skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina s congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Myorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Adoption of Older Youth Urged During National Adoption Month

play audio
Play

Friday, November 20, 2015   

NEW YORK - Transitioning into adulthood can be difficult for many teens. But those who age out of foster care without ever being adopted lack the family support system that helps many become independent.

Research at the Chapin Hall policy research center at the University of Chicago found that, as adults, they're more likely to be unemployed, rely on public assistance and become involved with the criminal-justice system - and women are more likely to have a child out of wedlock.

That's why principal investigator and national project director Kathy Ledesma and her colleagues at Adopt-U-S-Kids are using November's observance of National Adoption Month to urge families to adopt older youths from the foster-care system.

"Eighteen percent of the children and youths who are waiting for adoption are between the ages of 15 and 18 years old. And if you take that down even further, a third are age 13 or older. So the need is greatest for this group."

National and state adoption statistics show that people are less willing to adopt children from ages 15 to 18. Ledesma said teens in foster care often are stereotyped, which can impact their chances of being adopted.

"The biggest one is that teens are in foster care because they did something wrong - and they didn't," she said. "Something went wrong in their family, so they're in foster care through no fault of their own."

The New York State Citizens Coalition for Children found that the number of youths who age out of foster care has risen steadily over the past decade. Of the 5,400 children available for adoption now in New York state, less than half were adopted from foster care last year.

The Chapin Hall study is online at chapinhall.com.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021