Welcome
Welcome to New Foundations’ quarterly newsletter. Our objective
is to keep our staff, foster parents, children and other social
service professionals informed as to what is happening in each of
our offices. Since our newsletter will be available to view on our
website, we will use first names only in conjunction with the children
placed in our care. We are developing web pages to display our children’s
drawings and paintings, so please submit any artwork you would like
to have posted to your case manager, supervisor or recruiter. We
would also like to hear from our foster families and our teenagers
about your experiences with New Foundations and the foster care
system, so we also encourage you to submit your accounts or stories
to your case manager, supervisor or recruiter as well. By sharing
your accounts on our website, we would like to provide a better
understanding of the rewards and challenges of foster parenting
to prospective foster parents and other interested parties.
About New Foundations
New Foundations is a private, non-profit child
welfare agency that is licensed by the Department of Public Welfare
to provide service to children and families in Philadelphia and
the surrounding counties. We currently serve 197 children and their
foster and biological families in the following ways:
- Foster Care Services
- Kinship Care Services
- Aftercare Services
- Adoption Services
- SCOH Services
Program Office News
New Foundations welcomes Kyrus Birckett, transporter and case aide,
to our staff. He will be assisting casemanagers with transportation
for children in both offices. Although Kyrus attended Penn State
and majored in Engineering and Computers, he had previously worked
with children while in high school and may be interested in pursuing
a career working with children in social services. New Foundations
also welcomed three resource families and children from PSI in April.
All New Foundations employees completed their certification or
re-certification in infant, child and adult CPR in March. A week
long training in Reality Therapy/Choice Theory was completed by
16 staff members in April. Many of the participants mentioned that
it was an enjoyable week as well as a great learning experience.
Thanks to Kim Olver for continuing to provide this training for
New Foundations over the years.
New Foundations will be taking part in the 13th Annual Foster Parent
and Kinship Caregiver Training Event “Kids Are People Too!”
on Saturday, June 3 at Temple University.
Center City Office
Deatrice Fields and Charles Mensah continue to do an excellent
job supervising both units in the Center City office. There are
currently over 140 children placed in resource homes (foster and
kinship) within these two units. Both units are fully staffed with
casemanagers, secretary and a transporter who all work together
effectively as a team. The Center City team works to achieve permanency
by reuniting children with their biological families as well as
through adoption and permanent guardianship. The Center City team
also gives special thanks to all of their resource parents who make
their work possible by providing love and nurture to the children
in our care.
Congratulations to Ms. Della Jackson, foster parent of the month
for February, Ms. Erika Braxton, for the month of March and Ms.
Dena Diarra, for the month of April. Each foster parent was awarded
a certificate of appreciation and a gift card to Wal-Mart.
A special thank you goes out from staff and foster parents to foster
parent Sylvia Atchison for her excellent presentation, “Reading
is Fundamental” on April 25, 2006.
Congratulations to our children, who continue to work hard in school
to attain their goals. Special congratulations to Amy on her acceptance
to Penn State. Congratulations to Kurtis on the successful completion
of his first year at Community College of Philadelphia and his upcoming
transfer to Mansfield University in the fall. Best wishes to Amy,
Asina, Jean and Kneisha who will be attending their Senior Proms.
Congratulations to Randy and Eric on making the Honor Roll and special
congratulations to Kevin who not only made Honor Roll the last report
card period, but also made a drastic improvement with his behavior
both at home and in school. The Center City team is proud of each
and every one of our children.
Center City casemanager, Sayjelah Lundy, is continuing her education
at the University Of Phoenix, majoring in Business. Congratulations
also to casemanager, Alicia Louis, who celebrated her one year anniversary
with New Foundations in March.
Chester Office
Office supervisor Sherron Samuels continues to do an excellent job
in the Chester office. Casemanager Nicole Thompson welcomed a new
addition to her family recently. Nicole and her son are enjoying
their new puppy “Chiquita”. Casemanager Naomi Muse will
be attending a four day workshop titled “Training for Trainers”
in Georgia in June.
