Foster care reform (parents behind the pinwheels)

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  • Harsh penalties for dfacs workers who fabricate evidence, ignore abuse, do not follow up on cases, work against the best interest of the child first then the biological family.
  • Remove monetary benefits that encourage removing as many children as possible - fund reunification.
  • Checks and balances - a lot of these kids are not getting checked on. There needs to be a cap on how many children one case worker has.
  • Thorough background checks.
  • Requirement to interview children apart from foster families.
  • Requirement to allow children to go to immediate family members (that they already see with any regularity) without approval. Children shouldn’t have to sleep with strangers over paperwork.
  • Secondary temporary shelters for kids who have to be removed but no foster home open. They shouldn’t be sleeping by the case workers deak.
  • Increase of foster parent monetary allotment with a requirement to provide proof that 75% goes directly to the child.
  • Requirement for foster parents to send children away with all belongings they came into care with (at a minimum) with harsh fines if anything is not returned with the child.
  • Prison for any foster parents found to be abusing foster children or their own children while a foster child is in their care.
  • Quick due process - first hearing should be within a month and if evidence cannot be provided by the accuser, the case needs to be dropped.
  • Prison for doctors with a history of falsely accusing parents.
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These children desperately need homes. Here in Upstate NY they house kids in hotels (workers stay with them in shifts) when homes aren’t found. CPS workers are understaffed and the ones that remain dedicated to these kids are overwhelmed.

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I was in the system most of my life and feel like I have so much to give back, but I don’t have a degree and have been turned away. So frustrating when I know beyond the shadow of a doubt I could make a difference. Degrees mean nothing to these kids when they’ve experienced so much trauma!

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I fostered for 10 years. Mainly girls ages 14 to 17. I made sure they felt like my home was there home. And many have told me that this home was different than any other they had been placed in.
The state gave me $250 a month for each girl and i made sure it went to clothing, school supplies ect. To this day 30 years later, they still keep in touch and visit. All of these girls had damage, wether it was from family or other foster homes. I protected, loved, and fought for each and everyone of them.