Homeless Youth Essays (Examples)

Homeless Youth: Access to Healthcare Services

Homeless Youth

Homeless Youth: Increasing Access to Healthcare Services

Homeless Youth: Increasing Access to Healthcare Services

The estimated number people in homeless families in 2014 were 216,261, of which nearly 60% were under the age of 18 (Henry et al., 2014, p. 29). The number of unaccompanied homeless children and youth in 2014 was estimated to be just under 200,000 individuals (p. 39). The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) defines children as any individual under the age of 18, while youth are defined as being between 18- and 24-years of age. Unaccompanied children represent about 70% of this homeless demographic. Combining these numbers result in about 78,281 and 263,727 homeless youth and children, respectively, living on the streets and in shelters in the United States in 2014, which represent 13.5 and 45.6%, respectively, of all homeless individuals.

Other estimates suggest that…

Talents are noted as an individual's naturally recurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior that may be applied productively. The more dominant a theme in an individual, the more that particular theme will likely influence that person's behavior and performance (Strengthstest 2009).

Table I: Thirty-four Talent Themes (Strengthstest 2009).

Achiever®

People strong in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.

Activator®

People strong in the Activator theme can make things happen by turning thoughts into action. They are often impatient.

Adaptability®

People strong in the Adaptability theme prefer to "go with the flow." They tend to be "now" people who take things as they come and discover the future one day at a time.

Analytical®

People strong in the Analytical theme search for reasons and causes. They have the ability to think about all the factors…

For some, there will be a denial and minimization of the substance habit as being inconsequential, purely recreational or extremely intermittent. This response is akin to the young adult asserting that there is no problem. For other homeless youths, their drug or alcohol habit maybe viewed as a form of survival: these drugs help these teenagers bear life on the street. In that sense the substance is attributed as beneficial for the escapism necessary to survival. "Using, even abusing substances is often viewed as a 'normal' practice by those identifying with street culture. Homeless young people report using drugs and alcohol as a coping strategy and often have more favorable attitudes toward drug use than their non-homeless peers" (Gomez et al., 2010). Thus, there could be a complete difficulty in making any assessments, since many homeless youths won't see their substance abuse as a problem at all, and won't seek…

unaway and Homeless Youth Act of 2008-PL 110-378

The unaway and Homeless Act of 2008 built on legislation established in the 1970s that addressed youth issues in an attempt to keep youths from entering into the juvenile corrections system. Over the years, the Act has been reauthorized and expanded to support programs that aid homeless and runaway youths. Currently, reauthorization is awaiting approval in Congress. Leahy has added the rights of LGBT youths to the proposal, which has prompted epublicans to reject it. Thus, millions in funding is being withheld from programs that depend on federal dollars. This paper discusses the background of the Act and the proposal for reauthorization and why it should be given so that programs may continue and youths may be assisted.

Introduction

The econnecting Homeless Youth Act also known as the unaway and Homeless Youth Act of 2008-PL 110-378 is current legislation that was passed…

Strength Based Assessment -- LGBT Homeless Youth

The objective of this study is to describe the process that would be used for completing a strengths-based assessment for LGBT homeless youth.

In order to make a strengths-based assessment for LGBT homeless youth, the social worker or advocate must first examine what is available to assist LGBT homeless youth in the way of services and assistive information that will serve to empower LGBT homeless youth to overcome their present situation.

Services that homeless LBGT youth are in need of include medical and health care services, access to housing, nutrition, counseling where needed as well as access to educational institutions including higher education at colleges and universities. The social worker is in a unique position to assist these youth in gaining access to these resources. Social workers work from a viewpoint of the principles of human rights which are formulated upon the basis…

Social wok is a demanding yet ewading field. Though vaious initiatives, social wokes can have a pofound impact on the wold in which they live. This is paticulaly tue fo homelessness as it elates to the LGBT Youth. Homelessness unfotunately continues to be a costly epidemic plaguing society. The costs of homelessness fa outweigh the taditional aspects of lowe tax evenue and poductivity. The costs of inceased cime lack of skills taining, and lack of pofessional gowth ae all vey eal costs to society. Fotunately, eseach dedicated towads the impovements of homelessness thoughout Ameica is vey obust. Vaious activities such as counseling, job taining, and othe foms of intevention have had a pofound impact on homelessness in Ameica. This document will fist discuss effective pevention and intevention measues of homelessness within the LGBT community. Paticula emphasis will be placed on pee eviewed aticles and academic eseach to suppot all of…