Congratulations to our children, who continue to work hard to
attain their goals. Congratulations to Genera for maintaining Honor
Roll and best wishes on Graduation. Congratulations to Maria also
for being honored as a distinguished student at Vo-Tech. Congratulations
to our younger children also: Dominic enjoyed his karate lessons
so much that he will continue with his lessons, Thomas will be graduating
from Head Start in June, Shydaya is learning to ride her new tricycle,
Janaya is starting to crawl and Lashay is starting to talk.
The Chester office recognizes all of our children who have worked
hard in school this year and salutes all of our resource parents
for their hard work and dedication to providing our children with
the love and nurturing which enables the children to acheive their
goals.
Upcoming Foster Parent Trainings
Please check with your office regarding dates and topics
Recruitment
The recruitment staff has been very busy over the last quarter.
Supervisor, Sandie Caulder, reports that fourteen new resource homes
have been approved since March. Welcome to all our new foster and
kinship families.
All recruitment staff attended the CPR certification training and
Recruiter Taren Daniels attended the Reality Therapy/Choice Theory
training. Recruiter Kirsten Hontz has been working with the Free
Library of Philadelphia, East Falls branch, and answered questions
on foster care and adoption at an event in March. All recruiters
will be taking part in a larger presentation there on June 14th
at 7PM. Recruiters Shep Garner and Kirsten joined the Pennsylvania
State Foster Parent Association at the Department of Human Services
on April 28th to kick-off May as National Foster Care Month in Philadelphia.
Shep and Kirsten will also be on hand at Temple University for the
13th Annual Foster Parent and Kinship Caregiver Training on June
3rd. Many of our resource parents are planning to attend and it
should be an informative and enjoyable day for all.
New Foundations wishes Kirsten special congratulations and warm
wishes to her and her fiancé on their upcoming nuptials.
In spite of her busy schedule, Kirsten announced her engagement
in May. The wedding is being planned for next year.
Services to Children in Their Own Homes (SCOH)
This past quarter SCOH has successfully discharged 8 families. SCOH
services were a great asset to those needy families. Several changes
have taken place within the SCOH regulations throughout the quarter
but the casemanagers have adjusted to all of the changes and jumped
right back into working on behalf of these families. The SCOH staff
would like to congratulate our June graduates, honor roll students
and all students for a successful 2005-2006 school year.
Adoption
We are pleased to share that New Foundations adoption staff has
successfully finalized five adoptions between March 1, 2006 and
June 1, 2006. We would like to extend our congratulations and ongoing
support to the families who finalized their adoptions to date. We
are currently working on 16 Performance Based Contracting (PBC)
adoptions through the Philadelphia Department of Human Services.
Through our SWAN contract, we are currently working on 13 units
of service with Delaware, Chester, Northampton and Somerset Counties.
Our Adoption Coordinators, Amy Morris and Jill Chiciak, attended
the SWAN Spring Fling on May 10, 2006. Jill and Amy also attended
a CPR class on March 8th and Reality Therapy/Control Theory training
from April 24th to April 28th, 2006. Amy attended trainings at PCCYFS
on April 21, 2006 titled “Conflict Resolution,” and
on May 11, 2006 titled “Cultural Competence.” Jill attended
a PCCYFS training on April 10, 2006 titled “Child Development:
Why Children Act The Way They Do” and on April 21, 2006 titled
“Using Art With Children To Encourage Communication.”
Amy and Jill also attended the monthly DHS forums and Delaware
Valley Adoption Council (DVAC) monthly meetings. The DHS forums
have been focused on developing the family profile and the requirements
of Act 160. The DVAC meetings included training on the special ways
children communicate with their new parents, interstate compacts
in PA, NJ, and DE and the implications for adoption.
New Foundations continues to complete Performance Based Contracting
(PBC) adoptions through Philadelphia county and SWAN adoptions and
Child Preparation through Delaware and the surrounding counties.
We would like to thank our Adoption Coordinators for their continued
dedication and commitment. Amy celebrated her two year anniversary
at New Foundations in April 2006 and continues to attend graduate
school at West Chester University, achieving a 4.0 this semester.
We would like to wish Jill a happy 32nd birthday, which she celebrated
on April 8, 2006. If you, or anyone you are connected with is interested
in learning more about adopting a child, please contact our adoption
coordinator at (215) 203-8733.
