Assessing Interstate Sibling Connections
The Imprint is highlighting each of the policy recommendations made this year by the participants of the Foster Youth Internship Program, a group of eight former foster youth who have completed congressional internships.
The annual program is overseen by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that raises awareness about the needs of children without families. Each of the participants crafted a policy recommendation during their time in Washington, D.C.
Today we highlight the recommendation from Maria Rosa Kelley, a graduate student at the University of Connecticut.
The Proposal
Kelley is calling for national attention to the impact of interstate child welfare actions on the connections between youth in foster care and their siblings. She proposes the first step of a national working group — which would include youth with experience in a foster care system — that would be tasked with studying the issue and then develop trainings, toolkits and other resources around sibling connection.
The Argument
Despite widespread acknowledgement that sibling relationships are crucial for youth in foster care, Kelley writes, a high percentage of sibling sets who enter the system are separated. When it comes to interstate separations between siblings, she says, child welfare systems lack “policy and infrastructure support.”
In Their Own Words
“My continuous requests for fostering our sibling connection were denied, despite overwhelming support by the Connecticut Department of Children and Families and notable achievements exemplifying how I could serve as a positive support for my brother.”
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