Evaluates the Family Program, a family-centered program in northern Virginia which provides intensive in-home support and treatment to families with children in the custody of county child welfare departments. The sample comprises 42 closed cases. Results show that families that are at risk benefit significantly from extensive support systems.…

Describes an effective program for teaching children about the dangers of sexual abuse and abduction. The program does not introduce negative stories, examples, and other warnings that tend to create anxieties in children. Reports a study evaluating the program's effectiveness. (SKC)

Describes a residential program for disturbed children in which the use of child care workers during the school day makes possible an integrated program of activities. (MS)

Describes the provisions, development, and future of the Independent-Living Initiative. Discusses its implementation at federal and state levels, and also the plans of the state of Illinois to establish a departmentwide task force to develop a system of services for youths who will be leaving foster care. (RJC)

Examines the impact of program design on the development of research-based practice models. The concept of program design is reduced to elements that can be examined for their reliability, validity, relevance, and internal consistency. (Author/RWB)

Discusses the basic structure of child welfare in Canada and how the movement for preparing young people for independent-living began and picked up momentum. Describes the program models now in existence in Canada. (RJC)

General guidelines to develop community support of children's programs are presented within a conceptual framework. General design features include planning, development, and implementation. Specific tasks are identified and a planning guide is provided. (Author/DB)

Presents a variety of living arrangement options for foster adolescents, many of which are designed to promote self-sufficiency and independent functioning. Describes existing options beginning with the most structured and restrictive environments and moving toward options that require lesser amounts of adult supervision. (RJC)

Emphasizes that foster parent recruiting is becoming increasingly difficult. Describes a successful alternative foster parent recruitment effort which includes the provision of fiscal incentives for foster parent recruiters. (Author/RWB)

Reports on a national state-of-the-art analysis of the use of volunteers as resources in preparing foster youths to become self-supporting. Emphasizes major trends, seven volunteer roles, five program profiles, and the coordination and development of a volunteer program. (RJC)

Suggests ways in which states that are administering a Title IV-E independent-living program may generate program and evaluation data to meet requirements of a federal program report. Presents two examples of current evaluations of independent-living programs. (RJC)

Analyzes age and sex differences among children and adolescents who call KIDLINE, a community telephone service that provides information, support, and assistance to latchkey children. Finds that most calls come from younger children, are conversational in nature, and are from females. Recommends hotlines only as supplements to organized child…

Discusses the preparation of foster adolescents for employment. Emphasizes the development of an independent-living plan that includes employment as a subgoal, and indicates how foster youths can acquire fundamental work attitudes and skills in day-to-day placement situations. (RJC)

Discusses "aftercare services," which refers to a range of support services in the postplacement phase of foster care for foster adolescents. Focuses on legislative and policy trends related to independent-living services and aftercare, independent-living subsidies, and the aftercare project of the Arizona Young Adult Program. (RJC)

Although fundamental in helping multiproblem families avoid placement, social support is a complex construct not easy to define and difficult to carry out conceptually and practically. Four family support programs are described that illustrate certain common denominators for implementation. (Author/RWB)