Ohio foster care youth and alumni believe that insights from those with “lived experience” are essential when designing statewide initiatives related to normalcy and emotional support.

OHIO YAB Youth Ambassador Kevin has participated in creating educational videos to share the importance of normalcy. He shared:

• Examples of how his county supported him with normalcy
• What foster parents can do to help support normalcy
• How having “normal” opportunities helped him to increase his circle of support
• How normalcy led to him being adopted

Areas of Focus:

1. Normalcy and safety concerns in residential facilities must continue to be addressed.

2. We have identified challenges and opportunities related to both the ICCA form and the CANS assessment.

3. We have mapped out recommendations to support future implementation of Tiered Foster Care.

4. We would love to support the development of strengths-based, needs-specific, trauma-informed trainings.

5. We continue to remind decision-makers about the importance of maintaining sibling connections.