Health isks Across the Life Span: Impact of Nursing Intervention on Decreasing Substances Among Homeless Youth

Statistical data shows that an estimated 1.2 million people from ages 11 to 19 live without any shelter. Usage of alcohol (mainly binge drinking and methamphetamine) is very common among these homeless adolescents, they are observed to consume these substances more frequently and in greater amounts as compared to the youth that is not homeless. The main reasons behind high consumption of addictive substances by homeless youth is social (peer)pressure that prevails in the lower strata of United States' population. In order to reduce the consumption of alcohol and other drugs among the poor population, Health Promotion Program was started by nurses and in the article to follow; we'll view the impacts of this campaign in detail.

The main outcomes of substance abuse among the homeless teenagers results in:

Lower rates of condom use…

With the increase in families, and thus children and teens on the street, there has been a subsequent increase in youth drug use, pregnancy and crime, especially violent and sexual crimes. This disturbing trend has created a new challenge to how to deal with the homeless epidemic as new resources are needed. Further, many of the traditional charitable organizations are unequipped to deal with this new need, meaning that few services are now available to the homeless.

In conclusion, if anything is clear, it is that the homeless problem is becoming worse instead of better. Instead of homeless individuals, there are now homeless families. With this, the cycle of homelessness continues, giving society few, if any, options on stopping the vicious and continuing downward spiral of poverty, homelessness, and the multitude of problems associated with it.

ibliography

Aday, Lu Ann. (1994): "Health Status of Vulnerable Populations." Annual Review of PUblic…

This was equivalent to those youth utilizing ongoing, long-term services (Pollio, Thompson, Tobias, eid and Spitznagel, 2006).

Critique

There are several significant limitations that must be considered when looking at the results of this study. First, there was lack of a control group which limits the conclusions that can be drawn concerning causal assertions about the effectiveness of services. It is thought that future research on service use for this population needs to include a comparison condition of other troubled youth, perhaps runaway/homeless youth not seeking crisis services. Features of the sampling strategy limited the generalization of the findings. Since the sample included only service-using youth, it is not generalizable to the entire runaway/homeless population. The authors believed that the youth in this sample were representative of the population of service-using runaway/homeless youth from Missouri, Illinois, Nebraska, and Kansas. However, other research has suggested that this population is not representative…

Housing and Homelessness in Canada

In Canada, there is a problem with homelessness. While that is certainly not unique to the country, it is a significant issue which has to be addressed in order to facilitate changes that can lower the number of homeless people in the country. The majority of these people live in the larger cities and do have some access to resources, but the problems with homelessness have still kept growing in complexity and size over recent years. The demographics of the people who are most often seen as homeless are changing, as well, putting younger and more vulnerable people on the streets. There are estimates that 0.5% of the population does not have a home at all, and some believe that those estimates only represent about 1/2 of the actual population of homeless people throughout Canada (Fortin, 2008). Part of the problem with not being certain…

Family homelessness has emerged as a serious global problem and over the last twenty-five years the make-up of the homeless population has changed significantly in the United States (Swick Pp). The majority of the homeless were men in the early 1980's, however, today, families make up thirty percent of the homeless population, and some scholars suggest that families may constitute up to forty to fifty percent of the homeless (Swick Pp).

The United States federal government defines homeless individuals as those lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, or those who have a primary nighttime residence that is:

*a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations

(including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally ill);

*an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or *a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as,…

("Qualitative research...," 2008, Sampling Issues section)

Groenwald (2004) also stresses that in regard to the phenomenon the researcher identifies/describes, the unique or minority voices serve as vital counterpoints to relate.

Data Collection Method

To complement the proposed study's literature review, the researcher plans to interview a minimum of 10 professional individuals who regularly work with underinsured and/or uninsured youth. The researcher notes three types of interviews" a) the unstructured interview, which constitutes a formal, conversational interview without any predetermined questions; (b) the structured interview, where the interviewer utilizes a series of pre-established questions in the same order to obtain information from those he/she interviews; - the semi-structured interview, where the interviewer asks numerous open-ended questions that simultaneously mirror the researcher's perception of theoretical perspective.

