Presented by FosterClub ’ s Julia Schaffer, Timothy Bell, and Kayla Vandyke

1. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e • Presented by FosterClub’s Julia Schaffer, Timothy Bell, and Kayla Vandyke

2. About FosterClubThe national network of young people in foster care Built for youth, powered by youth, changing life in foster care.

3. OUR MISSION is to lead the efforts of young people in and from foster care to become connected, educated, inspired + represented so they can realize their personal potential and contribute to a better life for their peers.

4. THE BUSY BEE Opening Activity:

5. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e About the Project • It’s Complicated: Improving Sexuality and Relationship Education and Support for Foster Youth • Three year project, anonymous donor • Goal: Increase the capacity of FosterClub’s young leaders to improve sexuality and relationship outcomes among youth in care

6. Youth Involvement: how young people were engaged in project proposal, design and implementation

7. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e Young Leaders Survey • Our survey found: • Caseworkers and foster parents aren’t talking to foster youth about this topic • 48% struggle with sexual identity issues, 83% don’t think foster youth are provided enough support regarding sexual identity

8. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e Young Leaders Survey • 58% said this issue comes often • 37% said youth discuss LGBTQ issues with them • Nearly all said young leaders from care should have training about how to discuss this issues intelligently and responsibly

9. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e Young Leaders Survey • Not surprising: Foster youth struggle disproportionately with serious issues: • 76% had experienced sexual abuse • 80% witnessed domestic violence • 83% physical abuse • 97% experienced abandonment by at least one biological parent

10. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e Young Leaders Survey • What happens when we DON’T work with young people from foster care on sexuality and relationships?

11. Young leaders • • engagement • • building capacity

12. All-Star conversation: reflections on sexuality and relationships, how it relates to foster youth outcomes, and how the foster care experience impacted perspectives.

13. Curriculum & training • • overview • • development • • strategy

14. Let’s Play! • Stand in circle, bow to your Sensei • Strike a pose • Player 1 takes ONE MOTION toward another player’s hand, trying to ‘sting’ them • Must FREEZE after one motion • If a player’s hand is ‘stung,’ that’s one out (two outs = two hands)

15. What’s the trick to staying in the Relationship Ninja game?

16. What goes through a Ninja’s head when one hand gets stung? What happens when a young person gets stung in a relationship?

17. What’s more important in relationships – knowing how to get into healthy ones, or how to protect ourselves from unhealthy ones?

18. Ninja strength or weakness? • In small groups, rate each of the foster care experiences: does it provide a youth with a strength or a weakness when it comes to relationship skills?

19. How does a player get really good at the Ninja game? How does a young person get good at creating healthy relationships?

20. Policy & system change • youth engagement in federal policy and system reform

21. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e How We Engage Young Leaders in System Change • Youth Engagement is Hard. Is Youth Engagement in “Policy” Impossible?

22. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e How We Engage Young Leaders in System Change • It’s Complicated and System’s Change

23. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e How We Engage Young Leaders in System Change • Successes and Challenges In Engaging Youth in Policy

24. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e Young Leaders Poll • The National Foster Care Youth & Alumni Policy Council Poll to Young People: • 70% had been approached for inappropriate sexual activity • 38% approached by someone in the foster care system, 24% by foster parent or caregiver

25. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e Young Leaders Poll • The National Foster Care Youth & Alumni Policy Council Poll: • 89% of males said they did not know where to turn for help • 52% said they had not received counseling to address the trauma they had experienced

26. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e Take Away Messages from the Young Leaders Poll • Underprepared pregnancy • Unhealthy – and sometimes dangerous – relationships… repeating the domestic violence cycle • Vulnerability to predators and sex trafficking

27. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e Closing Activity • Closing Activity: • The Policy Telephone

28. It’s Complicated: Lessons learned • Reflections, along with questions from session partiicipants

29. w w w . f o s t e r c l u b . c o m| t h e n a t i o n a l n e t w o r k f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i n f o s t e r c a r e • For more information, contact Kayla VanDyke at kayla@fosterclub.com