Aftercare
Aftercare services are provided to children and families
who have achieved permanancy through Reunification and Permanent
Legal Custodianship (PLC). Services are provided by New Foundations
Aftercare case managers for 12 months post permanency.
New Foundations' Aftercare program services 28 families. Both
Aftercare case managers combined have successfully discharged 10
families from the Aftercare Unit during the last quarter.
New Foundations Aftercare case managers reported that they have
2 children on their caseload who are currently taking college courses.
Rhonda and Chanel are both doing a good job balancing college and
working part-time jobs. Kiera also has a part-time job.
The Aftercare supervisor and case managers have demonstrated a
genuine commitment to empowering our children and families and have
provided excellent service during the last quarter.
DON’T FORGET…
Don’t forget that we are always looking for new foster parents
so we are better able to match the children coming into our care
with qualified and caring foster families. If you, or anyone you
are connected with is interested in learning more about foster parenting,
please contact our recruitment or case management staff at (215)
203-8733 or (610) 876-4474 or 1-877-NFI-4KID (1-877-634-4543) or
visit our website at www.nfi4kids.org.
Summer Safety
Summer is rapidly approaching. Many people like to spend time
taking vacations over the summer. People travel to the beach, to
resorts that have swimming pools, to the mountains and many other
destinations all over the country. New Foundations wishes everyone
a happy summer and hopes these tips will help make your summer a
safe one as well.
First, remember to talk to your case manager about taking your
foster children out of state or on overnight trips. Permission from
the biological family or the county worker must be obtained by New
Foundations. Please give your case manager a sufficient amount of
time to obtain this. The agency must know where you are going, how
you are getting there and how long you will be there. If for some
reason permission cannot be granted for the children, a respite
family may be used for the time the resource family is away, but
the agency will do their best to get permission. That is why it
is so important to let your case manager know as soon as possible
about plans for vacationing.
Many people vacationing will be spending time in the sun. It is
important to protect yourself and your children. For infants, sun
exposure should be avoided. Clothe them in pants and long-sleeved
shirts that are lightweight and have them wear a brimmed hat. It
may also be appropriate to apply minimal sunscreen to babies, that
is safe for them, to their face and hands, if sufficient shade is
unavailable. Children should wear lotion with a SPF, (sun protection
factor), of at least 15. It should be applied 30 minutes before
going into the sun. Remember to re-apply sunscreen after a child
has been in the water. (source:http://www.aap.org/advocacy/archives/tanning.htm)
While on vacation, you and the children you care for may choose
to go swimming in a pool or in the ocean. Always remember to monitor
children when they are swimming. Never leave them alone in a pool
or in the ocean. Be in arms-reach of toddlers in the water. If you
own your own pool, make sure you have rescue equipment near your
pool such as a life-preserver, a shepherd's hook, which is a long
pole with a hook at the end, and a portable telephone near the pool.
Avoid inflatable swimming aids like “floaties”. They
give children a false sense of security and are not a substitute
for life vests. (source:http://www.aap.org/family/tippool.htm)
During the summer the creepy-crawly bugs tend to come out even
more. Children and adults are at-risk for bites from mosquitoes,
fleas, ticks and other insects. Sometimes these insects carry diseases
so it is important to be protected from the 'buggers'. Avoid using
scented soaps, perfume and hairspray. They attract bugs. Avoid areas
where insects congregate like stagnant pools of water and flower
beds. Clothing with bright colors and flowery prints can attract
insects so avoid dressing in them. Insect repellents containing
DEET are most effective, however sprays containing DEET cannot be
used on children under 2 months of age. There are other products
that don't contain DEET that are also effective that can be used
if you are not comfortable or cannot use a product containing DEET.
For more information on DEET and the source of this information
visit:
(source:http://www.aapnews.org/cgi/content/full/e200399v1)
If you follow these simple tips you can have a safe and enjoyable
summer and vacation without worry. Remember that children come first
so they must be protected and monitored at all times. Enjoy the
fun times spent with all of the children. It will leave memories
for many years and don't forget to take pictures. Children grow
up before we know it and it is nice to have something to remember
them when they were young.
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