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Educational requirements coming to Florida’s foster care system

by Troy Myers

 

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 on Friday, makes it mandatory for case managers to teach foster care children on various legislation every six months, like safety, education, contact with siblings, normalcy and access to food, shelter and healthcare.

Florida Youth SHINE (FYS), which is a support group for foster care in the state, is supported by Florida’s Children First. The group has advocated for change and is run by people who are or were in Florida’s child welfare system.

““This is truly a life-changing bill,” Executive Director of Florida’s Children First Geori Seldine said. “Now every child in the system will be educated about the laws and their rights in an age-appropriate way.”

According to a report from May, about 35 percent of Florida’s foster children receive Chafee Program funding — funding that is meant to help youth and young adults transition to adulthood as they reach the foster care age limit.

Ages 14-to-21 are eligible for those funds, according to Florida’s Children First news release.

“As someone who grew up in the system, I know how scary and confusing child welfare can be,” Administrative Chair of FYS Kyle Johnson said. “Florida has great laws meant to help children and young adults, but they don’t do any good if youth don’t know about them.”

The recently signed bill was named after the late state Senator Nancy C. Detert, who died in April.\

During her tenure, she advocated for and helped pass multiple laws aimed at protecting the rights of children in foster care.

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Board PhotosHeadshots (6)

Alexia Nechayev

FYS Events & Meeting Chair
(Palm Beach/Miami)

Alexia Nechayev, from Miami, Florida, is a dedicated advocate for youth with lived experience in foster care and with homelessness. After being placed in foster care as a teenager, Alexia experienced firsthand the stigma surrounding the system, as well as the challenges of navigating a system that didn’t provide support for her to advocate for herself. This experience motivated her to create change, ensuring that other youth in care have the tools and resources she lacked.

She graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from Florida International University, and upon graduation worked as a Hope Navigator with the Department of Children and Families which allowed her to assist clients through individualized care plans, further deepening her commitment to improving the lives of marginalized youth. Alexia is now applying to law schools with the goal of advancing her advocacy work through a legal career. As the Events and Meetings Chair for Florida Youth SHINE (FYS), she creates opportunities for foster and homeless youth to collaborate and push for meaningful change. She is also an active member of the Policy and Initiative Team for Florida Youth SHINE, where she helps create and shape policies that directly impact youth in foster care. One of her proudest accomplishments is helping to develop the Foster Care Bill of Rights, a law that she feels would have made a difference during her own time in care.

In addition to her work with FYS, Alexia serves on the Board of Directors for the parent organization of FYS, Florida’s Children First. In this role, she contributes to strategic decision-making while advocating for the rights and welfare of children statewide.

Every year, she travels to the state capitol to advocate for bills she and her peers have helped shape, including key pieces of legislation that benefit foster and homeless youth. However her advocacy extends beyond her state, as she represents Florida Youth SHINE at national conferences such as the National Leaders 4 Change Conference.

Through her internship with the National Foster Youth Institute, Alexia continues to refine her advocacy skills, preparing for a future where she can contribute meaningfully to both policymaking and the legal system. Guided by the belief that “the blue sky is always there,” she remains committed to ensuring that every youth in foster care has the power and support to advocate for themselves.

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