Articles

Author Explores Ways Communities Can Get Involved With Foster Youth

What is it like to try to love if you haven’t been loved yourself?

This was the idea behind The Language of Flowers, a fiction novel about a foster youth named Victoria who uses the language of flowers to communicate and engage with others as she transitions from the foster care system.

After emancipating from the foster care system at 18, Victoria sleeps in a public park in San Francisco where she plants a garden and begins a relationship with flowers. After discovering that flowers have certain meanings, Victoria starts to communicate with others through this language and searches … Read more

Top Foster Care Advocates in Massachusetts Attend FMC Fundraiser

 

Losing one child is like losing the world, and saving one child is like saving the world, said Massachusetts Senator Stan Rosenberg at a fundraiser for Fostering Media Connections in Boston. The fundraiser, organized by Boston businessman John Lamparelli, was held at the scenic Granite Links Golf Club.

Senator Rosenberg, who grew up in foster care, said it is imperative we all do as much as we can to look after those children in the government’s care because their potential is so valuable to our society. Rosenberg has spent all of his political life advocating for foster children. He … Read more

New Reports on Racial Disproportionality in Foster Care

In January, Harvard Law School’s Child Advocacy Program (CAP) hosted and intense, day-long conference that explored the reasons behind racial disproportionality in the child welfare system. Since, conference organizers from both Chapin Hall and CAP have submitted further reports on the subject. Please read more below…

-FMC

CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (July 21, 2011) Two new reports challenge the long-held assumption that racial bias is responsible for the disproportionately high numbers of black children in foster care, and cast doubt on policies that would reduce the numbers of black children in foster care to mirror the percentage of black children in the … Read more

On the Road to Educational Equality

In studies from around the country, students in foster care score woefully lower on all academic measures than their peers. Despite this, research has consistently shown that when the particular educational needs of foster youth are addressed through thoughtful policy and practice the resulting improvements in educational achievement for these students can be dramatic.

In 2011, much of Fostering Media Connections’ (FMC) work will center on highlighting policy and practice that improve educational outcomes for children experiencing foster care. A critical component of our outreach will be a handful of Town Hall meetings to be held in various locations throughout … Read more

On the Road to Educational Equality

In studies from around the country, students in foster care score woefully lower on all academic measures than their peers. Despite this, research has consistently shown that when the particular educational needs of foster youth are addressed through thoughtful policy and practice the resulting improvements in educational achievement for these students can be dramatic.

In 2011, much of Fostering Media Connections’ (FMC) work will center on highlighting policy and practice that improve educational outcomes for children experiencing foster care. A critical component of our outreach will be a handful of Town Hall meetings to be held in various locations throughout … Read more

The Educational Equality Tour

In May, National Foster Care Awareness Month, FMC will rumble through Massachusetts in a bid to vault the issues students experiencing foster care face into the national debate over re-authorization of No Child Left Behind, otherwise known as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

We will start in Holyoke on May 6th during the second iteration of the Re-Envisioning Foster Care Conference initiated by Judy Cockerton, founder of the Treehouse Foundation. On May 19th we will hold a Town Hall meeting at Western New England College, and then on May 24th we will produce one more event at Harvard … Read more

The Education of Foster Youth in Massachusetts

As 2011 rolls forward and the re-authorization of No Child Left Behind becomes more and more of a reality, FMC is working hard to insert the particular educational needs of students experiencing foster care into the national foster care debate. In the following brief, Leah Watson examines where the state of Massachusetts stands on this issue, and why it is poised to help set the national tone on how leaders in education should treat the educational stability and achievement of students in foster care.

Please find a PDF of the following brief here: MA Brief_Feb 2011. It includes all … Read more

Video – 24 Hours with Fostering Media Connections in Massachusetts – Changing the Foster Care Narrative

The final day of Fostering Media Connections’ Massachusetts Media Market was spent at a conference in Holyoke titled “Re-Envisioning Foster Care.” The purpose was to explore ways in which to continue improving the foster care system by examining what is working expand on it. FMC’s Daniel Heimpel keynoted the conference; FMC was also successful in reaching media outlets in the region with messages of hope. Throughout the video we hear songs from a foster youth choir.

 

 

Fostering Media Connections (FMC) is a project of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI). FMC harnesses the power of journalism and … Read more

FMC Welcomes Harvard Law School’s Leah Watson

Leah Watson will be joining Fostering Media Connections this semester. She will contribute to FMC’s efforts to include services specifically geared towards students experiencing foster care in the re-authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and to identify disparities in the educational achievement of children in care and their peers.

Leah is a third-year student at Harvard Law School who is interested in strengthening communities to help students succeed. She currently serves as a Leadership for Educational Equity School Board Fellow for Watertown Public Schools in Massachusetts. She attends school board meetings and will complete a project tailored to … Read more

Video – Sibling Connections

Sibling Connections, an innovative program in Massachusetts is profiled. Their mission is to create enduring relationships for siblings who experience foster care.

 

Fostering Media Connections (FMC) is a project of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI). FMC harnesses the power of journalism and media to drive public and political will behind policy and practice that improve the well-being of children in foster care. … Read more