Kids at Risk Action (KARA) – Children's Rights Advocacy Network
The interviewers, Dusty Trice & Tommy Johnson asked many good questions.
The first fifteen minutes are the hosts talking, you can move the cursor through (about 1/2 an inch) to get right to the interview).
http://www.am950ktnf.com/files/archive/Minnesota%20Matters%20121809.mp3
The first annual Rummage Sale and Silent Auction for Kids at Risk Action will be held in Apple Valley, MN on May 16th, 2009. New, gently used items, food and fun at the first event open to the public. The event starting at 9 AM will be held at:
14767 Dundee Avenue
Apple Valley, MN 55124
Some of the items currently in the rummage sale:
If you have any items you would like to donate to our sale, please contact Melissa/Kids At Risk Action by May 9th. Any items not sold on the 16th, will be donated to Lewis House and Dakota Woodlands, shelter and organization that helps battered women and their children.
Have something to add?
Thank you to all of our generous supporters in 2008!
KARA's Mike Tikkanen at Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota's "Walk for Children"
KIDS AT RISK ACTION (KARA) members walked in Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota’s “Walk to Prevent Child Abuse” and gave our support to the Minnesota Children’s Platform.
Our 1st Annual KARA Forum, “Brutal Truths vs. Best Practices For At Risk Children,” was a big success. The forum was held at Century College and televised on local access. We are editing the broadcast to highlight some of the truly great moments of that conversation to share with media outlets and publish online.
We look forward to our revamped website and blog by designers, Lotus + Lama, in January 2009.
Melissa Thill, our Coordinator for Special Events and Donor Relations, is heading our grant-writing efforts, along with planning for spring and summer fundraisers, the 2nd KARA Forum, and lots of speaking opportunities for Mike Tikkanen.
Our first ever vehicle donation is in progress via Cars with Heart. We hope to see more donations like this in our future.
Please consider volunteering or making a donation in 2009. As we are an IRS 501(c)3 non-profit organization, all contributions to KIDS AT RISK ACTION (KARA) are tax deductible.
We at KARA, and the children that we help, thank you in advance for your generous and heartfelt support in 2009 – it is needed and most appreciated!
Here are the collected comments (and one of mine—below);
IMPROVEMENTS:
More information on how to get involved to improve the system
I would have liked the powerpoint from Mr. Grunewald
Action groups, have topics available to get people to sign up right away
More microphones and personal testimonies
Handout the panel names and healthier snacks (fruit, whole wheat)
Use the microphone better at the podium
Can you include actual examples of cases?
More input from foster kids on what has helped along the way
Have action groups actually started at the forum
More publicity beforehand
Microphone on both sides
Improve more youth and/or foster/adopted children
It was pretty general
Increase the voice of those disenfranchised by the system-too many people who are a part of the system
More time for questions
Video tape it… Make it live
Maybe a smaller panel or more time for questions
Your charge is to build new tools materials and strategies for engaging other communities and making an impact beyond this group that is already educated and connected to these issues.
LIKED
Ron Bell’s voice on race was CRITICAl. Had he not been present, I would have been deeply concerned. The fact that he was invited and at the last minute is still concerning.
Race must be addressed and not overlooked in such formats.
Panelists were excellent
Friendly, personal perspectives, purposeful
Panel was great.
Diversity of the panel
Good presentations and panel
Diversity of the panel, Rob, Jessica, Patti
Everything
Learning how many concerned and involved folks there are
The Candid discussions about what REALLY affects this population
I had a chance to speak
Hearing from such a diverse panel
The panel
Good variety of specialties on the panel, great expertise and good to have audience asked and asking the questions.
Great moderator
Great panel
Panel and audience questions
Interaction, networking
The varied approaches by the panel members
The diverse panel and direct questions from the attendees
Articulate panel members, diverse points of view
Organizations, people on the panel
MN ASAP
Variety of panelists
Meeting others that do work similar to me and are like minded and passionate
Great group of people. I liked hearing from those who have seen through the system.
The Panelists were fantastic
I enjoyed it, keep it up
WHO DO YOU WANT TO SEE ON THE PANEL NEXT TIME?
