I love Thanksgiving. My Dad (my favorite farmer) cooks for us, and this year, I have not one but two beautiful nieces to giggle with at the table.  This is what valuing family means to me. I am grateful for a good meal, for family, and even for the baby drool and stuffing that will […]
It has been about a year since Nebraska’s original safe haven law went into effect and 36 children, most of them teenagers, were dropped off at local hospitals before the Legislature went into special session to restrict the law to infants up to 30 days old. This spring, lawmakers took a first step in addressing
Safe Haven Revisited Read More »
What makes a good mother? Is it her ability to love and nurture her children? Is it her ability to provide them with the emotional, physical and spiritual support they need? Or is it her ability to speak English? Most people would choose love, nurture and support. But in courtrooms across the country, this seemingly
The Love of a Mother Transcends Language Read More »
One of my first blog posts this summer focused on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ release of its most recent federal review of Nebraska’s foster care system. As a result of the state’s failure to pass the federal review, the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (NDHHS) is required to develop
A Tall Order for Foster Care Reform Read More »
An increasing number of children and families find themselves caught in the intersection of our country’s complex – and broken – immigration and child welfare systems. The first goal in these cases should be for the state to provide culturally appropriate services to reunify the family when that is appropriate and can be done safely.
Special Visas Available to Abused and Neglected Foreign-Born Children Read More »
In June, I blogged about the long-term outcomes for children who “age out” of foster care and the opportunity presented by the new federal Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act to extend foster care to children up to age 21. While a number of important provisions in the Act focus on improving outcomes
Fostering Connections for Nebraska’s Children Read More »
The recent death of a 12 year old boy in Omaha, allegedly at the hands of his mother, who had called HHS seeking information about placing him in foster care, has raised questions about the state’s investigation of child abuse reports. Not only had the boy’s mother called HHS, but family members reported that they
Child Death Case Underscores Need for Transparency and Accurate Investigations Read More »
Since the formation of the our Child Welfare System Accountability Program in 2003, Nebraska Appleseed has been dedicated to enforce constitutional, federal, and state statutory requirements for providing adequate child welfare services in the State of Nebraska, and using legal advocacy to support needed policy reform initiatives. In particular, we are committed to working on
Nebraska Immigrant Family Bonds Protected by State Supreme Court Read More »
The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is a federal and state law enacted in 1978 to curb the practice of state child welfare agencies removing Native American children from their homes and placing them in non-Indian foster and adoptive homes. This practice had become so widespread that, at the time of ICWA’s enactment, 25 to
The Enforcement of the Indian Child Welfare Act in Nebraska Read More »
It has been five years since I was sworn into my first bar in the state of Wisconsin. In fact, just the other day, I received information in the mail from my law school about our upcoming class reunion. The ABA’s Young Lawyers Division defines a “young lawyer” as a lawyer under the age of
Lessons from a Young Lawyer Read More »
