This Economic Stimulus Payment Tip Sheet is intended to help youth who had child welfare involvement understand how to obtain a stimulus payment.

This Income Tax Tip Sheet is intended to give youth who had child welfare involvement some items to consider when filing your taxes.

Reemployment Assistance (Unemployment Insurance)  provides critical information about unemployment benefits. (Updated 4.16.20)

Florida Youth SHINE and its partner Vita Nova are maintaining a running resource list for foster youth and their supporters.

COVID-19 Tips for Professionals offers adult professionals, volunteers and frontline staff who work with young people information to share with the youth they serve.

Freaked About Finances, address the most pressing issue  – what to do when facing the loss of income.

Florida’s independent living laws offer terrific benefits for young people. But the laws are complex and basic placement decisions can have enormous consequences. The Independent Living Benefit Chart advises readers about the law and benefits available to young people based on placement type.  It is intended to help young people and the adults who work […]

Florida’s Children First has partnered with Baker McKenzie and The Walt Disney Company in a joint pro bono project that resulted in a resource available in print and online for youth dealing with homelessness. The Homeless Youth Handbook is an excellent resource for youth transitioning into adulthood without the support of a parent. The resources […]

Florida’s Children First is proud to have been the lead party in a friend of the court brief in the U.S.Supreme Court asserting that all parents should have a due process right to be heard in a child welfare case that could result in a court determining that the child had no parent.  In this […]

Tuition Exemption White Paper This important White Paper concerning the problems and possible solutions surrounding the higher education tuition and fee exemption for our foster youth is a great resource to help promote change and help these kids get the education that was promised.

Alphabet Soup – Top Terms You Need to Know

Top Ten Actions Florida Can Take to Eliminate the Unnecessary Use of Psychotropic Medications

Florida’s Children First is proud to release this report in honor of our 10 year anniversary of operation. Inside, you will find messages from key FCF leadership, members of the community, our highlights and accomplishments over the years, and much more. Please enjoy, and if you would like to request some copies, please email us […]

This report examines how Florida’s system of child representation evolved, which children are supposed to get representation today, and which communities provide counsel to children. It also provides a list of the programs that provide counsel for children in each judicial circuit and shows what percentage of children in each community potentially have access to […]

This paper surveys how other states handle the issue of continued communication between an adoptee and siblings and other relatives.

This paper dispels the myths that underlie the harmful practice of cutting off communication between adopted children and their siblings and other relatives.

Our most recent publication! This booklet covers key issues for youth in out-of-home care: obtaining money, master trust accounts, and special concerns for youth with disabilities.

Children and young adults are entitled to a complete and accurate copy of their child welfare records under Florida Statute 39.00145. This publication explains the law and provides a form to help youth make a formal request for records.

Many young people are discouraged about adoption because they think they’ve missed the change to connect with forever family. But it’s never too late! This brochure explains the Florida law on adult adoptions. The separate appendix provides the documents and forms for adult adoptions.

This FCF publication answers the most commonly asked questions asked by teens as they figure out their transition to adulthood. It explains the Independent Living services and benefits available to young people in state care and young adults who recently aged out of care.

This publication describes the services and supports that are available to youth with disabilities as they are preparing for adulthood. It is a must-read for anyone working with youth with disabilities who are in state care and provides numerous resources to help them start out on a path to success. Co-authored with Disabilities Rights Florida (formerly the Advocacy Center for Persons With Disabilities).

This publication is geared toward young adults who recently aged out of state care. It provides information and resources on a variety of topics that will empower youth to become successful adults. Published by the American Bar Association with the assistance of Florida’s Children First.

This publication is intended to help youth understand the dependency court system. It answers youth’s most common questions about being placed into state care, describes all of the pertinent players, defines key terms and discusses the types of hearings that take place in dependency court. By the ABA Bar Youth Empowerment Project with Florida’s Children First. 2008

The purpose of this memo is to provide basic information
on CBHAs so that all players in the child welfare system will know what a CBHA is, what it covers, how to obtain one and how to use it. Prepared by the Children’s Legal Services Grantees of the Florida Bar Foundation. CBHA Packet

This document looks at how the child welfare and juvenile justice systems deliver mental and behavioral health services to youth. Each section includes specific recommendations for reform. Issued August 2007

March 11, 2011 First, every day, in every part of the state, at-risk children and families are provided high quality, appropriate and timely services by Florida’s child welfare system. As a consequence, families remain together or children who cannot live with their parents are placed in safe, loving and nurturing homes, and many children get […]