Issues
HEY is the one organization in San Francisco that works specifically towards the strengthening of systems of service for emancipated foster care youth across sectors. We work to support a variety of solutions to the issues facing foster youth aging out of the system with a focus on housing, employment, education, and health care. We do this by:
HEY has been a leader in increasing visibility of issues facing emancipated youth in the Bay Area. HEY build public awareness of issues in order to create support and demand for a more effective and coordinated service system.
In addition to its ongoing role in maintaining existing collaborative efforts and taking these efforts to scale, HEY also develops original data and research about foster care and emancipation in the Bay Area.
Current projects include:
- Evaluation of Emancipation Process in San Francisco
- Evaluation of Meaningful Youth Engagement and the Foster Care Community
- Promoting Awareness of Current and Former Foster Care Issues Through Local Events and Speaking Engagements
- Improving Cross Sector Communications by Facilitating Local Partnerships Around Housing, Health, Education, and Employment Needs of Foster Youth
- Serving as an Information Hub for the Local Community on Current and Former Foster Care Youth Issues
HEY has produced many meaningful results and
much of the credit is due to our organization’s strong collaborative
relationships with community partners. Over the years HEY’s
success can be best measured by our reputation in the foster care
community as an effective and neutral partner who produces credible
and measurable work. Some of our most recent successes include:
- The Campaign for Safe Transitions—has been a joint
project between HEY, the Alameda County Foster Youth Alliance,
and the John Burton Foundation. The Campaign’s goal is for all
California foster youth aging out of the system at 18 years old
to have access to housing and support to make a safe transition
into adulthood and become productive members of the community. The
California legislature made a pledge to address foster youth homelessness
by creating the Transitional Housing Placement Plus (THP-Plus)
program (originally AB 427) in 2001. This program is the
only dedicated state source of funding which provides housing
and support for transitioning youth. The
John Burton Foundation has taken the lead on this initiative
but HEY continues to provide support.
- Prop 1C—Housing and Emergency Shelter
Trust Fund Act of 2006, will provide shelter to homeless families,
battered women, and emancipated foster youth. For more information
visit Homes 4 California.
- Senate Bill 436 (Migden, Chapter 629, Statutes
of 2005)—provides access to housing and services for
one of the most vulnerable and at risk populations—pregnant and
parenting emancipated foster youth and their babies.
- Assembly Bill 824 (Chu, Chapter 636, Statutes
of 2005)—ensures
that former foster youth have access to transitional housing and
support services through the age of 24 (extended from age 21).
- Assembly Bill 1808 (Committee on Budget, Chapter
75, Statutes of 2006)—eliminated the county share of cost for THP-Plus.
If you are interested in getting involved in the Campaign, please
contact Sara at srazavi@uwba.org.
- HEY Education Workgroup—HEY hosts a monthly workgroup,
with participants from various partner organizations. The
general focus of the group is always to address current issues
in education for foster youth. Over the years the group’s
goals have been to support legislation, coordinate college fairs,
and to advocate for Guardian Scholars programs at local colleges. For
the 2006-2007 school year, the workgroup will focus on providing
professional development to San Francisco K-12 school site staff
on educational issues, services and needs related to foster youth.
Please contact Sara at srazavi@uwba.org for
information on the next workgroup meeting.
- College Support—HEY works as a catalyst organization
to develop on-campus support programs for former foster youth in
colleges and universities. These programs, sometimes called
Guardian Scholars, provide a range of support services to assist
foster youth to achieve success in college. Click here for information on services provided by Northern California Higher Education Foster Care Support Programs.
- Northern California Council of Colleges—Each
quarter, HEY convenes interested local 2- and 4-year colleges with
developing or established foster youth support programs on campus. The
overall goal of this group is to provide a quarterly forum for peer
learning, support, and networking for higher education institutions
supporting foster youth. For more information contact Sara
at srazavi@uwba.org.
- HEY Employment Workgroup—HEY hosts a bi-monthly workgroup, with participants from various partner organizations. The general focus of the group is always to address current issues in employment for foster youth. The purpose of these meetings is to convene local service providers who are currently working with current and former foster youth so that together we can improve their outcomes after emancipation. Please contact Sara at srazavi@uwba.org for information on the next workgroup meeting.
- HEY Emancipated Youth Advocacy Board (EYAB)—EYAB has gone through many changes over the years, but in 2008 became a truly youth led program. The structure and work of EYAB 2008 is based on extensive research on youth development and empowerment frameworks. A EYAB term begins in April each year and lasts 11 months. Throughout the term, EYAB members become strong advocates through job skills training, foster care education and connections to the HEY network of partner agencies. Contact Dana Mandolesi at dmandolesi@uwba.org or check out the EYAB page for more information.
HEY is proud to have supported the expansion of the Healthy Kids & Young
Adults (HKYA) program in San Francisco. The program was designed
to provide health insurance to youth and young adults aging out
of Healthy Kids, Healthy Families or Medi-Cal. When the program
was first designed, however, a 90-day eligibility window limited
access to this important service, especially for transient populations
such as former foster youth. Together with the Adolescent
Health Working Group (AHWG) and Coleman Advocates for Children & Youth,
the 2005 HEY Emancipated Youth Advocacy Board
(EYAB) worked with Supervisor Sophie Maxwell and
Mayor Gavin Newsom to waive the eligibility timeline for emancipated
foster youth.
In 2008, HEY participated in the the MHSA Prevention and Early Intervention Planning Committee. The PEI Planning Committee is a group of experienced leaders who have worked in the areas of prevention in various sectors across a diverse range of topics. This committee worked on putting together the SF County Three-year Program and Expenditure Plan.
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