellen Social Work Award

During the 2009 Ohio CASA conference, the Ohio YAB's very own Kelly Knight was awarded the Mary Ellen Social Work Award for Excellence in Children Services.

Since January 2008, Kelly has trained over 130 new CASA/GAL volunteers, during her nights and weekends. She tells her classes, "If you don't see concurrent planning, you should be questioning the case plan and insisting on its inclusion."

During her acceptance speech, Kelly pointed out that, "Time passes differently for children."

Kelly described how, for busy professionals, postponing paperwork or continuing a case might be tempting because time seems to be moving quickly. But for the child, that time is moving painfully slowly in terms of connecting them with love and permanency.

OHIO YAB Play Production

Lights! Camera! Action!

The OHIO YAB will be presenting a theatrical production of All My Foster Children during the 23rd Annual PCSAO Conference.

Learn More At: http://sites.google.com/site/ohioyabplay/

Child-Centered Recruitment of Adoptive Families

Jennifer Justice recently asked OHIO YAB members for insight because she is creating a survey questionnaire to enlist youth input regarding connecting older children in foster care with adoptive homes.

Former Ohio YAB President Adrian McLemore suggested that the survey be divided into three parts:

a. Level of Connection Desired With Biological Family

b. Bonding With Perspective Adoptive Parents

c. Post-Adoption Support & Resources

If you have additional insights to offer, please contact her at jennifer.justice@jfs.ohio.gov

For Youth From Youth: OHIO YAB Handbook

The OHIO YAB has just released a handbook for foster care youth:
http://www.pcsao.org/OhioYAB/2009/FYHandbook.pdf

Many thanks to youth for their insights during the April Ohio YAB meeting!

And many thanks to Kelly Knight for editing the handbook!

Mission Transition

http://www.mymissiontransition.com/

2009 Lorain County Youth Collaborative Youth Summit

2009 LORAIN COUNTY YOUTH COLLABORATIVE YOUTH SUMMIT— Calling all youth groups! Lorain County, specifically Ciera Rodriguez-Toney, OHIO Youth Advisory Board Member and one of the event’s coordinators, has invited you to their Youth Summit held June 19 and 20th in Lorain County. On Friday, June 19th there will be food, fun and entertainment. Then on Saturday, it’s time to work!!! There is a leadership development session and awards presentation.

For more information or to pre-register, contact: The Elyria YWCA at 440/322.6308 or The Boys and Girls Club of Lorain County at 440/775.2582.

Youth Opportunity: Write for Represent Publication

17TH ANNUAL SUMMER WRITING WORKSHOP— Application Deadline: June 9th!!! This summer, from July 6th to August 13th, Represent will hold its 17th Annual Summer Writing Workshop at our office in Manhattan. Anyone between the ages of 14 to 20 who lives in a group home, foster home or on a campus (or who used to be in foster care) is eligible to apply. Those selected will write articles for publication in Represent and will receive a $600 stipend upon successful completion of the workshop. Writers also get metrocards and $5/day for lunch. Space is limited so apply early. The deadline for applications is June 8th.

Sex has Consequences!!!!

THE NATIONAL DAY HAS ARRIVED- Take the National Day Quiz at http://www.stayteen.org/quiz/.

Today is the National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. We hope that everyone concerned about teen pregnancy will do what they can to promote this fun and informative online event. The purpose of the National Day is to focus the attention of teens on the importance of avoiding too-early pregnancy and parenthood.

Thanks to the hard work of more than 200 National Day partners, state and local organizations who are organizing National Day events all across the country, and teens themselves, the National Day is already off to a strong start. Already, more than 60,000 teens have participated by taking the National Day Quiz and more than 7,000 have added our National Day "Relationship Reality Pop Quiz" widget to their personal websites and social networking profiles. The advance turnout for this year’s event has simply been amazing and we expect that hundreds of thousands more will participate over the course of the month.

Last year more than 300,000 teens participated in the National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. With your help, we hope to reach even more teens this year. Please help spread the word.

Remember, the National Day Quiz and Widget will both online throughout May, so it's not too late to help spread the word. Need some ideas? Check out our Tips for Getting Involved. For more information, visit the National Day section of our website.

As always, thank you for all that you are doing to make the National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy an event to remember. Without the dedication and creativity of organizations and individuals such as yourself, we could never have accomplished such an amazing event. We look forward to working with you throughout the year and on the next National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy.
We'll be in touch soon with the final results from this year's quiz. Stay tuned for more information!

YOUTH OPPORTUNITY

YOUTH OPPORTUNITY— Children's Action Network and the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption have partnered to create a national scholarship program, Fostering a Future sponsored by Capital One, to benefit youth adopted from foster care.