Clyde Turner
Social workers front line.. to see what dept/govt powers effect their ability to keep family together
Mr. Coleman
Erin Sullivan Sutton DHS
Foundations like MCKnight
County Commissioners
More community organizations
Cultural providers network
More foster care youth. Legislators/senators
Center for Excellence on Children’s Mental Health
More of the same.. social workers, examples of cases, nurses, (I think this writer wished for a clearer understanding of the roles of the parties in child protection)
Social Worker that is working in the system currently
Lawyer working within the system currently
Need a follow up forum
Social worker providing services, more people of color, persons that are not “on board” different perspectives.
WILL YOU PARTICIPATE IN A FUTURE FORUM?
90% said yes 10% said possibly
QUESTIONS FOR FUTURE FORMS (AND ACTION GROUPS):
How to activate the community
How to do better with less—it is not realistic in these times to just say we need more early intervention, how do we do better with what we have (and assumed funding cuts)
How can we fund child welfare prevention and early intervention
(what to do) When the system not only Fails, but becomes the abuser to the child
How do we “market” our understanding to individuals, families, communities that are not aware or engaged?
How to influence policy and how to get grassroots movements going
Cultural issues. How can community make an impact? How to help young fathers and mothers better care for their children?
How can we break the cycle
How do we change juvenile justice and adult criminal justice from adversarial to recovery orientation?
Help me identify resources for working with at risk kids
YOUR COMMENTS:
Excellent, Good Job
55% rated it a 5 out of 5 against similar events you have attended, 39% a 5, and 6% a 3
More economics. Such an important aspect of this work and how to “tell it” to our communities.
good useful forum
What is the outcome at the End of the forum
What is the Call to Action beyond angst (is it just community awareness?)
Nice Job
Teachers who work with at risk kids
Is there a mechanism for controlling out of state adoption agencies?
Thank you, I would love to see more of these forums
I wish that we would have had time to have small group discussions
Thank you
It’s time for a collective voice to represent all the groups here today to lobby, inform, effect constructive change in attitudes and purpose in child raising….KIDS COUNT
The only response I have to the comments made above was the “on Board” comment.
On board with what?
Patti and Jessica gave very personal explanations of how their lives (and Patti’s four adopted children) were altered forever by the child welfare system. I don’t think it’s fair to say that they were “on board” at all.
Ron Bell gave a clear indication that his community suffered immensely under current policies and he did not feel “on board”.
If you listened closely to Judge Lefler, or know of his commitment to children in child protection, you would see that he works tirelessly for change and support for at risk youth.
I’ve come to the conclusion over the years that most of the people in the system have hearts of gold, work passionately for the children they are trying to help, and equally hard to understand and bring compassion to the system that they are forced to work within.
There is no alternative but to quit. They already don’t get enough resources to do the job or support for the work that they do.
It is up to those of us that make up the community to support the policy makers that pass the laws and budgets that can make a positive impact on the youth we wish to help.
If we don’t contact our policy makers and cast our vote with NO TAX candidates, there will be inadequate support for bridges, schools, early childhood programs, and children in need of protection.
The point made by Rob Grunewald and the outcome of all the work he did studying
http://www.earlychildhoodrc.org/grunewald.cfm early childhood programs is that it costs way less money, not more money, for early intervention and early childhood development, than waiting to correct the problems of juvenile delinquency, early pregnancy, troubled schools, unsafe communities, and the great costs to our health care system..
KARA’s core message is that taking care of children is the greatest investment a nation can make. Let’s those of us that know this take it out into the community.
The final panel members were:
1) David Thompson
RAMSEY COUNTY child protection manager: focus on policy development, new programming, technical assistance to counties and practice guidance.
2) Ron Bell
Hennepin County Social Worker Supervisor
3) Patti Hetrick
Adoptive mother of four Children
ORIGINAL PANEL MEMBERS
4) Jessica Cimbura-Is a high school junior and a youth member of Our Voice Matter.
5) Hennepin District Court Judge Herbert Lefler (12 years on the Juvenile Court)
6) Rob Grunewald Federal Reserve Board member and coauthor of Early Childhood Development research published by the Federal Reserve Bank
Save the date; Friday, Oct 17th 9am to noon
(Registration link below
qualifies for 3 CEUs)
Our Child Protection System
Brutal Truths and Best Practices Forum at Century College
Join our focused and energetic conversation ab
out children in need of protection and the people, programs, and policies that impact them. Have your views and questions heard.
