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It Takes an 'Ohana

Hawaii's Foster Care Resource

It Takes an ‘Ohana is a program of Family Programs Hawaii. We provide the latest news in foster care and updates to Hawaii’s child welfare laws. For more information on foster care and strengthening families in Hawaii, visit our main website by clicking the button below.

Family Programs Hawaii

2015 Legislation Session

We are happy to report that THREE of the four bills YOU helped us advocate for this session passed through the legislature and landed on Governor Ige’s desk.  Of those 3, 2 were signed into law.  However, Governor Ige vetoed what would have been Hawaii’s Sex Trafficking law!  This important legislation would have criminalize sex trafficking and improved Hawaii’s ability to identify young victims of sex trafficking in several key ways. Unfortunately, a very large number of sex trafficking victims are child welfare involved!  We will be back next year to continue the work of getting a strong sex trafficking bill passed – please join us!

Bills  we advocated for that have been signed into law:

Preschool Open Doors (POD): SB64 was signed into law on July 2nd and is now Act 191! Thank you for helping to ensure preschool for foster children and children of the working poor!

Incarcerated Parent Data SB913 – now Act 016 – This new law has the potential to help our foster children whose parents are incarcerated by requiring the department of public safety to collect  the number of incoming offenders who are parents of children under age 18. You may click here to send a thank you to Governor Ige for signing this bill into law so quickly.

Thank YOU for your help in making Hawaii a better place for families!

National Center for Child Welfare Excellence Offers Curricula

The National Center for Child Welfare Excellence has produced several curricula related to key issues in child welfare. Titles include:
• Reaching Higher: A Curriculum for Foster/Adoptive Parents and Kinship Caregivers Caring for LGBTQ Youth
• Reaching Higher: Increasing Competency in Practice with LGBTQ Youth in Child Welfare Systems
• Making it Possible: Permanency Pathways for Older Youth in Care
• Assessing Adult Relatives as Preferred Caretakers in Permanency Planning: A Competency-Based Curriculum
Each features a facilitator’s guide and handouts for participants.

Click here for more info.

More Articles

DIFFICULT BEHAVIORS IN KEIKI SOMETIMES A RESULT OF FASD

Many resource caregivers and adoptive parents may be living with undiagnosed children & youth affected with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). Their child may appear to be healthy but because FASD affected children have permanent brain damage, learning and controlling behavior can present special problems. Follow link for a fact sheet that offers support.

`Ohana is Forever VII

Follow link for handouts and links to information given at the `Ohana is Forever VII: H.O.P.E. – Honoring Our Path to EmpowerMEnt Conference.