New Access to Mentoring Services for Children with Incarcerated Parents

The National Resource Center on Children and Families of the Incarcerated has partnered with MENTOR/National Mentoring Partnership on Caregiver's Choice, an exciting new program of the Federal Mentoring Children of Prisoner’s Initiative.
 
Caregiver's Choice provides unique access to mentoring services for children with incarcerated parents by addressing two key challenges caregivers face in the search for a mentoring program: quality and capacity. All the programs in Caregiver's Choice must be approved, trained to understand the needs of children and families of the incarcerated and demonstrate the capacity and commitment to provide mentors in a reasonable time frame.  Caregivers can feel comfortable choosing a program based on their needs, knowing all the programs meet standards for safety and quality.

Caregivers receive a voucher for 1 year of free mentoring services for their child(ren) with an incarcerated parent and information about approved mentoring programs  in their area. Then, the choice is theirs!

For more information or to obtain a voucher, Caregiver's can call 1-877-333-CHOICE (877-333-2764), or visit Caregiver's Choice or email caregiverschoice@daremightythings.com.

Parent-Child Relationships for Children of Incarcerated Parents: Making, Mending, Maintaining and Managing

Next training by Telephone: Thursday, June 26, 2008 2PM EST

"I have the right to a lifelong relationship with my parent."

Facilitator- Gail T. Smith, Executive Director-CLAIM Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated Mothers

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE

Toya Davis-Carter: Toya is a wife and mother of 3 (2 of the children are her incarcerated sister’s).  She is a House Manager for a United Cerebral Palsy home for Handicapped Adults. Toya has overcome the tremendous adversity of living with the impact of her father’s incarceration. He is doing 180-240 years in SCI Graterford in Pennsylvania. Toya also stars in the 2007 play Holding Up- A New Prison Legacy produced in Philadelphia by TOVA productions. In Holding Up, Ms. Davis-Carter plays herself in scenes where she deals with her feelings about her father’s life sentence with an actor who plays her father. Toya believes it is possible to have a life long relationship with an incarcerated parent even when the parent is in prison for life.

Veronica Lockett: Veronica is currently a Graduate student in Social Work at Texas State University. She is the child of an incarcerated mother and spent some time herself in the Texas Prison System. She is a former foster youth and is the mother of 2 year old Raney. As a teenager, Veronica persisted in pursuing a relationship with her incarcerated mother even after her mother’s parental rights were terminated. Veronica will share her thoughts and advice on effective advocacy for children as they seek to have lifelong relationships with their parents.

AND…   Thanks to the New York State Department of Corrections and Bobby Blanchard of the Children’s Center at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, a currently incarcerated mother will join us to discuss the parent-child relationship issues from the incarcerated parent’s perspective.

Moderator- Ann Adalist-Estrin, Director National Resource Center on Children and Families of the Incarcerated at FCN Ann will begin the session by addressing the many variations in parent-child relationships for incarcerated parents and their children including those who never knew their parent, those that lived with a primary caregiver parent who went to prison or jail, those that had sporadic or regular contact but did not live with those parents prior to incarceration. What does having a lifelong relationship mean in each of these groups and how can programs help to maintain or mend or make these relationships?.

Facilitator- Gail T. Smith, Executive Director-CLAIM Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated Mothers

Gail Smith is an Attorney with many years of experience with incarcerated parents and the legal, programmatic and policy issues raised by their needs. Gail will address these issues; highlight both concerns and strategies including public policy implications for this right. Ms. Smith will give case examples of parent-child relationship concerns during incarceration, share current research and policy initiatives related to termination of parental rights, Adoption and Safe Families Act, the caregiver’s role and implications for Departments of Corrections and she will interview our guests.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE

Children of Incarcerated Parents are beginning to be seen as a group of children with varied and diverse needs and a shared experience. Nationally, programs, policies and practices are being examined for relevance to this population of children and their families. The Bill of Rights for Children of Incarcerated Parents provides an effective framework for those advocacy initiatives.

This, the last of the 8 rights, focuses on the most important and the least “studied” of all of the rights. Gail Smith is an Attorney with many years of experience with incarcerated parents and the legal, programmatic and policy issues that are raised by their needs. Gail will address these issues; highlighting both concerns and strategies including public policy implications for this right. She will also interview a panel of guests that will include children of incarcerated parents, currently or formerly incarcerated parents, caregivers and program/ research and advocacy professionals.

How does incarceration impact the relationship between children and their incarcerated mother or father?

How can programs, practices and policies help when:

Ø The parent child relationship needs to be developed -when it was non existent before incarceration?
Ø Children and parents need to heal and mend their relationships during the incarceration of the parent?
Ø Families are struggling to maintain and strengthen connections during separation by incarceration?
Ø Children of incarcerated parents are attempting to manage and cope when the relationship is not available to them?

These questions as well as issues related termination of parental rights, Adoption and Safe Families Act, the caregiver’s role and implications for Departments of Corrections and Community Programs will be discussed.

MORE FOR YOUR MONEY- THIS TRAINING BY TELEPHONE SESSION WILL BE 2 HOURS LONG FOR THE SAME PRICE!
STAY TUNED-PANELISTS WILL BE ANNOUNCED SOON

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE

Special announcement:
The National Resource Center on Children and Families of the Incarcerated (NRCCFI) is a new program at FCN built on the work of the former CWLA Federal Resource Center for Children of Prisoners.  NRCCFI will gather and disseminate information and link people with others that are living with or working on the impact of incarceration on children and families [learn more...]

What's New

The administrative office of FCN has  moved to 93 Old York Road Suite 1#510, Jenkintown, PA 19046. You can reach us by phone at 215 576-1110 or by fax to 215 576-1815.
Children's Bill of Rights see their website 

Storybook Projects provide children of incarcerated parents the gift of a book and the voices of their parents on tape reading the book.

Women's Poetry Collected by Sue Stauffacher, author of the new novel, Harry Sue (Random House). Sue's writing workshops with women who have been separated from their children due to imprisonment or neglect as a result of their drug use, have resulted in heartbreaking poems and letters.
TRAINING  - Working with children of prisoners and their families

Mentoring Children of Prisoners - Resources

Children of Prisoners Library 19 free pamphlets for people serving children of prisoners and their caregivers. Download master copies and duplicate as many as you want.

Responding to Children and Families of Prisoners: A Community Guide. A great start-up book and training resource.

Family and Corrections Network (FCN) is an organization for and about families of prisoners. We offer information, training and technical assistance on children of prisoners, parenting programs for prisoners, prison visiting, incarcerated fathers and mothers, hospitality programs, keeping in touch, returning to the community, the impact of the justice system on families, and prison marriage. With over 150,000 visitors a year, this site is the gateway to practice, policy and research on families of prisoners.

Family and Corrections Network (FCN) publishes FCN REPORT, the only national publication devoted to families of prisoners.

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