Roundtable Overview and Materials
The Child Welfare Policy Roundtable highlights the major child welfare and foster care issues facing California, visions for systemic reform, and policy opportunities to improve the lives of our state’s most vulnerable children and youth. Co-hosted by Children Now and the Assembly Foster Care Select Committee, this monthly meeting features a panel of policymakers, practitioners, advocates and former foster youth and provides an informal opportunity to learn and ask questions about California’s child welfare system. Legislative staff, advocates, stakeholders, and the public are invited to join the conversation. For meeting information or if you are having problems accessing any of the below materials, please contact Sara Fung at [email protected].
November 2022: Policy Recommendations from Youth with Lived Experience
California Coalition for Youth, calyouth.org
Contact: Jevon Wilkes, Executive Director, [email protected]
California Youth Connection, calyouthconn.org
Contact: Jordan Sosa, Statewide Legislative Manager, [email protected]
- California Youth Connections’ 10 Point Mental Health Vision
- Closing the Extracurriculars Gap Report
- Housing Stability for All Report
- California Youth Connection Policy Priorities PPT
iFoster, ifoster.org
Contact: Serita Cox, Co-Founder & CEO, [email protected]
Journey House, journeyhouseyouth.org
Contact: Jesse Aguiar, Beyond Foster Care Director, [email protected]
- n/a
VOICES Youth Programs, voicesyouthcenter.org
Contact: Angel Mackelvie, Social Services Manager, [email protected]
Supplemental Materials:
California Coalition for Youth, calyouth.org
Contact: Jevon Wilkes, Executive Director, [email protected]
California Youth Connection, calyouthconn.org
Contact: Jordan Sosa, Statewide Legislative Manager, [email protected]
- California Youth Connections’ 10 Point Mental Health Vision
- Closing the Extracurriculars Gap Report
- Housing Stability for All Report
- California Youth Connection Policy Priorities PPT
iFoster, ifoster.org
Contact: Serita Cox, Co-Founder & CEO, [email protected]
Journey House, journeyhouseyouth.org
Contact: Jesse Aguiar, Beyond Foster Care Director, [email protected]
- n/a
VOICES Youth Programs, voicesyouthcenter.org
Contact: Angel Mackelvie, Social Services Manager, [email protected]
Supplemental Materials:
Research Findings: What Does Child Protective Services Investigate as Neglect?
Lindsey Palmer, Postdoctoral Fellow, [email protected]
Children’s Data Network, datanetwork.org
Child Maltreatment Solutions Network, Pennsylvania State University, solutionsnetwork.psu.edu
- What Does Child Protective Services Investigate as Neglect? A Population-Based Study.
- What Does CPS Investigate Under the Umbrella of Neglect? PPT
Strengthening Supports to Address Parental Substance Use
Robb Layne, Executive Director, [email protected]
California Association of Alcohol and Drug Program Executives, caadpe.org
Meeting Parental Mental Health Needs: A Direct Service Perspective
Dr. Malcolm Gaines, Senior Clinical Projects Director, [email protected]
Safe and Sound, safeandsound.org
Strengthening Supports to Address Parental Mental Health Needs
John Drebinger, Senior Advocate, Policy & Legislative Affairs, [email protected]
California Council of Community Behavioral Health Agencies, cccbha.org
- n/a
Strengthening Supports for Families Experiencing Domestic Violence
Christine Smith, Policy Department, [email protected]
California Partnership to End Domestic Violence, cpedv.org
Reducing Economic and Other Stressors for Parents to Prevent Child Neglect
Antionette Dozier, Senior Attorney, [email protected]
Western Center for Law and Policy, wclp.org
- n/a
California Family First Prevention Services Program: New Opportunities to Support Prevention of Child Neglect
Hillary Konrad, Chief, Office of Child Abuse Prevention, [email protected]
California Department of Social Services, cdss.ca.gov
Alliance for Children’s Rights, allianceforchildrensrights.org
Sabrina Forte, Director of Policy and Impact Litigation, [email protected]
California Alliance of Child and Family Services, cacfs.org
Adrienne Shilton, Director of Public Policy and Strategy, [email protected]
California Youth Connection, calyouthconn.org
Jordan Sosa, Statewide Legislative Manager, [email protected]
Children’s Law Center of California, clccal.org
Julie McCormick, Senior Policy Attorney, [email protected]
- 2022 Legislation
- AB 740 Support Letter Template
- AB 1735 Support Letter Template
- AB 1794 Support Letter Template
- AB 2189 Support Letter Template
- AB 2665 Support Letter Template
- AB 2085 Support Letter Template
County Welfare Directors Association of California, cwda.org
Amanda Kirchner, Director of Legislative Advocacy, [email protected]
- n/a
National Center for Youth Law, youthlaw.org