CONCLUSION

egarding the phenomenon being researched, as Groenwald (2004) stresses, the unique or minority voices prove to be vital counterpoints for the researcher to bring out.…

Often children must withhold information from people who could help them as public awareness of their homelessness would likely end in separation from loved ones as for children a greater number of programs exist to help them independently than collectively with their parents. Homeless youth are also a significant social issue and their numbers are hard to even estimate, though there are clear indications that the numbers are growing. "Novac, Serge, Eberle, and Brown (2002) identified four important trends among homeless youth: 1) the incidence is increasing; 2) an increasing number are chronically homeless; 3) the age at which youth become homeless is decreasing, especially for females; and 4) more identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered." (Wingert, Higgitt & istock, 2005, p. 54) the issue, like with that of other homeless populations is developing systems that build transitions to more stable and permanent housing. (Wingert, Higgitt & istock, 2005,…

165).

Conclusion:

The number of homeless students in America is staggering, and sadly growing. These children are faced with unique challenges that their peers with homes are not typically plagued with. Homeless students academic efforts are often decimated due to fatigue and poor nutrition. Anxiety and depression affects their ability to concentrate. And, they often have gaps in their knowledge due to the inability to complete their homework as a result of not having the necessary supplies on hand (Noll & Watkins, 2004). Emotional, behavioral, academic, social, and familial problems occur more frequently in this category of students. For this reason, educators and school counselors should be positioned to provide the services and support these children will probably not receive elsewhere.

As Swick (2004) notes,

Educators can positively affect the lives of children and families who are homeless or in other high-risk situations. By understanding the dynamics of what homeless…

Another issue is prison release, because newly released inmates often have nowhere to live, they cannot get a job because they are convicted felons, and so they end up homeless. A frightening statistic is that there are so many young people that are homeless. Another group of researchers note, "A reliable determination of the prevalence of homelessness among adolescents is difficult to obtain, but the most recent and vigorous attempt estimates that there are more than one million youth nationwide who are homeless during any given 12-month period" (Johnson, ew & Kouzekanani, 2006). Often, these young people are on the streets because of dysfunctional families. Many are runaways, who have left home because of anger and violence in the families, or sexual abuse. The researchers continue, "High rates of sexual abuse have been found among homeless and runaway adolescents" (Johnson, ew & Kouzekanani, 2006). Yet another reason for homelessness is…

Youth Transition Methods Section

The literature and research sections above adequately demonstrate how challenging it can be for young people in foster care to transition into adulthood and independence and why certain assessment tactics will likely best capture objective and subjective reviews of the experience. This methodology section reiterates the specific study elements that will be used to look directly at the experience that the targeted young people (those who left within the last two years) had as they moved through their transitional stages toward aging out of the foster care system.

To reiterate, the study has three focal areas. The first two offer a degree of quantitative assessment as well as qualitative sections. The latter is mostly qualitative in that it seeks to elicit the recollections of the young people in regards to their experiences and where they see their future going. Together, the results will provide a multidimensional…

Homeless Mental Health

Mental health is an issue that is deemed to be very under-treated and very under-diagnosed within the United States. Beyond that, there are populations that are much more at risk than others. A good example would be the prison population where drug use and mental health issues are both rampant. However, there is another group that is highly stricken and very vexing and difficult to treat and that would be the homeless. Indeed, many people that are homeless are in that position due to mental health issues. Mental health is often not the only issue involved as comorbidity can exist with substance abuse. However, mental health will be the focus of this report. Facets of the homeless with mental health that will be focused upon within this report will include issues like diversity, ethics, values, social justice, diagnosing of patients, initiation/termination of care, aftercare, and the broader…

youth transition out of foster care as they "age-out" of the system. This can prove to be a very challenging and difficult phase for young people as they are expected to take on adult responsibilities and make their own way in the world. Whether youth successfully transition from foster care to independent living is multifaceted, and requires detailed investigation in order to illuminate how the foster care system can facilitate change throughout the "aging-out" process.

Keller et al. (2007) utilized person-oriented research methods in order to investigate how well adolescents transition from life as part of the child welfare system to independent living as adults. This research method was chosen for the study in order to appropriate capture and understand the various and diverse ways these youth may be prepared for the transition among a sample that is large and representative of the population of youth aging-out from foster care.…

families are living in poverty. Many of these families are living in such extreme conditions that they cannot afford even such basic needs as food for every meal. Living and growing up in such conditions affects every area of life and ultimately the country as a whole. The escalation of poverty among families create tremendous challenges for children. It can negatively impact a growing child's mental and physical health, for example. Such conditions also affect education. A child suffering from chronic mental or physical conditions related to poverty cannot receive optimal educational opportunities. Ultimately, such a child will not be able to contribute to the economy of the country or arrange his or her own well-being in the world. This, in turn, creates further burdens for the country's welfare system. For this reason, it is important to study the contributing factors to poverty in the country in order to find…

