ASK-Y Meeting Minutes: 9/26/05
Intro/Welcome—Jim Theofelis
- Jim restates the purpose and mission of ASK-Y: A cross system advocacy coalition stimulating positive public policy and change in the multiple marco-systems that serve children and adolescents involved in homelessness and/or foster care.
Youth Advocacy Day: Planning and Review of Last Year
- The 2006 legislative session will be having a shorter session and will end in early March.
- Last year, our advocacy agenda focused on extending foster care, medical benefits, etc., to youth over 18. With the leadership of Representative Dickerson we were able to receive a Bill Number and a committee hearing, but the bill died in committee. The bill had a large fiscal note attached to it, which was part of the reason it died.
- With the leadership and sponsorship of Senator Regala and the advocacy and support of ASK-Y and others, SB 5583 requiring CPS to track all adolescent referrals, and report the status of these referrals to the state, as well as ensure training in adolescent development, did pass. This is something CPS is required to do by law, and now doubly so. It is a good first step toward ensuring that adolescents referred to CPS are not minimized and that vulnerable adolescents receive the protection of the community and CPS.
- Another victory was Senate bill 6753, sponsored by Senator Hargrove, which expands resources and services for mental health and chemical dependency treatment for both youth and adults.
Youth Advocacy Day: Possible Agenda for 2006
- Due to the Braam lawsuit it is expected that Children’s Administration will be proposing legislation in 2006 to extend services to youth over 18 in foster care. There is a great deal of work and education to be conducted before a “proposal” gets to become a law.
- Extension of services would be a huge victory for youth in foster care, many of which currently have a disincentive to get their high school diplomas by age 18, given they lose their housing if in foster care.
- ASK-Y will continue to develop our Advocacy Agenda as issues develop with other coalitions and the work of the Braam Panel.
- Since it is a short session, the time period to get bills passed is reduced, which may impact our final Advocacy Agenda.
- The group brainstorms about what worked well for Advocacy Day/Training Day last year: food, youth trainers, publicity, buttons, packets, the agenda, and speaker Valerie Douglas from the city of Seattle.
- Possible things to add for 2006: more publicity, a Mockingbird Times article, group transportation to Olympia, t-shirts.
- Curtis asks what kind of room we should book for 2006. We should decide and book the rooms by November. The earliest we can book appointments with legislators is in January. Some of the group liked being in the Rotunda last year, but all agreed that it was difficult to hear in that space.
- The format of Youth Advocacy Day seemed to work well last year, with lobbyists speaking to us in the morning, then an overview of the agenda/issues, and then time with legislators in the afternoon.
- Possible speakers this year: Laurie Lippold, Children’s Alliance lobbyist, Seth Dawson, and perhaps someone from Children’s Administration.
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The group set up committees to work on Youth Advocacy Training Day, and Youth Advocacy Day. The committees will need to appoint a chair person. For planning purposes, Lauren will email the survey results from last year to the committees.
Training Day Committee:
- Dietra Clayton (Mockingbird)
- Jamica Henderson (Mockingbird)
- Najja Morris (Mockingbird)
- Lauren Frederick (Mockingbird)
- Ashley Grant
Youth Advocacy Day Committee:
- Kelly Land (Friends of Youth)
- Seana Weaver
- Craig
- Jessie Forsythe (Orion)
- Rian Merrill (Teen Hope)
- Curtis Knopf (Youth Care)
“YES” Cards in Other States (Curtis)
- In Oklahoma and Texas, all adolescents in foster care receive a “Yes” card from the state. This card has a 1-800 crisis number on it, and youth can call if they need housing, food, etc. The number is staffed nearly round the clock, and staff have access to a database that lists all the resources a young person is eligible for.
- Although the “Yes” card is given out prior to the youth exiting care, it is really designed as an “after care” resource, so the youth have resources when they leave care.
- If Washington had this type of card, it might provide a way for a runaway youth to re-enter the system in Washington state. A WA “Yes” card might be connected to HOPE beds/dollars.
- The group asks whether or not a “Yes” card tracks legal issues, warrants, etc., that a youth might have, and if this precludes them from getting services. No one knows; this is something to look into.
Oregon’s HB 2202 (Curtis)
- Oregon’s Homeless and Runaway Youth Coalition advocated for, and the legislature then passed, a bill which requires the state to coordinate all statewide planning for services for runaway and homeless youth. The goal is to streamline services for homeless youth and coordinate efforts and services across agencies and locations. A similar concept could work in Washington. The text of the bill can be found online at: http://www.leg.state.or.us/05reg/measures/hb2200.dir/hb2202.intro.html
King County’s 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness (Sinan)
- The current 10 year plan is focused on ending chronic homelessness and creating permanent housing. The question is, how does the young homeless population fit into that plan? The group wants to become more educated about this issue, and discusses having Frank Chopp (Speaker of the House) or lobbyist Seth Dawson (Homelessness Coalition) speak to us about the current plan.
- A bill has been passed at the state level (HB 2163) with support from Representative Miloscia. Sarah and Kelly will look into the bill and give us a brief report of what it entails at the next ASK-Y meeting.
Free Advocacy Training (Michelle)
- Mockingbird Society is eligible for one free Advocacy Training per year through the Children’s Alliance. Michelle will work with Jim to determine a date in the next month or so.
Homeless Youth Services Listserve (Kelly)
- If you’re a service provider who has a housing opening, send an email to Michelle Keating at housingopenings@yahoo.com. This listserve is a first step toward streamlining the housing process for homeless youth in King County. You will get response about what openings are available for youth up to age 24. This will help providers keep track of openings without having to wait days or weeks to learn of available beds.
- The Mockingbird Times may be interested in doing an article on this resource.
Current Legislative/Child Welfare Issues
- Governor Gregoire wants to decrease the amount of time it takes for CPS to respond to referrals.
- She also wants to decrease CPS caseloads to the ratio for national standards, which is approximately 1 worker per 12 cases. Currently, the ratio in Washington is 1:24.
- CAMAS, the Children’s Administration’s computer system, is outdated and inefficient. To increase worker efficiency, it must be replaced, at an estimated cost of $50 million dollars.
- Jim is looking for more youth who would be interested in going to Olympia to speak about various issues that affect them, throughout the year. Please contact Jim or Najja if you know any youth who would be interested in doing this.
Action Items
- Sarah and Kelly will look up HB 2163 and report to us at the next meeting
- Advocacy Day & Training Day committees will select chairs
- Lauren will email last year’s survey results to the committees
The next ASK-Y meeting will be Monday, October 24th from 3:30–5 p.m. in the 2100 Building. Also, November 28th from 3–5 p.m. we’ll have an Advocacy Training—Training the Trainers provided by Jon Gould, Children’s Alliance.