JOIN US VIRTUALLY FOR THIS FREE TRAINING! UNABLE TO ATTEND? REGISTER TO BE NOTIFIED WHEN THE RECORDING BECOMES AVAILABLE CLE Credits: 2.0 General Certification Credits: 2.0 Juvenile Law Which children are supposed to get attorneys? Why – and what are they supposed to do? Since 2014, Florida law (§39.01305) has required the court to appoint […]
A study by the Department of Health & Human Services reveals lax controls and missing records for children prescribed powerful medications within Florida’s child welfare system By Christopher O’Donnell | Times staff The powerful anti-seizure drug the 5-year-old boy had been taking for more than a year made him “almost catatonic,” his new foster mom […]
Watch Florida Youth SHINE’s feature on Forever Family WFTV9 Orlando. ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Florida’s Children First (FCF), Florida’s premiere statewide advocacy organization focused on protecting the rights of children of youth in the foster care system, is proud to announce the addition of celebrated family and dependency law attorney Christine Smith to its staff. “Chrisine is an extraordinary addition to our small but mighty team,” said FCF Executive Director Geori Seldine. “Christine’s […]
Adoption attorney Maria Bates, members of Florida Youth SHINE, and an adoptive mom will explore the importance of maintaining connections to birth family for youth adopted from state care. The session will prepare participants to facilitate…
JOIN US VIRTUALLY FOR THIS FREE TRAINING! UNABLE TO ATTEND? REGISTER TO BE NOTIFIED WHEN THE RECORDING BECOMES AVAILABLE CLE Credits: 2.0 General Certification Credits: 2.0 Juvenile Law Transitioning to adulthood is challenging for all teens– but even more so for youth with disabilities. This training will examine the important benefits and rights available to […]
Geori Seldine Your Turn, Tallahassee Democrat Juli 14, 2023 at 5:11 a.m. The Florida Legislature has passed several laws intended to protect and benefit children in foster care, including extending foster care to age 21, promoting “normalcy,” providing college tuition, helping youth obtain driver’s licenses, and reducing sibling separation. However, up until now, our […]
By SUN SENTINEL EDITORIAL BOARD | Sun Sentinel June 23, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. The Florida Legislature has passed several laws to benefit children in foster care, but until now, our state did not have educational standards in place to ensure that children know of their existence. Caregivers also often don’t know how to educate kids […]
by Troy Myers Tue, June 20th 2023, 11:25 AM EDT WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Senate Bill 272, named the “Nancy C. Detert Champion for Children Act,” now requires education on important and necessary laws for youth in foster care. The bill, which passed unanimously in Florida’s legislature and was signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis […]
By KYLE JOHNSON | PUBLISHED: June 2, 2023 at 2:20 p.m. | UPDATED: June 2, 2023 at 2:20 p.m. If you’re a kid in foster care, can you earn a drivers license? Can you work a part-time job or play high school sports? Can you aim for a college degree? Correct answers: Yes, yes and yes. But if […]
JOIN US VIRTUALLY FOR THIS FREE TRAINING! UNABLE TO ATTEND? REGISTER TO BE NOTIFIED WHEN THE RECORDING BECOMES AVAILABLE CLE Credits: 2.0 General Certification Credits: 2.0 Juvenile Law & 2.0 City, County & Local Government Law Florida’s 2023 Legislative Session resulted in the passage of bills that will have a significant impact on Florida’s child […]
Florida’s Children First and Florida Youth SHINE are growing and we’re looking to add to our team of passionate advocates. We are hiring for the following position: Florida’s Children First Part-Time Staff Attorney If you want to work for an organization that has dedicated the last 21 years to improving the lives of children, and meet […]
The relentless advocacy of Florida Youth SHINE (FYS), a statewide advocacy organization run by and for youth who are or were in Florida’s child welfare system, paid off recently when Senate Bill 272 passed unanimously in both houses in the Florida Legislature. The “Nancy C. Detert Champion for Children Act” was named after the late Senator who […]
A bill recently passed in the Florida Legislature could help address a key shortfall highlighted in a new national report about foster youth ages 14 to 21. The Annie E. Casey Foundation released a data brief this week titled “Fostering Youth Transitions 2023.” it focuses on those older foster youth, especially as they prepare to transitioned to […]
SEE VIDEO ORLANDO, Fla. – In the last 2 decades, seven of Florida’s 67 counties have handled their own investigations into child abuse and neglect, which is about to come to an end. The Department of Children and Families will soon take over for Broward, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Seminole, and Walton Counties, despite the […]
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — The Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) is planning to take over child protection investigations from seven sheriffs’ offices around the state, according to a new letter obtained by 8 On Your Side from DCF Secretary Shevaun Harris. Harris writes, “Our child welfare system has evolved. Today, there is a renewed […]
