Florida’s Guardian ad Litem Program has received a $40,000 grant to help older youth aging out of foster care better transition into adulthood.
The grant from the National CASA [Court Appointed Special Advocates] Association is intended to support the state’s Fostering Futures Training initiative. Florida Guardian ad Litem Executive Director Alan Abramowitz says it will help youth who often face challenges.
“It's a really big deal because we have thousands and thousands of volunteers around the state who advocate for children in the dependency system,” he said. “These are kids that have been abused, abandoned, and neglected. And, this grant will help us train the volunteers around the state on how to advocate for older teens—actually 14 and older—so we can also mentor them and teach them self-advocacy.”
Abramowitz says the Youth Advocacy Grant was awarded based on the initiative’s successes. For example, 96 percent of the youth involved in the program between 2014 to 2016 did not get arrested or have a delinquency offense, and 76 percent moved up to the next grade level.
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