After the panel discussion, attendees will form small working groups and helped to identify and investigate their own issues, discovering better answers, and ultimately creating an action plan, which they will share with the larger group. (about 90 minutes)
At the end of the session, attendees will be offered an opportunity to form and participate in ongoing action groups to explore and determine solutions for issues of personal concern. These groups will be sponsored by KARA, but will be expected to operate on their own, i.e. establish their own agenda and meeting schedule. KARA in turn will schedule quarterly Roundtables where each of the working groups will have the chance to report out.
Take away:
1. You will have the opportunity to hear (and participate in) a lively discussion about how the different parties view the resources, practices, and people that make up child protection.
2. You can participate in a small work group session that will help you better understand issues.
3. You will learn how to have a greater impact on the system.
4. You will have the opportunity to join an action group committed to exploring and resolving an issue of special importance to you.
Moderator; Neal St. Anthony, Star Tribune
Panel Members:
Pamela Alexander, Former Judge and current President of the MN Council on Crime and Justice
Our Voices Matter – A Youth from the system speaks.
Becky Lourey, Senator and adoptive mother of eight
Glenace Edwall, Head of Ramsey County Children’s Mental Health
Rob Grunewald, Federal Reserve Board co-author (with Art Rolnick) of Early Childhood Development: Economic Development with a High Public Return, and speaker on Early Childhood Programs (Fed Gazette 2003).
KARA (Kids At Risk Action) 501c3 NonProfit, is a resource and conduit for abused and neglected children and the people that love, live with, and work with them.
This website exists to make information easy to find and to facilitate communication while building grassroots support for abused and neglected children and their issues.
KARA’s mission is to advocate for the welfare of at-risk children and youth through the identification and promotion of people, programs, and policies that work.
Related Information
The Children’s Defense Fund Leadership Training was a genuinely rewarding experience.
There was a power and a richness in the Alex Haley farm location (100 acres of beautiful trees and old buildings in Clinton Tennessee–20 miles from Knoxville).
The late Alex Haley’s story of developing as a struggling young Black author (his book “Roots”), travelling to Africa to trace his family, and his connections to slavery and the south, come alive as the CDF staff talk about Alex Haley’s life and Marion Wright Edelman discovering the farm and raising the money to buy it for the Children’s Defense Fund.
CDF trains allot of people there. It is a busy place with a committed group of presenters and staffers.
The training concentration was on:
A; being a more effective leader, and B; influencing lawmakers.
Item A was terrific (I appreciate that I to have work to do in this area) &,
Item B was important, but it hurts me that almost no time was spent on the concept of learning about how to impact our immediate circle of influence or growing support at a community level.
I really wanted to discuss building a grassroots support within our own communities and how each and every one of us can grow our awareness and understanding of the serious problems our schools, courts, and health systems are experiencing due to the neglect and abandonment of our most vulnerable population.
And most of all, how we can become comfortable being “the voice” for At Risk Children in our communities.
I have delusions about how to be helpful to CDF for Item B.
Half of an experience like this is meeting so many smart and committed people from every corner of the country. We can learn so much by just sitting next to someone from Missouri, Chicago, or even St. Paul.
The nice lady from Missouri understood why her state was getting such terrific results from their Juvenile Justice system. She could have taught us some very important things (but she was not on the agenda). I was one of four men out of about 50 people, and also I think, the oldest.
They were kind to me (I did feel like a Geezer). My concentration on positioning for listening and closing doors to eliminate background noise really solidified my Geezerhood (although, I believe it was unplugging the noisey water cooler that sealed it).
Minnesota was one of several states that were well represented (five of us). It is troubling to ponder the future of children in states without child advocates.
I intend to stay connected to and network with the Children’s Defense Fund to be more effective in our work to find and promote programs that work for At Risk Children.
Stories/responses from CDF fellows about programs in different states consider using this websites for discussion and group functions.
The larger community needs a place to connect with child protection issues… let’s work together to do that.
the KARA team
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