A
new state grant, Connecting the Dots, will help Hamilton County
foster youth transition to adulthood.
The goal of Connecting
the Dots is to improve the employment and education outcomes for
foster kids ages 15 to 18 currently in Hamilton County foster
care. The program will also serve recently emancipated youth,
ages 19 to 21.
Connecting the Dots has
two components. First youth will receive a
mentor from Big Brothers, Big Sisters (BBBS). The mentors are
vocational and are trained specifically to work with kids in
foster care. Although, BBBS usually serves younger children,
they are extending their outreach to include older foster youth.
The second component
of Connecting the Dots is connecting the youth with a workforce
development agency to work on life, job and interview skills.
Specifically, the
agency will help youth with:
- Tutoring,
study skills and dropout prevention,
- Alternative
secondary school offerings,
- Summer
employment linked to academic or occupational skills,
- Paid and
unpaid work experience,
- Occupational
skills training,
- Leadership
development,
- Supportive
services,
- Comprehensive guidance and counseling and
- Follow-up
activities for no less than twelve months after completion
of participation.
"The goal is
really to increase the kids staying in high school, graduating
and
completing their GED," said HCJFS Director Moira Weir. "The
program will also look at higher education,
opportunities for employment and ways to reduce earliness of
motherhood or fatherhood."
There are currently
five partners (Cincinnati State, Easter Seals Tri-State, Job for
Cincinnati Graduates, Lighthouse Youth Services and Literacy
Center West), which will work with HCJFS to recruit kids.
Connecting the Dots
will serve the youth over a period of two years. It will provide
stability and further assist youth who, once they turn 18, age
out of the foster care system and stop receiving benefits.
Check out the
stories on Connecting the Dots from
Fox 19 and
WLWT.