Supporting Grandparents Raising Grandchildren THE NATIONAL CASA CONFERENCE

Supporting Grandparents Raising Grandchildren THE NATIONAL CASA CONFERENCE JUNE 3, 2019 BETTE HOXIE, GRAND VOICES, GENERATIONS UNITED EUGENE VICKERSON, GRAND VOICES, GENERATIONS UNITED

2 Generations United’s mission is to improve the lives of children, youth, and older adults through intergenerational collaboration, public policies and programs Since 1998, Generations United’s National Center on Grandfamilies: Guided by Gr. AND Voices – a network of caregiver advocates Leads an advisory group of organizations, caregivers and youth that sets the national agenda Provides technical assistance to states and other providers Raises awareness through media outreach, weekly communications and events Provides information and resources at www. gu. org and www. grandfamilies. org

Gr. AND Voices Network Select group of kinship caregivers from 45 states, and 11 tribes Gr. AND aims to have kinship caregiver voices front and center Guides the work of the National Center on Grandfamilies 3

4 Grandfamilies Data

5 Data is not publicly available on the percentage of these children who are with licensed relatives

6 Children in Grandfamilies

7 Grandfamilies: Strengths and Challenges

Grandfamilies Strengths: Children Thrive * See Children Thrive in Grandfamilies fact sheet, available at www. grandfamilies. org and www. gu. org 8

9 Grandfamilies Challenges LEGAL FINANCIAL HEALTH HOUSING EDUCATION

10 Grandfamilies Challenges: Navigating Benefits, Services and Systems

11 Eugene’s Story

12 Bette’s Story

13 Helpful Supports and Services Financial Support- Emergency and Ongoing Legal Assistance/Guidance Help Navigating/Connecting to Services and Accessing Benefits Respite Care Child Care Support Groups/Counseling for Children and Caregivers Information/Training- Trauma, Substance Use, Managing Behavioral Issues… Help getting licensed as a kinship foster parent

Key Questions for CASAs to Ask About the Child: What due diligence efforts were made to identify relatives? What were the barriers to relative placement and what efforts were made to overcome them? If placed with a relative, what supports is the family receiving and what else can be made available? What efforts were made to engage relatives who are not placement options to be supportive to the child in other ways? 14

What Else Can CASAs Do to Help Kinship Families? 15 Face to Face meeting- Make meeting Face to Face with the child and caregiver a priority Meet with Child’s Team- Meet with child’s therapist, school, day care provider, speech therapist etc. Understand Dual Loyalties- Empathize with divided loyalties between child and birth parent Identify Care Your Own Feelings and Biases about Kinship

What Else Can CASAs Do to Help Kinship Families? Reunification- Consider the Impact of Kinship Care on Efforts to Reunify the Child with Parents Help with Licensing- Advocate to help address barriers to licensing kin as foster parents Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) - Give special consideration for Children with American Indian Heritage 16

What Else Can CASAs Do to Help Kinship Families? Consider impact of racism, social injustices, biases for children disproportionately in foster care – African American, American Indian and Alaska Native Children. Advocate for Early Involvement- to be involved as early as possible with the child and family Work with Department of Human Services- Strong Involvement of CASAs throughout entire process with Department of Human Services 17

Selected Resources 18

www. grandfamilies. org A collaboration of the ABA Center on Children and the Law, Generations United, and Casey Family Programs

State Fact Sheets All 50 States and District of Columbia Available at www. grandfactsheets. org 20

21 Kinship Navigator Programs Provide information, referral, and follow-up services to grandparents and other relatives raising children to link them to the benefits and supports that they and/or the children need. New federal funding for states and tribes will lead to more Kinship Navigator Programs. About ½ states currently have some form of a program.

Annual State of Grandfamilies Reports at www. gu. org

23 Resources to help grandfamilies inside and outside the foster care system impacted by opioids or other substance use. Topics include: o Practicing Self-Care o Addressing Childhood Trauma o Preventing Harmful Drug Use by Children o Engaging with Birth Parents o Talking with a Child about their Birth Parent Available at: www. gu. org – Search Gr. AND Resource

Chart includes: o Rights and Responsibilities o Financial and Legal Assistance o Public Benefits o Health Insurance o Federal and State Tax Credits o Caregiver Successor Planning and Death Benefits for Children o College and Independent Living Available at: www. gu. org - Search Adoption and Guardianship 24

25 BETTE HOXIE BETTE@AFFM. NET EUGENE VICKERSON EUGENECVICKERSON@GMAIL. COM JAIA PETERSON LENT JLENT@GU. ORG Generations United Contact Information