International Van Lines CEO Josh Morales adopted the first two foster kids he and his wife hosted. Then he started doing pro bono moves for other kids and families in the system. Josh Morales has a soft spot for kids. The 40-year-old founder of International Van Lines, a […]
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — For years, 8 On Your Side has reported on local foster kids sleeping in offices without a bed to lay their heads. Critics said those same problems persist as a new state contractor, the Children’s Network of Hillsborough takes the reins of foster care from Eckerd Connects. Information provided by the […]
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Navigating the child welfare system can be challenging for many kids, whether they’re adopted or in foster care. A statewide organization called Florida Youth Shine is dedicated to advocating for those children by amplifying their voices. It was founded in 2005 by Florida’s Children First. “At the age of 16, I was […]
Geori Seldine, Executive Director of Florida’s Children First Florida’s Children First (FCF), an award-winning non-profit organization that advocates for positive systemic changes to improve children’s lives, has appointed Geori Seldine to Executive Director. She has worked at FCF for nearly a decade, previously serving as the Florida Youth SHINE Statewide Director. She brings a broad […]
Adoption attorney Maria Bates, members of Florida Youth SHINE, and an adoptive mom will explore the importance of maintaining connections to birth family for youth adopted from state care. The session will prepare participants to facilitate…
Review the 10 primary duties for children’s attorneys and explain the lived experience perspectives that shaped each one. Special focus will be given to areas that pose the greatest potential for the field (ex. sharp increase in out of-court client contact)…
What is the best way to represent minors in Florida’s child welfare system? A pilot program that would have given foster kids their own attorneys was vetoed. Providing foster children with their own attorneys as they navigate Florida’s child welfare system is considered best practice by some experts and is recommended by the American […]
As foster parents licensed by Florida’s Department of Children and Families, my wife and I are directly responsible for meeting critical day-to-day needs of the children in our home. Whether it is getting a child to necessary medical or therapeutic specialists, finding the most appropriate school, or advocating for educational supports. We often feel alone […]
Children’s week came to an end Wednesday at the Florida State Capitol but new relationships and paths are just getting started. Tuesday night, youth-led foster advocacy group Florida Youth SHINE met with members of the Department of Children and Families to discuss the importance of youth advocacy. Every year on the last night of Children’s […]
‘Hopefully, (this is) clearing up a lot of the bureaucracy and just making sure they live a better life.’ Bipartisan legislation that would break down several barriers to education and social services for young people experiencing homelessness cleared the first of two Senate committees Tuesday with unanimous support. The Senate Children, Families and Elder Affairs […]
Florida’s vulnerable children deserve better than a rush job, writes a children’s advocate. Whoa! The Florida Department of Children and Families needs to slow down. The rush to select a contractor to replace Eckerd Connects may make the child welfare crisis in Pinellas and Pasco counties worse, not better. DCF must give the community enough […]
Don’t let the debate over child services, resources and governance fall victim to a rush job. The Florida Department of Children and Families is expected any day now to choose a new provider to run foster care services in Pinellas and Pasco counties. The state is up against a deadline, which is fueling a sense […]
Three agencies on Wednesday made presentations to state officials hoping to win the $80 million foster care contract for Pinellas and Pasco counties. None are from the Tampa Bay region. TAMPA — Florida’s privatized child welfare system is supposed to put control of foster care in the hands of local agencies who know their […]
This training is geared to attorneys who have or may be asked to finalize an adoption from foster care. It will also be useful for others in the system who want to know what should be happening in adoption finalizations. Topics include…
This training is geared to attorneys who have or may be asked to finalize an adoption from foster care. It will also be useful for others in the system who want to know what should be happening in adoption finalizations. Topics include…
The state has more than 6,000 children in foster care 12+ HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — As the debate rages on over how to protect children from COVID-19 and the Delta variant, and whether parents are vaccinating their kids, ABC Action News wanted to know what’s happening in cases where the parent is the state? The I-Team found, […]
This training is geared to attorneys who have or may be asked to finalize an adoption from foster care. It will also be useful for others in the system who want to know what should be happening in adoption finalizations. Topics include…
