Department Of Children and Families Provides Youth Leadership Summit for Foster Youth
"Providing support and assistance to foster youth is an essential part of the work being done every day at the Department of Children and Families," said Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. JudyAnn Bigby. "I applaud Commissioner Angelo McClain and his staff as they continue to provide guidance and support to foster youth in Massachusetts."
"Engaging our youth and families in our planning processes provides us an opportunity to learn and grow from their lived experiences," said Angelo McClain, Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families. "The input and involvement of DCF youth is vital to our efforts to strengthen our programs and policies, and the Youth Summit is an event of which everyone - especially the youth - can be extremely proud."
The Youth Leadership Meeting provided Advisory Board members with the opportunity to participate in training to strengthen their peer leadership skills. Approximately 40 foster children participate in area advisory boards statewide and offer the department their perspectives on policies, review proposals, and offer recommendations for prospective programs. Advisory Board members also participate in training for foster families and help recruit foster and adoptive parents. In 2009, the Advisory Board developed a Foster Child Bill of Rights that assists in guiding the Department and its providers in the delivery of care and services to foster youth with the commitment to permanency, safety and well being.
Over 100 youth participated in this week's Youth Summit, which offered workshop sessions on financial literacy, higher education programs, career options, health living, and community involvement. A personal growth workshop focused on strengthening youths' voices through hip hop music and dance, and a representative from the Norfolk County District Attorney's office provided a presentation on cyber bullying. The summit was sponsored by Bank New York-Mellon, a leading investment management and investment services company with locations throughout Massachusetts. In addition to sponsoring the event, BNY Mellon brought staff members to serve as volunteers for the day.
"As the first corporation to sponsor this event, BNY Mellon is proud to work with DCF because the Youth Summit so closely aligns with our own company-wide initiative targeting support for foster youth," said Jim Palermo, chairman of BNY Mellon New England. "Our goal is to help these young people at risk stay connected to services and programs that build real life-long skills, while remaining in a stable, healthy environment."
About the Department of Children and Families (DCF)
The Department of Children and Families is charged with protecting children from abuse and neglect and strengthening families. There are currently 8,000 children in foster care across Massachusetts and 40,095 children in all served by the Department. With the understanding that every child is entitled to a home that is free from abuse and neglect, DCF's vision is to ensure the safety of children in a manner that holds the best hope of nurturing a sustained, resilient network of relationships to support the child's growth and development into adulthood. DCF programs include foster care, adoption, adolescent services and domestic violence services.
# # #