Rising Poverty and Homelessness

NOT TO E IGNORED

Rising Poverty in the Nation's Young Families, Children and Homelessness

Census ureau (2010) reported that, for the three consecutive years, the number of people living in poverty has been increasing and reached 46.2 million or 15% of the total population. Overall poverty rate for all U.S. families went up from 9.8% in 2007 to 11.7% in 2010. Recession in the late 2007 has strongly cut through all ages, both genders and all race-ethnic groups. ut the most severely affected are young families, headed by adults under 30, with one or more children. This condition is seen to assert long-lasting negative effects of children's cognitive achievement, education, nutrition and physical and mental health as well as social behavior. These developments are likely to have long-term consequences on the nation's economy and social future U.S. Census ureau). ut professionals and parents can buffer these…

Asian History

The homeless children Dower describes in Embracing Defeat experience a type of structural inequality both similar to and different from the types of inequality addressed in Consuming Kids. In both case, the children are systematically disenfranchised before they have an input into the course of their lives. The structural inequalities faced by the disenfranchised victims of World War Two in Japan included dire straits, homelessness, and poverty. These are certainly realities in the United States, too. In the United States, Japanese children had been portrayed with rank racism, in a systematic propaganda campaign. The same types of propaganda campaigns are used by marketing professionals, in their quest to lure young minds and change children's behaviors.

Structural inequity can be traced to manipulation. Manipulation is a key theme in both Embracing Defeat and Consuming Kids. In Japan and in the United States, political power is wielded from a variety…

Cause of Homelessness in America

has numerous social problems. Homelessness seems to be one of the most important ones. There are several causes that determine homelessness. However, the primary cause of homelessness can be considered the reduced affordable housing level and the national increase in poverty. Other causes of homelessness refer to high unemployment rates, low salary levels in certain urban and rural areas, the inability of certain individuals to pay health care bills, the inability qualify for public assistance, domestic violence, mental illness, addiction disorders, and others. It is important to understand that there are specific factors that influence homelessness in the U.S., but these factors are allowed to develop because of the state's authorities. In other words, these authorities seem to not be able to manage the social situation of individuals in a homeless situation. If their situation is analyzed, it can be established that homeless people's actions…

The latter was an important member of this party, and also a staunch anti-Semite. The association with Eckart therefore further solidified Hitler's prejudice against Jews and other non-Aryan races (Fuchs 12)

Like many Germans, Hitler was deeply shocked by Germany's surrender. At the time, he was lying in a military hospital, recovering from a mustard gas attack. Recalling the anti-Semitic and political pamphlets he read as a teenager, Hitler came to believe that Jewish politicians had signed the armistice, thereby surrendering Germany at the point of victory (Schwaab 46).

The German surrender thus served as a catalyst for Hitler's entry into politics

Hitler believed that these Jewish politicians were preparing the way for a communist takeover of the German nation.

Shortly after meeting Eckart, Hitler produced his first anti-Semitic writing, advocating for a solution to the growing German problem. Hitler's solution involved "rational anti-Semitism." He vowed not to use traditional…

Toronto Social Services Organizations Brochure

We Are Here to Help You Find the Help that You Want

The purpose of this pamphlet is to provide you with important information about what resources are available to help you. We hope that you will be able to use this information to improve your life as much as possible by increasing your safety and help you find ways of satisfying your most basic human needs even during the hardest times of your life. We hope that you will be able to use this information to find better alternatives to homelessness if you want to and to improve your life on the streets as much as possible if you choose to remain homeless.

Ultimately, the purpose of this pamphlet is to help you in every way that you might desire assistance but without imposing any decisions on you that you do not choose. The…

Mayor Schell's Zero Homeless Family Pledge

Program Solving in Public Administration

Charles Amankwaa, Kimberlie Mosley, Luby Harvey

Tom Darling

Evaluation Questions

Mission, Strategic Goals, and Objectives

Proposed Budget, Budget Narrative, and Work Plan

The number of homeless families in the City of Seattle has become a major issue that needs to be addressed. Currently, single males in the streets account for 63% of homeless people while 17% are women and the other 20% are families and youth. In Seattle alone, there are more 700 homeless single women and homeless families with children.