Florida’s 2021 Legislative Session resulted in the passage of two bills that will have a significant impact on Florida’s child welfare system. A handful of other bills also…
A cache of documents pried loose after USA TODAY’s investigation in October into Florida’s child welfare system reveals allegations of foster care abuse are more widespread than previously reported. The nearly 5,000 records detail calls to the Florida Department of Children and Families abuse hotline from teachers, health care professionals, day care workers, neighbors and others […]
Florida is changing its array of placements for foster children to meet the requirements of the federal Family First Act. Beginning in October 2021 the federal government will stop paying for traditional group care…
A 90-minute tour of several websites that provide a wealth of information you can use when working with children and families involved in the child welfare system…
For young people in foster care, the uncharted times of coronavirus are even more unsettling. Since the start of pandemic, odds are you’ve received at least one email that wishes you well during “these unprecedented times.” The unknowns of this crisis are part of what make it so universally challenging. For young people aging out of foster […]
Six years ago, Florida lawmakers embraced a tough new approach to stop parents from abusing their children. They approved millions of dollars to hire more child welfare investigators and rewrote rules to make it easier to seize children from their parents. Then they told investigators to rewire their thinking. Instead of looking for every way […]
Florida’s 2020 Legislative Session resulted in the passage of several bills that affect Florida’s child welfare system. High profile bills like Jordan’s Law and the DCF Accountability Act made the news. Others that…
Many Floridians are facing overwhelming challenges during the coronavirus pandemic, even young adults. Losing a job, or missing graduation, is bad enough, but it can be harsher for young adults without families. That’s why a Florida organization that works with current, and former, foster youth is trying its best to stay connected with children who […]
A series of bills about the foster care system is moving through the Florida Legislature. Rebekka Behr is focused on the Foster Youth Bill of Rights, which she says will take “all the rights that are already in law and (place) them into one document so that it makes it easier for youth to understand what their rights are […]
The Department of Children and Families wants children out of foster care in 12 months or less. Some families may take longer to fix. TAMPA — Parents are often at their lowest ebb when they turn to Norman Palumbo. Chad Poppell, secretary of the Florida Department of Children and Families, has ordered the state’s attorneys […]
TALLAHASSEE Miami-Dade and Monroe counties could lose about $11.5 million in funding for their child welfare system in the next few years, under changes that are being weighed by the state Department of Children and Families. But a potential plan to keep the existing funding in place could involve sending some of the state’s most […]
Hillsborough Commission Chairman Les Miller also opposes the controversial plan. He wants the county to house children at the Lake Magdalene group home. Two beds can be seen in a girl’s cottage at the Lake Magdalene group home in Tampa. The campus is owned by Hillsborough County and used to house children considered at risk […]
A report by a Hillsborough juvenile justice advisory board calls for a new law so judges can order treatment for foster teens who refuse placements. TAMPA — The Hillsborough boy was bounced between more than 20 group and foster homes in less than three years before he finally said “no” to another placement. His troubled […]
The Chronicle of Social Change is highlighting each of the policy recommendations made this summer by the participants of the Foster Youth Internship Program (FYI), a group of 12 former foster youths who have completed congressional internships. The program is overseen each summer by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute. Each of the FYI participants crafted a policy […]
In February of 2018, the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) was hit with a federal class-action lawsuit alleging that private providers in the southern part of the state were failing to supply enough foster homes, leading to frequent shuffling of kids from one motel to the next, or into cramped group settings. Last week DCF […]
Province could look to Florida or Connecticut for ideas on how to help former kids in care. By Katie Hyslop Today | TheTyee.ca Katie Hyslop is a reporter for The Tyee. Reach her here. This story was produced as part of Spotlight: Child Welfare, a collaborative journalism project that aims to deepen reporting on B.C.’s child-welfare system. The B.C. government should […]
A Winter Haven man who was adopted from foster care as a child is doing something remarkable. He’s working on a postgraduate degree entirely on the state of Florida’s dime, and it’s all thanks to having been adopted. Victor Sims’s parents, Violet and Ronald, could not have children of their own, so they looked […]
