Child Welfare

Few systems are as critical to a community as child welfare. To an outsider, the child welfare system is also a complex labyrinth of programs that cover children’s safety, abuse and neglect, foster care and adoption as well as supporting and strengthening families. How children fare in that system will have lifelong repercussions across all parts of society. (Photo: The Seattle Times)

Child Welfare

Latest in Child Welfare

Returning to the Child Advocacy Beat

Reporting: Best Practices — June 05, 2013, Rachel Rosenthal

A Missouri reporter leaves the business beat to help with her paper’s emphasis on combating child abuse.

Careful and Compassionate: Ethical Coverage of Children in Tragedy

Reporting: Best Practices — May 30, 2013, Kathryn Quigley

Ethical journalists should show care and compassion when covering children in tragedy, a professor of Media Ethics writes.

Psychotropic Medication Use Among Children in the Child Welfare System

Research, Reports & Data — February 12, 2013, Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire

Children in the child welfare system are given psychotropic medication, drugs prescribed to affect the mind, emotions and behavior, at rates approximately three times higher than children and adolescents in the general population. Rates of psychotropic medication use are also significantly higher in rural than urban areas.

Reporting, Best Practices: Investigating "Broken Adoptions"

Reporting: Best Practices — January 25, 2013, Mina Dixon

In a January 2013 special investigation for City Limits, reporter Rachel Blustain tackles the growing concern over broken adoptions, cases in which a child adopted out of foster care returns to the system or otherwise leaves an adoptive family.

Stepping Up for Kids: What Government and Communities Should Do to Support Kinship Families

Research, Reports & Data — May 23, 2012, Annie E. Casey Foundation

The latest data on children living in kinship care arrangements, as well a set of recommendations on how to support kinship families.

Digging Deeper and Finding “Kids in Peril”

Reporting: Best Practices — March 27, 2012, Michael LaForgia, Reporter, The Palm Beach (Fla.) Post

Palm Beach Post Reporter Michael LaForgia follows up on his 2011 Casey Medal Winning story and launches a new series on Florida's lax oversight of summer camps.

The Economic Burden of Child Abuse

Research, Reports & Data — February 21, 2012, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

The study tallies the financial costs of child abuse and neglect and estimates the economic implications for victims and society.

NEGLECT AND ABUSE RESOURCES

resource — February 12, 2012

A comprehensive collection of data and reports that focus on Neglect and Abuse, along with an extensive list of experts in the field.

Reporting a Teen's Journey to College

Reporting: Best Practices — February 07, 2012, Erica Mink

A multimedia series by the Detroit Free Press highlights 18-year-old Marcus's transition to college. Reporter David Jesse tells the story behind the story.

Breaking News on Child Sexual Abuse: Early Coverage of Penn State

Research, Reports & Data — February 04, 2012, The Ms. Foundation for Women and the Berkeley Media Studies Group

The Ms. Foundation for Women and the Berkeley Media Studies Group closely examines the first nine days of news coverage of the Penn State University child sexual abuse case.

The Lifelong Effects of Early Childhood Adversity and Toxic Stress

Research, Reports & Data — January 13, 2012, American Academy of Pediatrics

The report suggests that toxic stress has lifelong developmental consequences for kids.

FOSTER CARE AND CHILD WELFARE RESOURCES

resource — January 10, 2012

A comprehensive collection of data and reports that focus on Foster Care and Child Welfare, along with an extensive list of experts in the field.

Racial Bias in Child Protection: A Comparison of Competing Explanations Using National Data

Research, Reports & Data — March 04, 2011, Pediatrics

The disproportionate number of black children in child abuse reports is due to increased exposure to risk factors such as poverty, not racial bias in the child welfare system, the study reports.

On the Streets: Federal Response to Gay and Transgender Homeless Youth

Research, Reports & Data — August 11, 2010, Center for American Progress

A disproportionate amount of gay and transgender youth comprise the homeless youth population. They face harsh conditions and have few government programs or charity groups to turn to.

What Works for Home Visiting Programs

Research, Reports & Data — July 28, 2010, Child Trends

The report identifies and examines different home visiting program models.