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More than two years into the city attorney’s S.M.A.R.T program, which connects people who have a string of misdemeanor arrests with addiction treatment and housing, only a handful of clients have graduated and the city has struggled to expand the program despite significant investment. City attorneys say the outcomes reflect the challenges of an especially vulnerable population. In 2014, California voters passed Proposition 47, and law enforcement officials have complained ever since that...

On a typical day, thousands of homeless and mentally ill people are behind bars in Los Angeles County’s jails. But more than half of them would be good candidates to divert into housing with supportive services instead, according a new study from the Department of Health Services. If enough housing and services were available, nearly 3,000 people in custody at any given time would be eligible for release — either before their trials or before finishing their sentences. The study, released...

Funding proposed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom to expand full-day kindergarten would not likely benefit many low-income communities, where the greatest need is more programs for 3- and 4-year-olds, according to a new analysis. Among Newsom’s sweeping budget proposals for early childhood is a one-time investment of $750 million for school districts to expand full-day kindergarten programs by building or renovating classroom space. “Attendance in kindergarten is beneficial to a child’s...

Cost: Free Location: Online GoToTraining Register: www.StrategiesCA.org TOPICS & DATES: PARENT & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT DYNAMICS: May 7, 2019 from 10:00-11:30 AM PST LEVERAGING ACES CONNECTION TO BRING ACES SCIENCE INTO YOUR COMMUNITY: May 21, 2019 from 1:00-2:30 pm PST EMPOWER LATIN AMERICAN COMMUNITIES TO PREVENT SEX TRAFFICKING: June 13, 2019 from 10:00-11:30 AM PST ENGAGING FATHERS IN PRACTICE: June 25, 2019 from 10:00-11:30 AM PST For past webinars and Learning Communities...

Nemia with peacock used in therapy with children. Talking with an animal is often easier than talking with an adult for a child who's experienced abuse. _________________________________________ Toni Nemia, program and clinical director for the University of San Francisco Child and Family Center's School-Based Family Counseling, says that her graduate students are often surprised to hear that ACEs science (adverse childhood experiences) has an international reach. In fact, Scotland is an...

The purpose of this FOA from the federal Administration on Children, Youth and Families - Children's Bureau is to fund cooperative agreements that support the development, implementation, and evaluation of primary prevention strategies to improve the safety, stability, and well-being of all families through a continuum of community-based services and supports. During the project period, grantees will address site-specific barriers and mobilize communities to prevent child maltreatment,...

I am excited to relay that the Prop 64 Grant Solicitation for the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development’s (GO-Biz) California Community Reinvestment Grants program (CalCRG) is now available! More information, such as the Grant Solicitation’s online application portal, application user guide and frequently asked questions, can be found on the CalCRG website, www.business.ca.gov/CalCRG . Click on the ‘Apply Now’ button located on the CalCRG website to access the online...

Kris Perry to speak at Policymaker Education Day- Still time to register!

On April 23rd, 2019 from 12:00pm-1:30pm PST the National Pediatric Practice Community on ACEs (NPPC) , an initiative of the Center for Youth Wellness, will be hosting a webinar to support efforts to screen all children for adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and additional adversities. This webinar will summarize the findings of a state advisory group assigned to review tools and protocols for screening children for trauma, and provide an introduction to two tools the advisory group...

I am honored to share with you all that this years Youth Promotore s: Marycruz , Manuel , Bibian a, Aileen, Johnathan , and other SRJC students created and submitted a film to Directing Change !!! And guess what...Their video has been selected for the Directing Change online film library !!! *Over 1000 videos were submitted! Check it out! Click this ( blue ) hyperlink to view - You're Not Alone

On Monday, at an unexpectedly-packed meeting held at the City of Carson Community Center, the members of LA County’s Juvenile Justice Coordinating Council (JJCC) voted to pass a budget plan that many youth advocates are calling “historic.” The plan lays out how LA County will spend the approximately $28 to $31 million in Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Act funds that Los Angeles receives each year from the State of California. Yet, the priorities embraced by this budget plan are...

Perhaps nowhere is California’s mental health crisis more evident than in its criminal justice system. After decades of failure to create and fund policies that effectively help people with serious mental illnesses, many now say the jails and prisons have become the state’s default mental institutions. Close to a third of California’s inmates have a documented serious mental illness, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. A few decades ago, fewer than half...