Born Suspect

 This past Sunday’s “Meet the Press,” Ben Jealous, head of the NAACP, described the feeling that many African-American men have of being “born suspect” by virtue of nothing more than the color of their skin. He  continued to say that as  a result parents in the Black community make sure to talk with their adolescent children, especially their sons, cautioning them to be sensitive about how their behavior might illicit suspicion at any time for no other reason than because they are Black! Failure to address this with their children only places them at risk of harm.

The shooting and death of Trayvon Martin has once again called attention to the subtle and underlying racism that is part and parcel of our experience as a nation. At any given time at Hillsides, 30 % of the youth we serve are African American and well over 70% of those we serve are people of color. When I consider the harm that any one of these youth might experience not necessarily because of their actions, but simply because of the color of their skin, I am left frightened for them and saddened that still in 2012, racism still haunts our communities.

I am embarrassed to say that as much as I understand that race is a factor in how we perceive people in various situations, I have underestimated what a significant threat it is to the safety and well-being of all people of color. It is unacceptable, that for the youth we serve,  in addition to the many traumas, hardships and challenges that they face, their race should be yet one more threat and yet it is!

It is not sufficient for us to ask our children to watch their backs and be mindful of their actions and the perceptions of other people. It is imperative that we call this issue for what it is—racism—and resolve not only to keep our children safe, but more importantly, by naming the challenge and work diligently to mitigate its impact.

Throughout the nation this week, groups are gathering to raise this issue, grow awareness and solicit a resolve to mitigate the impact of racism on our society. Taking the time to examine how stereotypes so easily influence our perceptions and actions is perhaps the first step in mitigating the impact of racism in our lives. Our efforts can not undo the tragedy of Trayvon Martin’s death, but they can help us create a safer and more wholesome society for all children and youth.

Why I'm Excited

Often when I meet with those I supervise I ask the question, “What are you excited about?” I do this for a number of reasons: I really want to know what they are passionate about and I also use it as a way for me to get a sense of what is going on in the agency that is, indeed, exciting. As always, I need to be prepared to answer the question myself and so when I think back on the last week I must admit that I am excited about CQI, that is, continuous quality improvement.

One of the things that we consider to be a hallmark of Hillsides is our service and solution-oriented culture of doing whatever is necessary to provide all we serve with the best quality care. This can quickly be reduced to an empty platitude without some structured way to indeed promote and assure that we act on what we say. CQI is a formal process that has been introduced at Hillsides for some time now as we prepare for national accreditation. Every other month the various departments, represented by direct care workers and administrators, come together to share goals, action plans and, more importantly, findings that indicate their level of achievement.

This is not just another exercise to meet yet one more requirement, but rather it is becoming ingrained in our operations to keep us focused on the services we provide and on those we serve.

At the most recent meeting of the CQI team the following items were addressed: resident food surveys, medication awareness training, independent living skill building at the group homes and reducing physical interventions.

• Instead of usually quizzing residents in the dining room about how they like their lunch, a survey was conducted. Favorite foods were identified and plans to improve the menu are now being developed. 
• The vast majority of our residents benefit from some sort of medication therapy. Medication education assures residents are familiar with their treatment and its effects. This effort helps them best utilize any prescriptions that have been recommended.
• Daily living skills are essential for independence. In our group homes we have developed a curriculum of life skills that engage residents in becoming more confident in managing the routine tasks of daily living.
• And perhaps the greatest challenge is to continue to develop a treatment environment that eliminates effectively the need to provide physical interventions when residents are at risk of harming themselves or others.

It is exciting to participate in a process that not only helps us to learn and improve, but more than anything, helps us to achieve all that we hope for those we serve.

Just Do It

Recently the conversation in my office was about a student in crisis and the additional supports that the youth needs to get through this challenging period. It is not the first time that we have tailored an individualized program for a child, as a matter of fact, Hillsides and its Education Center are known for making that extra effort and, more often than not, being successful with a very challenging resident. We know the right thing to do, we know how to do it and we have the resolve to do it in spite of limited resources.

