Children and Families

The Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) monitored 23 state vocational rehabilitation agencies in fiscal year 2007. These agencies, their stakeholders, and RSA identified promising practices that promote youth with disabilities transitioning from school to employment. Summaries of these practices are on the U.S. Department of Education’s website and include examples of leveraging resources, college and career preparation programs, and collaboration and partnerships among other practices.

The focus of this grant is youth in the child welfare system ages 15–21 years with significant emotionally based problems. The goal to ensure that the “aging out” foster youth, transition into adult support and services smoothly and appropriately - focusing on the youth’s choice of living environment, provider of service, and quality care. The project was funded Sept. 2004-Sept. 2007. Review the projects goals, activities, status, core elements, gains and challenges, and steps to moving forward.

This memorandum and tables present data on Medicaid 1915(c) Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waiver expenditures from Federal Fiscal Years 2001 through 2006. Each HCBS waiver is classified by population served in order to show the distribution of HCBS waiver expenditures across long term care populations. This year's memo also identifies which waivers exclusively serve children.

Two multi-county regions in California established one-stop clinics to diagnose autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and coordinate service planning across the education and developmental disabilities systems. Both regions also established ongoing collaborative teams to coordinate supports and improve the local service system for children with ASD. An evaluation reported a four-month reduction in the average age of ASD diagnosis.

In response to the CFSR, states must prepare a Program Improvement Plan (PIP) that addresses deficiencies and builds upon strengths. The reviews examine several aspects of child welfare agency performance including outcomes for children as well as systemic factors supporting agency services. This brief summarizes specific effort in Rhode Island to address deficiencies in the Quality Assurance (QA) Systemic factor documented in PIPs completed in response to CFSR reviews between 2001 and 2003.

This report summarizes performance of CIS during its first year of operation. The program is an acute hospital diversion program that provides community-based services for youth (age 0 to 21) at risk for hospitalization or out-of home placement. During the first 12-months of program operations, nine community-based mental health agencies were certified to provide CIS services. The evaluation examines service utilization patterns and major findings while updates are provided in the issue briefs.

This training was designed by Montana RCSC grantees to help individuals with developmental disabilities to acquire information, skills, and tools to support them to exercise increased control over their own lives and create the quality of life they prefer. The training course is intended to be a participant-driven course. The training includes a section for introduction, being empowered, starting to take charge, being on the team, in the driver’s seat, and other issues.

Montana grantees developed the following curriculum designed for advocates which is broken into chapters that total approximately 45 hours of classroom training. Individual chapters and/or activities from this curriculum may be pulled out and adapted/utilized as needed. In certain activities, STEP, Inc. forms have been included as examples. The eleven topics range from the overview of services and eligibility to self-directed employment practices, accessing resources and a toolbox.

This document was developed by the Michigan RCSC grantees as part of their Respite for Children program. The booklet explains the concept of respite, who is eligible for the services, the various models of respite, and how to find the right fit for your family. Next the pamphlet describes how to hire a worker and prepare them for the work they need to perform.

The purpose of this study was to identify how DHS can use Medicaid and other resources more broadly and effectively to meet the family support and respite needs of Oregon families of children with developmental disabilities. Assess what SPD might do to improve its response to families through Family Support systems. This final report documents the activities, findings and recommendations associated with the study.