The fund was designed to provide children who were adopted from foster care with the opportunity to pursue their educational goals. The fund will provide parents considering the adoption of an older child an opportunity for education assistance by adding this special scholarship to existing post-adoption resources. It is also our intent that the fund will help alleviate some concerns about new financial obligations facing adoptive parents.

We are currently accepting applications. Applicants must: have been adopted from the United States foster care system after the age of 13, be graduating high school senior, maintain or improve qualifying grade point average throughout applicant’s senior year and demonstrate financial need.

Applications will be accepted between now and April 20, 2009. In order to download an application, please visit Children's Action Network. If you have any questions, or would like more information, please don’t hesitate to e-mail Children’s Action Network at Caninformation@aol.com or call 800.525.6789.

O.H.I.O. Youth Advisory Board Officer's Retreat

Officer's Retreat

DATE: March 21, 2009

TIME: 10 AM- 4 PM

LOCATION:
South Side Settlement House
310 E. Innis Avenue
Columbus, Ohio 43207

MORE: Please RSVP by contacting Arlene Jones at arlene@pcsao.org

WRITING COMPETITION OPEN TO FOSTER YOUTH

Write an entry for the Second Nationwide Essay Contest sponsored by the Campaign for U.S. Ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and Winners Receive Free Trip to Washington, DC.

350-500 word essay submissions will be accepted through March 20, 2009. Students of junior high or high school age may apply.

Five winners will be chosen and will receive airfare and accommodations for him/herself and one parent/legal guardian/foster parent to participate in the Campaign’s June 1-2, 2009 Symposium at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, DC.

The Instruction Kit and Application are available for download on the Campaign’s Web Site at --
http://www.childrightscampaign.org/crcindex.php?sNav=youth_snav.php&sDat=youth_dat.php
(look under Contest Materials).

Youth Opportunities

OFA SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITY— The Orphan Foundation of America (OFA) is now accepting applications for scholarships for the 2009-2010 academic year. Scholarships are available to eligible former foster youth who are pursuing postsecondary education. To qualify, applicants must meet the following criteria: Have been in foster care for one consecutive year at the time of their 18th birthday or high school graduation OR have been adopted or taken into legal guardianship out of foster care after their 16th birthday OR have lost both parents to death before age 18 and not been subsequently adopted; Be accepted into or enrolled in an accredited postsecondary program (university, college, community college, or vocational/technical institute); Be under age 25 on March 31, 2009.

BECOME A FOSTERCLUB ALLSTAR— The FosterClub is recruiting current and former foster youth (ages 18 to 24) for its summer leadership and internship program, FosterClub All Stars. Youth will be selected to spend the summer traveling, making presentations, and helping other children and youth in foster care. Applications are due March 1, 2009.

For links to more information, visit:
http://cbexpress.acf.hhs.gov/index.cfm?event=website.viewArticles&issueid=102&articleid=2527

2009 OHIO YAB Officers

While many youth expressed an interest in providing leadership to the O.H.I.O. Youth Advisory Board, six youth were selected to serve in the following leadership roles.


PRESIDENT:
Alex McFarland of Montgomery County

VICE-PRESIDENT:
Derek Biggers of Sandusky County

SECRETARY:
Marcella Stewart of Franklin County

TREASURER:
Traci Justice of Athens County

MEDIA SPOKESMAN:
Lamar Hammons of Franklin County

PARLIAMENTARIAN:
Elizabeth Bowers of Athens County

Please join me in congratulating them.

Don't forget tomorrow's meeting: Elections!

O.H.I.O. Youth Advisory Board Statewide Meeting

DATE: February 19, 2009
TIME: 11-2 PM
LOCATION: FCCS, Regional Training Center
855 W. Mound Street
Columbus, Ohio 432223

MORE: For more information, please contact Brandi or Arlene at 614-224-5802.

FosterClub All-Stars Accepting Applications

Each year, 12 young people are selected through a competitive national application process to serve as FosterClub All-Stars. They travel the country motivating and informing their peers, provide child welfare professionals with the perspective from youth, and raise public awareness. The deadline for submission for the application is quickly approaching, March 1, 2009. If you want more details, go to their website: www.fosterclub.com/allstars.

KOHL’S KIDS WHO CARE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

The Kohl’s Kids Who Care® Scholarship Program recognizes and rewards young volunteers (ages 6-18) who help make their communities a better place. Applicants must meet the following criteria: The young person’s actions must be described in detail and should document efforts that are above and beyond what is normally expected of a child his or her age. Volunteer efforts should have made a positive impact on others and occurred in the last 12 months. The activity cannot be performed solely to benefit a family member. Applicants must not have graduated high school as of March 15, 2008.
Winners are selected based on the project chosen, the benefits of the project and the actual outcome of the project. KOHL’s will accept nominations from Feb.1-March 15, 2009. The awards range from a $50.00 gift card to a $5,000 scholarship. For more details, go to the website at www.kohlskids.com.