Dafna Gozani, Senior Policy Attorney, [email protected]
- AB 503 End Endless Probation for Youth Fact Sheet
- AB 503 Support Letter Template
- AB 503 Social Media Toolkit
Public Counsel, publiccounsel.org
Sharon Balmer Cartagena, Directing Attorney, Children’s Rights Project, [email protected]
Supplemental Materials: AB 2306 (Cooley) Foster Care Fact Sheet
Youth in Foster Care with Disabilities: Unique Needs and Critical Issues
Jill Rowland, Education Program Director, [email protected]
Alliance for Children’s Rights, allianceforchildrensrights.org
Cheryl Theis, Education Advocate, [email protected]
Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, dredf.org
State Efforts to Meet the Unique Educational Needs of Youth in Foster Care
Sherry Rickenbach, Education Programs Consultant, [email protected]
California Department of Education, cde.ca.gov
The Role of SELPAs in Supporting Youth in Foster Care
Elizabeth Engelken, Executive Director, [email protected]
Sonoma County SELPA, sonomaselpa.org
- N/A
Meeting the Educational Needs of Youth in STRTPs
Joe Ford, Chief Program Officer, [email protected]
Sycamores, sycamores.org
- N/A
The Importance of Mental Health Supports for Students in Foster Care
Elizabeth Estes, Founder, [email protected]
Breaking Barriers California, breakingbarriersca.org
- N/A
Legislative Analyst’s Office, lao.ca.gov
Angela Short, Principal Fiscal and Policy Analyst, [email protected]
Alliance for Children’s Rights, allianceforchildrensrights.org
Sabrina Forte, Director of Policy and Impact Litigation, [email protected]
California Alliance of Child and Family Services, cacfs.org
Chris Stoner-Mertz, Chief Executive Officer, [email protected]
California Youth Connection, calyouthconn.org
Jordan Sosa, Statewide Legislative Manager, [email protected]
Children Now, childrennow.org
Kim Lewis, Advocate, [email protected]
- N/A
Children’s Law Center of California, clccal.org
Sue Abrams, Policy and Training Director, [email protected]
County Welfare Directors Association of California, cwda.org
Amanda Kirchner, Director of Legislative Advocacy, [email protected]
- N/A
John Burton Advocates for Youth, jbay.org
Anna Johnson, Associate Director of Housing and Health, [email protected]
- Budget Update PPT
- California Foster Youth Tax Credit Fact Sheet
- Housing Navigation and Support for Youth with Housing Vouchers Fact Sheet
- Investment in Youth Homelessness Fact Sheet
- Expansion of Transitional Housing for Former Foster Youth Fact Sheet
- Foster Youth College Support Fact Sheet
Youth Law Center, ylc.org
Katie Bliss, CA Higher Education Project Coordinator, [email protected]
- N/A
Supporting Youth’s Successful Transition into Adulthood
Serita Cox, Co-Founder and CEO, [email protected]
iFoster, ifoster.org
- Supportive Employment as the Path to Self-Sufficiency for Foster Youth PPT
- Voice of the Foster Care Community
Policy Opportunities to Connect Youth to Meaningful Employment
Joe Herrity, Consultant, [email protected]
California Opportunity Youth Network, caloyn.org
The ILP Village: San Mateo County’s Collaborative Approach to Independent Living and Employment Support
Jeremy Latta, MSW, Social Work Supervisor, [email protected]
Children and Family Services, San Mateo County, smcgov.org/hsa/children-and-family-services
Community Supports and Employment Opportunities for Youth
Angel Mackelvie, Operations Manager, [email protected]
VOICES Youth Programs, voicesyouthcenter.org
Policy Recommendations to Support Youth with Foster Care Experience
Danielle Wondra, Child Welfare Senior Policy and Outreach Associate, [email protected]
Children Now, childrennow.org
Supplemental Materials:
California’s Efforts to Support Children and Youth in Foster Care with Complex Care Needs
Sara Rogers, Branch Chief, System of Care Branch, [email protected]
California Department of Social Services, www.cdss.ca.gov
Foster Youth with Complex Needs: Challenges and Opportunities
Cathy Senderling, Executive Director, [email protected]
County Welfare Directors Association of California, cwda.org
Addressing the Complex Care Needs of Youth in Foster Care – A County System of Care Approach
Marni R. Sandoval, PsyD., Deputy Director of Behavioral Health, [email protected]
Child and Adolescent Services, Monterey County Health Department, co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/health/behavioral-health/bh-home
Ken Berrick, Founder and CEO Emeritus, [email protected]
Seneca Family of Agencies, senecafoa.org
How Complex Care Funding Can Be Used by Counties in Partnership with Providers to Address the Unmet Complex Care Needs of Youth
Chris Stoner-Mertz, Chief Executive Officer, [email protected]
California Alliance of Child and Family Services, cacfs.org
Building on the Momentum: How Appropriate Implementation of Community Based Supports Can Help Youth with Complex Care Needs