These days, whether walking the halls of Congress in Washington or the Legislature in Sacramento, the talk is about public revenue shortfalls and budget strategies; and I must admit the talk is grim. While some economic indicators may point to stability and perhaps growth, government has not seen any growth in revenues; in California, we are still struggling with what some estimate to be a $20 billion deficit!

In the great Californian spirit of ballot initiatives, November’s ballot may be littered with all sorts of initiatives proposed to remedy our fiscal woes. I’m afraid the result may only be to confuse, further restrict scarce public funds and only frustrate a very desperate situation.

In the meantime, how do we find the resources to address the needs of that student in crisis?

Daily instruction at the Hillsides Education Center costs approximately $145 while the reimbursement averages $125. Multiply that gap by 75 students and the calendar of instruction days and you get a sense of the tremendous challenge to maintain a critical service for not just our residents, but many community day students.

Clearly, the solutions lies in utilizing what limited resources we have in the most effective way possible. The task is not easy because as indicated in the recently released findings of the President’s Commission on Excellence in Special Education (http://www2.ed.gov/inits/commissionsboards/whspecialeducation/reports/summ.html), the education system is part of the problem. It is a system that fails to provide early and appropriate interventions for students with learning challenges; it is a system that is more driven by student failure. Failure only exacerbates the situation, traumatizes the student and leads often to very expensive interventions that are, of course, underfunded.

More than anything else at this time we need to break away from the usual strategy of legislating  solutions offered by special interests groups to utilize instead what we know to be most effective, always driven by the needs of those we serve.

Inspired by Foster Care Voices

On Saturday, February 25, I attended   Town Hall meeting that was conducted by the Congressional Caucus on Foster Care, in Los Angles. The meeting was chaired by Congresswoman Karen Bass, who in her short tenure in Congress is recognized as a strong advocate for foster children. More than anything else, the forum was an opportunity for advocates and foster youth to voice their concerns and address critical issues challenging the foster care system. As always, this was an opportunity for the public to comment on policy affecting services and the need for adequate funding. 

Many eloquent presenters addressed the policy issues, but more importantly there were several articulate young adults, graduates of the foster care system who related, better than anyone else, the challenges and triumphs of life in foster care. The one young man that captured my attention approached the microphone and succinctly stated that three years ago he had stood at the bottom of a driveway wondering where he could go to get drugs and that today, thanks to the care he received while in foster care, he was clean and was headed to the University of San Francisco on a full scholarship. He ended by encouraging the legislators to maintain their support and thanked them for what they do.

There is an awful lot wrong with the foster care system; it is well-intended, but never-the-less can be harmful to its beneficiaries, separating families without plans for reunification, demonizing struggling parents and stigmatizing children. More often than not, it is inadequately funded and, therefore, ironically increasing the risk that it attempts to mitigate in the first place. In the midst of this quagmire, how refreshing it was to hear this young man’s testimony, pointing to the opportunities that do exist within the current system in spite of its flaws.

This event was a great prelude to several days spent in LA and Washington, DC advocating for those we serve in the child welfare system. That Saturday evening I had the pleasure of greeting Congresswoman Judy Chu who attended the Hillsides annual benefit as a pledge of her support for our mission. Sunday I flew to Washington to attend the national conference of the Child Welfare League of America. The conference began with a truly inspirational presentation by a young man, Lucas Boyce, who shared his story of being a foster child. Having lost his birth mother to addiction he was introduced to foster care in the home of a single  mom who welcomed him as  her own. Lucas’ foster mom provided him with a strong foundation that helped him complete his college education, at one point after college serve in the White House and now he is employed as the Director of Community Relations for the Orlando Magic.

Together with the many compelling stories of the children, youth and families we serve, I felt that I was well prepared to advocate on their behalf while meeting during my stay in Washington with the staffs of Congressmembers Roybal-Allard, Issa, Schiff, Bass and Senator Feinstein.

Knowing that these young people never gave up and battled the odds to be successful is truly inspirational; giving us reason to be hopeful and ever committed in our advocacy.