Buckle up, Colorado. Child welfare will ask families to do even more in the coming years. Pressure on families will spike as the federal Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA), which aims to place children in nurturing homes instead of residential facilities, kicks off in Colorado. FFPSA’s groundbreaking legislation means that, starting in October 2021, […]
Edward D. Breslin
Special to The Colorado Sun
Twitter: @NedBreslin
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: The shadow pandemic requires new thinking to help those who need a safe home
As the world has sought safety and protection from the coronavirus pandemic inside our homes, these safe havens are also at the center of domestic violence. Worldwide, the data is alarming with dramatic increases of calls to domestic abuse hotlines surging by 30-55% in places like the United Kingdom, France and Latin America, and across […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: School resource officers can be a positive influence on kids
The debate on School Resource Officers (SROs) in Denver was swift and unequivocal: SROs will be completely phased out of all Denver schools by June 2021. Approximately half of U.S. public schools have SROs. All wonder how to pivot in a world where we can no longer disregard the depths of police brutality and the negative […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Budget cuts create opportunities — child mental health and welfare should advance
Colorado projects a $3.1 billion shortfall this year, and the impact of more than 25% cuts to state spending will be felt across every community in the state. While the Joint Budget Committee is leading us through a necessary process to balance our budgets and stakeholders are pulling out their bullhorns and shifting to defense, […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Let’s celebrate those running toward suffering in our coronavirus world
I tend to be drawn by those who turn, often running, toward those who are suffering. There is something that touches us deeply when we see it, and we feel their strength when we witness their courage. I think of groups like Team Rubicon, military veterans mobilizing to help communities throughout Colorado and worldwide recover […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: No Colorado child should be forced to move between 17 homes to heal
Child welfare is undergoing a long-overdue overhaul. The Family First Prevention Services Act was passed by Congress and signed into law in February 2018 and is welcomed by most in child welfare. Family First is set to be implemented in Colorado some time in 2020 and is premised on the long-held belief that children have […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: How hard it can be for Colorado families to get the mental health treatment they need
Tears always flow at some point. It’s inevitable. We are sitting with a father whose coffee grows cold and whose exhaustion is shared by his wife, who is wary of telling her story as she fully expects to be told, yet again, “We can’t help you now.” She carries this rejection from meeting to meeting while […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Early childhood support is vital for Colorado families
Measuring a child’s wellbeing can be difficult, but often you “know it when you see it.” You see children boldly and confidently interacting on the playground and delighting in sharing newly developed skills. It’s when they are healthy, valued and thriving. Maltreatment is similarly hard to measure. Yes, there are cases of abuse and neglect […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Make a difference in the life of a child in need. Become a special advocate.
The room was both mesmerized and aghast. Open sharing in a room full of people representing agencies that span the entire child welfare system are surprisingly rare. Rare, to the detriment of children whose bumpy journey through child welfare mirrors the young woman who, on the verge of “aging out” of child welfare, shared her […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Let’s help struggling families before bad situations spiral into abuse and neglect
What a particularly crummy few weeks for kids. The Trump Administration just announced that children at our borders can be detained indefinitely in the same week that we learn the extent of abuse detained children placed in foster care face across the country. Colorado children have fared no better. The state’s Child Protection Ombudsman released […]