Brian Blalock, Senior Staff Attorney, [email protected]
Youth Law Center, ylc.org
Youth Perspective on Homelessness Amongst Young People
Maya Meza, ILSP Specialist and Young Adult Leadership Council Co-Leader, [email protected]
First Place for Youth, firstplaceforyouth.org
- N/A
Existing Programs to Provide Housing and Support to Youth
Jane Schroeder, Chief Policy Officer, [email protected]
First Place for Youth, firstplaceforyouth.org
Former Foster Youth: Current Housing Capacity, Needs and Opportunities
Simone Tureck Lee, Director of Housing and Health, [email protected]
John Burton Advocates for Youth, jbay.org
Opportunities to Support Youth Experiencing or At Risk of Homelessness
Jevon Wilkes, Executive Director, [email protected]
California Coalition for Youth, calyouth.org
- Capital Needs: The Challenges of Serving Homeless Youth Through Homekey
- Capital Needs: The Challenges of Serving Youth Who Have Spent Time in Foster Care Fact Sheet
Current Work to Provide Stable Housing to Youth
Laura Tancredi-Baese, Chief Executive Officer, [email protected]
Home Start, home-start.org
- N/A
Overview of State Actions to Support the Child Welfare System
Angie Schwartz, Deputy Director, Child and Family Services Division, [email protected]
California Department of Social Services, cdss.ca.gov
- N/A
Impact of COVID on County Child Welfare Systems
Diana Boyer, Director of Policy for Child Welfare and Older Adult Services, [email protected]
County Welfare Directors Association of California, cwda.org
STRTPs and FFAs experiences with the Pandemic
Faith Pulido, Senior Policy Associate, [email protected]
California Alliance of Child and Family Services, cacfs.org
COVID’s Impact on Youth in Extended Foster Care and Transitional Housing Programs
Matt Levy, Vice President of Evaluation and Learning, [email protected]
First Place for Youth, firstplaceforyouth.org
Youth Experiences during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Makayla James, Policy Manager, [email protected]
California Youth Connection, calyouthconn.org
View a Recording of the Meeting Here
Statewide Educational Outcomes for Students in Foster Care
Liberty Van Natten, Education Research and Evaluation Administrator, [email protected]
California Department of Education, cde.ca.gov
Education Supports and Services for Students in Foster Care
Dr. Michelle Lustig, Program Director, FYSCP Technical Assistance Program, [email protected]
Los Angeles County Office of Education, https://sites.google.com/scoe.net/fyscptap/
Efforts to Improve LCFF Transparency and Accountability
Vincent Stewart, Vice President, Policy and Programs, [email protected]
Children Now, childrennow.org
Student Perspectives on the Impact of the Pandemic on their Education
Essie Calderon, Program Manager, [email protected]
United Friends of the Children, unitedfriends.org
- N/A
Centering Foster Youth Voices: Examining the Experiences of First Star Scholars During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Karina Garcia, Academy Director, [email protected]
First Star Bruin Guardian Scholars Academy, bgsa.ucla.edu
View a Recording of the Meeting Here
Alliance for Children’s Rights, allianceforchildrensrights.org
Sabrina Forte, Director of Policy and Impact Litigation, [email protected]
California Alliance of Child and Family Services, cacfs.org
Adrienne Shilton, Senior Policy Advocate, [email protected]
California Coalition for Youth, calyouth.org
Kim Lewis, Advocate, [email protected]
- N/A
Children Now, childrennow.org
Susanna Kniffen, Senior Director of Child Welfare Policy, [email protected]
Children’s Law Center of California, clccal.org
Julie McCormick, Senior Policy Attorney, [email protected]
County Welfare Directors Association of California, cwda.org
Diana Boyer, Director of Policy for Child Welfare and Older Adult Services, [email protected]
- N/A
John Burton Advocates for Youth, jbay.org
Debbie Raucher, Director of Education, [email protected]
- 2022 Legislation to Address Homelessness Among Former Foster Youth
- Foster Youth Tax Credit
- Legislative Proposal: Foster Youth College and University Support
National Center for Youth Law, youthlaw.org
Margaret Olmos, Director, Compassionate Education Systems California, [email protected]
SEIU California, seiuca.org
Libby Sanchez, Government Relations Advocate, [email protected]
Youth Law Center, ylc.org
Jenny Pokempner, Policy Director, [email protected]
About Children Now
Children Now is a nonpartisan, multi-issue research, policy development and advocacy organization dedicated to promoting children’s health and education in California. The organization also leads The Children’s Movement of California, a network of more than 3,000 direct service, parent, civil rights, faith-based and community groups dedicated to improving children’s well-being. Learn more about us at www.childrennow.org.