In June of 1998, Mayor Paul Schell made a pledge that there would be no homeless families with children or homeless single women on the streets of Seattle by Christmas of 1998." (Norton, 2006). The pledge by Mayor Schell can be accomplished within six months as he indicated though there are several potential challenges that need to be…

Morals

The popularity of such shows as "Wife Swap" indicates the current quality of American social values: it has become alright to disrupt a child's life by substituting the mother for a perfect stranger, but it isn't alright for homosexuals to get married. Today's youth face moral conflicts and conundrums that are unique to our generation. Mass media programming sends distorted moral messages to which youth are especially susceptible. However, combating negative moral influences is not simply a matter of turning off the television, or even of listening to one's mentors, parents, or peers. Rather, for a young person to emerge from adolescence with solid moral foundations, he or she must cultivate sensitivity.

Because of the nature of television, film, and digital entertainment, young people today have become at least partially desensitized to human suffering. The solution to desensitization is not to refrain from playing Mortal Kombat or to shun…

Anderson et al. (2002) studies the effects of terminating the levels of addiction disability on the status of housing of persons who formerly recipients of addiction diability. They study how the various disruptions in the living situations play an integral role in the determination of the level of predisposition to drug and alcohol abuse. They present their view via both structural and individualistic theories as regrds both housing and homelessness in the society. Their study involved the quantitative analysis if data obtained through the interviewing of 101 former recipients who were selected at random. They found from their analysis that the termination of the benefits coupled with the reduced level of social services and the unprecedented explosion of housing markets resulted in an increase in the homeless and high dependency n both family and friends. The resulting negative living results contributed to the escalation of the drug related risks and…

Caring is important to human kind and in our daily experiences. Although caring is fundamental, knowledge about it and its application is not one of the serious academic concerns. Caring as a topic can raise various descriptions. In nursing as a discipline of concern, caring relates to the ability and desire to help someone grow or overcome a depressing situation. Caring is the moral ideal in nursing practice. It involves ones will to care, and mind about the situation of others. In nursing practice, Caring is a process that nurtures itself from a person's moral responsibility to meet a society's mandate. According to Watson (1985), nurses are the caretakers of care for other helping professions. Nursing is the epitome of care and a nurse has to guard and develop the concept. Caring is not only required in nursing but also in various disciplines. Caring can develop from different motivational factors.…

Road to Independence

Independent Living Programs for Juvenile Offenders

Juvenile crime is a major problem in contemporary America. Murder, rape, assault, and crimes against property are a part of everyday life for many teens. Incarceration can both punish and reeducate. The offender learns that antisocial behaviors have consequences. He also learns that there are other ways to deal with his problems, and other ways to make a living. Such attempts at reform are all well and good within the closed world of the juvenile detention center or the sheriff's boot camp, but the day must come when these youths are returned to society. Reintegration into the outside world can be both good and bad for the juvenile offender. For those who return to loving homes, the process can represent the completion of the reform process. However, many teens have no loving homes to which they can go, no caring parents…

227), creating a house-full of stress and tension.

Another study delves into how much children "matter" to their stepparents -- because "to matter is to be noticed, to be an object of concern, and to be needed by a specific individual" (Schenck, et al., 2009, p. 71). The authors posit that when children "feel secure and accepted in their parental relationships, they feel less threatened by stressful events" (p. 71). This study, published in the journal Fathering, involved 133 adolescents in stepfather families. The child participants were in 7th grade at the outset of the research; the end result of the research concluded, "mattering to both fathers [stepfather and biological father] was significantly related to adolescents' mental health problems" (Schenck, p. 84). Further, it was found (through teacher interviews) that when a child "mattered" to the stepfather the child was more apt to "externalize" his problems, which reduces stress and…

sufficient health care for runaway teenagers is a topic of grave concern to most in the medical and social professions, both nationally and in the state of California. With limited treatment options, higher risks of STD's, HIV, and other diseases, improper prenatal care, and a lack of community care options, runaway teens receive grossly inadequate health care. This paper will address those concerns, specifically in the state of California, as well as offering possible solutions to the problem, and will examine the role of the registered nurse in the solutions presented.

It is important to note that the life of a runaway teenager is filled with health risks and danger. Marie and Cheri are just one example. They were 13 when they ran away from home in an attempt to escape a drug addicted father who sexually abused them. With only $200 between them, their food supply and housing was…

At times, even though the research may be complicated by varying definitions of homelessness, researchers are establishing methods for estimating the size of the homeless population, which includes people who have nowhere to go; at risk of losing housing through eviction or institutional discharge (Drury, 2008).

