Child Welfare
A new law being proposed in Michigan would make it more difficult for child welfare workers to remove a child from a home, writes Scott Davis of the Lansing State Journal.
Kirsten Lynette Widner of the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports on Amber, a Georgia girl who aged out of foster care and discovered that the state had been collecting and spending Social Security checks on her behalf for years. Widner moves on to discuss federal legislation aimed at helping kids like Amber by requiring states to save Social Security benefits for foster children.
Florida adults must pass a drug test to receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds, reports Felicia Kitzmiller of Florida Freedom Newspapers. Children in the care of adults who fail the drug test will still be eligible for benefits, she writes.
Education/Jobs
After a sharp uptick in college loan default rates this year, Inside Higher Ed’s Doug Lederman reports that the Obama administration is looking for state agencies and nonprofit organizations that can assist students with financial aid counseling.
Senate Republicans on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will boycott an upcoming hearing on for-profit colleges, reports Jonathan Strong of the Daily Caller.
Meanwhile, in California, the editorial board of the Fresno Bee smacked the state’s for-profit college industry for opposing a bill that would require schools to administer a basic English test before admitting students.
Juvenile Justice
Oregon’s state budget will include the elimination of 119 jobs at the Oregon Youth Authority, reports Alan Gustafson of the Statesman Journal. The downsizing will include staff at two facilities, and will prompt a downsizing of capacity from 900 beds to 750.
The cuts in Florida are much larger: 700 jobs, and outright closure of six juvenile justice facilities by the end of the summer, reports David Royce of News Service of Florida.
Miscellaneous
A Michigan Boys and Girls Club is expanding at a time when many clubs are struggling just to hold the line, reports Pippi Mayfield of Detroit Lakes Online.
