CASA program uses volunteers to advocate for kids

One in six boys in the United States has experienced sexual abuse before turning 18. With few recovery options in real life, more of them are going online for support.

It’s now common for youth to remain in foster care or residential treatment for years. For troubled or victimized children in need, assistance at home is often more effective than foster placement.

First 5 — a group of public agencies created by California’s Proposition 10 tobacco tax — provide funding for preschools, homeless family housing, pediatric dental and mental health care and infant-mother home visits to help parents in need. Home visit groups funded by First 5, like Welcome Baby, serve more than 15,000 families a year and provide necessary supplies like cribs and car seats as well as check-ins for child development.

Washington state is piloting an initiative to increase access to legal aid for low-income folks. For civil issues such as divorces or evictions, the state has “legal technicians,” which are licensed professionals who fall between attorneys and paralegals. Legal technicians offer services for a fraction of the cost. Other states are looking to scale the solution, such as Utah and Oregon, but there is also some pushback from attorneys’ groups.

To help address burnout for child welfare workers in Knox County, Ohio, Knox County Job & Family Services has launched a two-pronged approach that aims to offer wellbeing services to employees. Although the Covid pandemic impeded the rollout of these self-care services and resources, feedback has been positive.

Truckers are ideally placed to spot and report sex trafficking. “They’ve been trained to be vigilant and they’re on the city streets, pulling into areas and being put up in hotels where this happens,” says Kylla Lanier, deputy director for Truckers Against Trafficking.

The Malnutrition Prevention and Treatment Program and Nutrition Rehabilitation Home in Kathmandu provide resources to children experiencing, or at risk for, malnutrition, which has long been a life-threatening issue in Nepal.

Chess in Slums Africa uses chess to provide education and enrichment for marginalized children. The program typically lasts for about two weeks and consists of chess sessions, mental math, and discussions to get to know the children intimately. Then, some of the children are placed in shelters or reconnected with their families. The organization then pays scheduled visits to ensure the child’s needs are met. So far, the organization has helped 976 children across the state.

Street Priests Incorporated engages with youth living on the streets in Nigeria to offer them scholarship funding, food aid, reunification with their families, and more. The organization has helped more than 17,000 children through its programs since 2014.

School-based health centers provide free services including flu shots, physicals, contraceptive care and reproductive education, talk therapy and behavioral health care to students. Research has found that these school-based clinics boost vaccination rates, reduce hospital visits, lower rates of teen pregnancy and depression and improve grades and attendance levels, all while reducing disparities and making healthcare more accessible.