Case Study Methodology

In the case study methodology, a form of qualitative descriptive research, according to M. Dereshiwsky (1999) in "Electronic Textbook - Let Us Count the Ways: Strategies for Doing Qualitative esearch," the researcher using the case study methodology does not focus on discovering a universal, generalizable truth, nor do the researcher generally search for cause-effect relationships. Instead, the researcher emphasizes the exploring and describing process. As the researcher examines one individual or small participant pool, he/she then draws conclusions only about that one particular participant or group; only in the designated, specific context Case Studies 2008).

In considering or defining the case…

Criminal Justice

Gaetz, S. (July 2004). Safe streets for whom? Homeless youth, social exclusion, and criminal victimization. Canadian Journal of Criminology & Criminal Justice.

This journal article reports the researcher's survey findings regarding the prevalence of victimization among street youths compared to domiciled youths. Gaetz defines the street youth operatively as "people up to the age of 24 who are 'absolutely periodically, or temporarily without shelter, as well as those who are at substantial risk of being in the street in the immediate future" (433). Survey findings show that just as expected, victimization mostly occur among the street than domiciled youth. Moreover, street youth reporting of criminal victimization is not common among both males and females. 41.7% of the respondents who have been victimized "told a friend" about the incident of victimization, 33.1% "did not tell anyone," and a far 17.2% reported the victimization to their partner (boyfriend or girlfriend)…

Human trafficking has become a major global epidemic that affects all nations. Human sex trafficking is the fastest growing business and the third largest criminal enterprise worldwide (alker-Rodriquez, 2011). Victims include children, both male and female, and women. The victims are often given false identities and some get entangled into national organized crime networks. They are often isolated, drugged, terrorized, repeatedly raped, and often sold to other traffickers. The abuse over extended periods of time causes victims to be attached to the trafficker in a paradoxical psychological phenomenon. The average ages of children living on the streets in the U.S. that become engaged in prostitution is 12 to 14 for girls and 11 to 13 for boys (alker-Rodriquez, 2011).

Barriers to victim identification include the nature of the crime, lack of awareness, victim perception, lack of resources, and providers' view of training provided (Clawson, 2007). Victims usually come from povertized,…

Community Health Centers

Conditions Necessary for Policy Innovation

An important but often ignored part of community involvement in academic health centers is the formation of a collaborative and responsive relationship with stakeholders. Such relationships enhance the role of academic health centers as providers of healthcare and as leaders in community health (Butger, 2010). esearch from Harvard's Health Law and Policy Innovation (CHLPI) gives evidence of the way the design of health plans can discourage some people from taking up the care they need. An interesting PHD project by Karolina under the banner of 'Pathways to a Healthy Life' aims to push boundaries between disciplines aside so that the contribution of the university in the provision of health care across all facets including life expectancy, wellbeing and ageing are improved. It evaluates the various ways in which local communities, individuals, lifestyle as well as environmental and economic conditions affect aging healthily.…

"hen things pile up on you…" you start thinking "I'm better if I'm dead" (p. 71).

In the book, this poor struggling woman receives $20 from the man who had sex with her; with that money she buys Pampers, bologna with a loaf of bread. In 2009, it is doubtful that $20 would buy those three items. But a student could take Kozol's story and perhaps have the man who picked her up off the street be a kind, thoughtful person, who takes her to his home where he and his wife provide temporary shelter for her family, and even locate a job for her the next day.

On page 143 Elizabeth relates a story about a friend who invited her to come and visit. Take bus number 23, he says, but he cannot tell her where to get off or what the street is named because he cannot read.…

Urban Problems and Solutions

In the 1990's, the United States exhibited a decreasing trend in the rates of pre-marital sex and teen pregnancies. However, the rate of teenage pregnancy in United States is yet considered to be alarming in comparison to that of other developed countries of the world. It has been estimated that about 1 million teenage girls in the U.S. are being victims of teenage pregnancy every year.

Due to the fact that teen mothers and babies are vulnerable to health hazards, the considerable birth rates among teens have become alarming. The ignorance of pregnant youngsters deprives them of taking appropriate medical attention, making them vulnerable to medical complexities. The teenage pregnancies have tremendous emotional impact on the adolescents. Under feeding, negligence in taking nutrients, habits of smoking, alcoholism, drug abuse etc. which are common among most of the youngsters make their newly born babies prone to health…

ising Poverty in the Nation's Young Families

My goal is to make a positive change in the lives of young children, families, and the early childhood field by targeting childhood poverty.

