By Mitchell Y. Mirviss
Foster children won two important victories in federal appeals court last year. In a pair of child welfare reform cases, courts upheld longstanding federal consent decrees that mandated crucial reforms to child welfare and foster care systems in Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
By Kristy Luk
The Middle School Education Court (MSEC) in Santa Clara County, California is the first education-focused collaborative juvenile court in the nation. Its mission is to help foster children attain academic success through appropriate educational placements and support.
By Joseph Skyler
An alarmingly small proportion of current and former foster youth who begin college actually complete their degrees. California Assembly Bill 194 was designed to improve those students' chances of success. The law, which took effect Jan. 1, 2012, grants students who are or have been in foster care priority registration for college courses.
NCYL joined 89 other advocacy groups and individuals as amicus curiae in Jackson v. Hobbs and Miller v. Alabama. The two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court challenge the constitutionality of imposing life without parole sentences on juveniles convicted of homicide offenses.
In January, NCYL joined as amicus curiae urging the New Jersey Supreme Court to reconsider the state’s practice of prosecuting juveniles in adult criminal court.
Oral argument before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has been scheduled in NCYL’s foster care reform case against Clark County (Las Vegas), Nevada.
Foster children will continue to benefit from the re-negotiated final settlement agreement between the Department of Social and Health Services and legal counsel for the Braam Plaintiffs.
NCYL was recently awarded $120,000 by the Stuart Foundation in support of its Foster Youth Education Initiative (FosterEd) in California. This grant will help ensure California foster children receive the educational support and services they need to succeed in school.
The California Bar Foundation recently approved a $15,000 grant to support NCYL’s Rural Foster Youth Training Project. The funding allows NCYL to address the special needs of rural California foster youth in accessing quality healthcare and educational opportunities.
