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Partnered For Success: Helping Children Age Out of Foster Care

Every year 29,000 15 and 16 year old foster children age out of the foster care system and are expected to be independent adults. These children face an average of 7.5 different homes while in foster care, leaving little time to develop sufficient independent living skills and the confidence to take on the world alone. 

Partnered for Success is a program designed to help 15 and 16 year old foster and orphan youth successfully age out of the foster care system in the Phoenix Valley. The one-year program is made up of three components:

  1. Connecting the youth to workshops and resources in their community
  2. Getting the youth involved in community service
  3. Providing a support base of college-aged mentors for the students.

Without the program’s support, many of the 723 youths that were aged out in Arizona are at a distinct disadvantage compared to non-foster youths.

  • 20% of these youth will be homeless
  • 25% will be incarcerated
  • 58% will graduate from high school
  • 3% will go on to earn a college degree 

Academics, foster care experts, former foster youth, and social workers all agree that there is one thing that can help an aged-out teen succeed beyond their past adversity: a mentor. College-aged mentors provide guidance and a stable support system. They can speak to the youths who are entering adulthood and relate to their experiences and challenges in doing so.

Partnered for Success provides interactive, field-trip based workshops to help these youths will gain independent living skills that will prepare them for adulthood. Regular community service opportunities provide them with professional experience, confidence, and helps them developed relationships with their communities. It also helps combat society’s negative stigma regarding these youth and their potential to shape their communities in a positive manner.

Partnered for Success is currently running a fundraising campaign to obtain 501(c)(3) status, provide transportation for the youth to workshops throughout the year-long program, purchase Foster Care Alumni of America memberships, and to hold an annual fund raising/appreciate event. They are about $500 short of their tipping point. Please help them kick it up a notch by donating here.

startsomegood:

Partnered For Success: Helping Children Age Out of Foster Care

Every year 29,000 15 and 16 year old foster children age out of the foster care system and are expected to be independent adults. These children face an average of 7.5 different homes while in foster care, leaving little time to develop sufficient independent living skills and the confidence to take on the world alone. 

Partnered for Success is a program designed to help 15 and 16 year old foster and orphan youth successfully age out of the foster care system in the Phoenix Valley. The one-year program is made up of three components:

  1. Connecting the youth to workshops and resources in their community
  2. Getting the youth involved in community service
  3. Providing a support base of college-aged mentors for the students.

Without the program’s support, many of the 723 youths that were aged out in Arizona are at a distinct disadvantage compared to non-foster youths.

  • 20% of these youth will be homeless
  • 25% will be incarcerated
  • 58% will graduate from high school
  • 3% will go on to earn a college degree 

Academics, foster care experts, former foster youth, and social workers all agree that there is one thing that can help an aged-out teen succeed beyond their past adversity: a mentor. College-aged mentors provide guidance and a stable support system. They can speak to the youths who are entering adulthood and relate to their experiences and challenges in doing so.

Partnered for Success provides interactive, field-trip based workshops to help these youths will gain independent living skills that will prepare them for adulthood. Regular community service opportunities provide them with professional experience, confidence, and helps them developed relationships with their communities. It also helps combat society’s negative stigma regarding these youth and their potential to shape their communities in a positive manner.

Partnered for Success is currently running a fundraising campaign to obtain 501(c)(3) status, provide transportation for the youth to workshops throughout the year-long program, purchase Foster Care Alumni of America memberships, and to hold an annual fund raising/appreciate event. They are about $500 short of their tipping point. Please help them kick it up a notch by donating here.

smarterplanet: IBM’s Smarter Buildings push | Green Tech - CNET News IBM is hoping to use technology to create greener, smarter buildings. Big Blue announced Monday that it will team up with partners and customers to venture into the next phase of its Smarter Planet initiative: Smarter Buildings. The goal is to help buildings, manufacturing plants, and other facilities consume less energy and water and make them easier to operate. Announced Monday, one of IBM’s new partnerships is with Johnson Controls, a manufacturer of products that optimize energy use in buildings. The two plan to combine Johnson’s energy-efficient technologies with IBM’s Tivoli software to offer customers a way to monitor and manage power usage, which IBM believes will cut costs. Specifically, building owners will be able to detect wasteful energy use, calculate greenhouse gas levels, and better manage the space in their buildings.
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smarterplanet:

IBM’s Smarter Buildings push | Green Tech - CNET News

IBM is hoping to use technology to create greener, smarter buildings. Big Blue announced Monday that it will team up with partners and customers to venture into the next phase of its Smarter Planet initiative: Smarter Buildings. The goal is to help buildings, manufacturing plants, and other facilities consume less energy and water and make them easier to operate. Announced Monday, one of IBM’s new partnerships is with Johnson Controls, a manufacturer of products that optimize energy use in buildings. The two plan to combine Johnson’s energy-efficient technologies with IBM’s Tivoli software to offer customers a way to monitor and manage power usage, which IBM believes will cut costs. Specifically, building owners will be able to detect wasteful energy use, calculate greenhouse gas levels, and better manage the space in their buildings.

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