Concepts

Poverty is increasing most rapidly in families with young children. While poverty only rose by 1.3% in the childless 30-64 age bracket, it rose by nearly 8% in families with a head under 30 years old with one or more children in the home (Sum, 2011). In fact, young families with children are more than six times as likely to be impoverished as older families (Sum, 2011). This marks a shift in communities at-risk for poverty, from the elderly to children (Sum, 2011). In addition, this wealth disparity is not only visible among the impoverished. "By 2010, slightly more than one-third of the nation's young families were poor or near poor, up by nearly 10 percentage points from…

oys and Girls Clubs of America as a Resource to Aid in the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency

oys and Girls Clubs of America

This research describes the tremendous need for nonprofit human services organizations by youth who: use drugs, commit crimes or are victims of crime, drop out of high school, and become pregnant at an early age. There are a variety of nonprofit organizations such as oys and Girls Clubs of America, ig rothers ig Sisters and Children's Aid Society that step in to try to compensate for a breakdown in modern social infrastructures. This paper summarized how each makes their own unique contributions and describes in detail the many successes of programs offered by the oys and Girls Clubs of America, proven by formalized studies. ecause human services have made such a difference in the lives of children, recommendations include additional outreach and increased funding for their activities.…

" (KGI, 1)

I did start to notice many changes in myself, both in terms of my increasing tendency toward physical activeness and my heightening interest in the opposite sex. At first, this interest was manifested of my generally social nature. And to the point, this adolescent period would be an excellent time in my life in terms of cultivating a loose but increasingly intimate social network. This conforms with my general research on this stage of development, which is highlighted by a transition from a life dominated by home and family to one increasingly more divided to the pursuits of school, extra-curricular activity, athletic team membership and information social gathering. These tend to function as substitutes in certain areas where previously only the family fulfilled certain needs.

This was a tough time though. In the midst of the rapid changes that were altering my physical and emotional experiences, my…

Such relationships in childhood begin with the parents, and for Asher, these early relationships are also significant later, as might be expected.

However, as Potok shows in this novel, for someone like Asher, the importance of childhood bonds and of later intimate bonds are themselves stressed by cultural conflicts between the Hasidic community in its isolation and the larger American society surrounding it. For Asher, the conflict is between the more controlled religious environment of the community and the more liberal environment of the art world he joins. What Potok shows about this particular conflict might seem very different from what others experience, others who are not part of such a strict religious background and who are not artists. However, children always find a conflict between the circumscribed world of their immediate family and the world they join as they strike out on their own. This conflict is often portrayed…

However, from 2008 the number began to decrease slightly. The rate of increase in the number of children aging out of the United States foster care system from 1998 to 2007 is 71.7%. Whereas the rate declined by 0.71% in the year 2008. In the year 2009, there was again a decline of 0.33%. In the year 2010, the number of children aging out of foster care system declined by 5.4%. It can be concluded from the above figure that there was a significant increase in the number of children aging out of foster care system from the year 1998 to 2007. Whereas, this number started declining from the year 2008 and it is still following a declining trend. (McCoy-oth, DeVoogh & Fletcher, 2011)

Challenges Faced by the youth aging out of Foster Care System

Children who age out of the foster care system generally face many problems in relation…

UK Children and Families

Homeless families are generally defined as adults with dependent children who are briefly accommodated by voluntary agency, local authority or housing association hostels in the United Kingdom (Vostanis 2002). They are taken in from a few days or several months, often four to six weeks and generally provided with bread and breakfast. Although this broad definition does not include children who have lost homes and live with friends and relatives, it is estimated that there are 140,000 such displaced families in the UK today. The average family consists of a single mother and at least two children. Trends show that these families become homeless again within a year from being housed by agencies. Domestic violence and harassment from the neighborhood are the most frequent cause behind their homelessness. The volume of homeless refugee families among them has dwindled in the late 90s, mostly confined in the…

