Creating Support For Foster Teens
...May 19, 2007
Introduction
In order to create support for foster teens so they can live healthy and productive lives, I plan to coordinate collaboration efforts between stake holders in the different sectors of the community, including the business sector, the philanthropic sector and the government sector, to create a home for some of these teens to live in while they are attending school and finding jobs in order to be self sufficient adults. The community issues I plan to address are incarceration rates, high school graduation rates, homelessness, unemployment, substance abuse, health and mental health problems and early pregnancy rates, all of which are risks for foster teens as they turn 18 and are released from the foster care system. The stake holders I have identified in connection with the collaboration are the Department of Child Protection Services, the Department of Welfare, the local school system, the local police department and the local employment office for the government sector, the Vectren Corporation and local universities for the business sector and the Villages, the United Way, the Salvation Army, local homeless shelters, the YWCA and the local food bank for the philanthropic sector.
The Stakeholders
For the business sector, Vectren’s role in the local plan to eliminate homelessness will come into play. A representative from Vectren will be asked to participate in the collaboration, in order to make sure that any teens that are being released from the foster care system will not become homeless. Some of the funding will also come through Vectren’s foundation. The local universities will provide career assessments and college readiness information, as well as counseling on tuition assistance and knowledge on how to persuade students to enroll.
The government sector will be the most represented. In 1999, a new law was created to...
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