COHHIO YOUTH EMPOWERMENT PROGRAM YOUTH LEADERSHIP AWARDS

The Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio’s Youth Empowerment Program has partnered with Direct Energy to offer leadership awards to recognize youth in Ohio who have experienced homelessness/housing crisis and are trying to better their situations. There will be four (4) leadership awards given each in the amount of $500. Awards will be presented to the winners at the COHHIO conference April 20th and 21st.

Any youth or young adult, in or out of school, (11 to 22) in Ohio who has experienced homelessness or housing crisis, including youth who have lived in shelters, doubled up, independently homeless, or who have lived in other types of transitional or temporary situations are eligible to apply.

The leader award can be used for expenses associated with any leader opportunity identified by the applicant. This may include, but not limited to: Class trips, summer camp, sports, music, art or dance programs and supplies, college fees, GED classes, tutoring, school tuition, extracurricular activities, graduation fees, college visits, test fees and prep courses, summer classes, or anything that will contribute to the personal and leadership development of the youth.

To obtain an application, contact Angela Lariviere or Nick Bates at 614-280-1984. Applications are due March 17, 2009.

O.H.I.O. Youth Advisory Board Statewide Meeting Rescheduled

Unfortunately, due to inclement weather, the statewide meeting scheduled for January 15th, 2009 had to be cancelled. The next OHIO Youth Advisory Board statewide meeting will be held on February 19th, 2009 from 11:00am to 2:00pm at FCCS Regional Training Center, 855 W. Mound Street, Columbus, OH. At this meeting, elections will be held and several opportunities for youth involvement will be discussed. Please mark your calendars and save the date!

Help Make OHIO YAB Great in 2009! If you are interested in becoming an OHIO YAB member or an OHIO YAB Adult Supporter contact Arlene Jones at Arlene@pcsao.org or
614) 224-5802.

FosterClub All-Stars Accepting Applications

How to apply to become a FosterClub All-Star:
Introduction Overview Details How to apply


The application deadline is March 1, 2009.

Part 1: Application

This year the application is completely online. The application is long and may require a few hours to complete. We have provided downloadable Word and PDF versions of the application for preparation of your drafts, which will then be entered into Survey Monkey. We strongly advise you to download the application, review the questions, write out practice essay questions, and then return to Survey Monkey to upload your answers. No incomplete applications are accepted, so please take your time to review questions and allow adequate time to insert your answers on Survey Monkey.

Prepare your application: Go here for the links to the application.

http://www.fyi3.com/allStars/apply.cfm

2009 FosterClub All-Star practice Microsoft Word Version

2009 FosterClub All-Star practice Adobe PDF Version
(If you do not have Adobe Reader, you can download it here.)

Submit the application online:

Official Fosterclub All-Star Online Application

The application deadline is March 1, 2009. If you have any problems with this application process, please call Dan at FosterClub at 503-717-1552.

There are essay questions in the application process. All essays must be filled out entirely for a completed application. FosterClub recommends that you write your essays into a word document, spell check, proof-read, etc. and then copy and paste your essay into Survey Monkey.

If you are providing a Recommendation for a youth applying for the All-Star program, click here.

Part 2: Recommendations

This year the Recommendations must be submitted online using Survey Monkey. The link is provided below (there is also a link at www.fosterclub.com). We require two recommendations from adults who know you. Recommendations should address your leadership skills and any other qualities that would make you a good candidate to become an All-Star. Some people you may want to ask for a recommendation could include employers or managers, teachers, coaches, pastors, Independent Living Providers, leaders of extra-curricular activities (club leaders, scout leaders, etc.), foster parents, or managers of any of your volunteer activities. Recommendations should not be from friends or relatives. Recommendations must be submitted online using the link provided below. The Website will ask the adults a few questions about you and will provide them with a place to make comments. Your application is not complete without two recommendations.

Please direct adults who are submitting recommendations to FosterClub’s front page where a link will be provided for them to submit their recommendations.



www.fosterclub.com



Deadline is MARCH 1, 2009

All-Star Selection

FosterClub will make its selections by April 1st. Youth will be selected to represent diversity in foster care experiences, education, current paths (college, employment, job corps, etc.), race, ethnicity and geographical location. Young people who apply but are not selected should in no way view the fact that they weren’t selected as an indication of their abilities or personality. It simply means that other youth were selected this year to help us build a diverse team for the All-Star Program.

PLEASE NOTE: This is a competitive application process and applying does not guarantee your selection to participate in the internship. If you have any questions, please contact Daniel Knapp at 503-717-1552. If you are still in care and your caseworker, foster parent or guardian have any questions, we encourage them to call also.

For information, call 503-717-1552 or visit www.fosterclub.com