Community Analysis: Columbus, Ohio - Hilltop Area/Franklinton

Identification and History

The Franklinton/Hilltop area of Columbus, Ohio is located on the west side of the greater metropolitan area. Franklinton is in a river valley next to the Scioto iver and the Hilltop area is just west of that on a rise. The Hilltop area is defined as the area between I-70 on the north, the B & O. railway to the east and south, and the I-270 outerbelt to the south and west (Greater Hilltop Area Commission, 2011). Its main street is West Broadstreet, otherwise known as U.S. route 40. There are welcome signs to the area near Mound Street and Hague Avenue. Franklinton is bordered by the Scioto iver on the north and east, Hague Avenue on the east, Stimmel oad and Greenlawn Avenue on the South, and I-70 on the West. The main street in this area is also…

Combat and Substance Abuse

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as a consequence of combat experience, is believed to be a significant risk factor for substance abuse. This theory has been undermined to some extent by recent findings which suggest mental illness, apart from PTSD, may be a stronger predictor. Although combat-related PTSD may significantly contribute to the prevalence of substance abuse among veterans, the dominant substance abuse risks are the same for both civilians and combat veterans. This conclusion suggests than combat may represent a minor risk factor for substance abuse.

The Association between Combat and Substance Abuse

Veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are faced with many of the same problems that previous combat veterans have had to face, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI). While most veterans suffering from these conditions will successfully cope with the challenges they face through treatment and social…

Psychology Treatment

For most of U.S. history up to the time of the Community Mental Health Act of 1963, the mentally ill were generally warehoused in state and local mental institutions on a long-term basis. Most had been involuntarily committed by orders from courts or physicians, and the discharge rate was very low. Before the 1950s and 1960s, there were few effective treatments for mental illnesses like depression, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia, which were commonly considered incurable. Only with the psycho-pharmacological revolution in recent decades and new anti-depressant and anti-psychotic medications has it been possible for the severely mentally ill to be treated on an outpatient basis through community mental health centers. Of course, as the old state hospitals have emptied many of the mentally ill have ended up homeless, since they are unable to hold maintain regular employment or continue on a medication regimen without supervision. According to present-day…

The U.S. Census indicates that one is six residents in the Washington, DC metropolitan area is at risk of or is already regularly experiencing hunger (U.S. Census ACS 2006-2008). We believe that hunger should not exist in a nation as blessed with resources as the United States, especially among children. That hunger exists to such an extent in the nation's capital is especially unacceptable.

Community of Hope DC is seeking $400,000 to establish a food bank program as part of our charitable services. There is currently a grassroots movement in our community that is focused on bringing fresh local food from the countryside surrounding Washington into the city. Community of Hope DC would like to combine this "local food" movement with the agenda of feeding the poor and homeless. We would like to set up a food bank that collects unsold produce from the many farmers' markets in the city…

Poverty and Homelessness in Children

Poverty is the deficiency in the amount of money or material possessions considered to be acceptable for individuals in a particular country. Among families who are homeless with children 42% of homeless children are under the age of six years old. The majority of homeless families with children cited poverty as the third most common reason for their being homeless. A child is born into poverty every 33 seconds in the United States.

Key professional and community organizations addressing this issue/population: There are several organizations addressing this issue including the U.S. Department of Agriculture with programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) seeking to provide affordable housing to everyone, the Children's Defense Fund, Voices for America's Children, the National Urban League, and the National Coalition for the Homeless. Local and community-based organizations such as The Salvation Army,…

Nursing

Personal Statement

Choosing Nursing

My life has centered upon answering a central question. This question has been a in my mind since I was 10 years old. At that age, my first image of medicine was largely influenced by the doctors and nurses who were always helping my grandfather battle a rare form of brain cancer. His illness was a life changing experience for me, as, at that age, I watched his condition gradually deteriorate over a period of three months, and I detested I could do nothing to help. This thought, however painful then, has motivated my entire life, and has led to my choosing of nursing as a profession,

Though some did not approve of this particular career path, I never gave up my dreams. For this reason, I began studying and volunteering so as to combine education in theory with education in practice. Giving back to…

0%), cohabiting parents (61.8%), cohabiting stepparents (71.0%), and married stepparents (65.2-16%).

Recall that when we consider all children, we find that the food insecurity rates are significantly lower for children living with married stepparents than for children with cohabiting parents or single-mother families.

Finally, food insecurity rates are significantly lower for lower-income children living with their married biological/adoptive parents (46.8%) than for all other groups considered.

The share of lower-income children who are food-insecure declined by 4.0 percentage points between 1997 and 2002.

Food insecurity rates fell for lower-income children living with married parents, married stepparents, and single mothers but went up for children with cohabiting parents, although none of these changes are statistically significant.

According to Sari Friedman, attorney, children still need both parents even after the divorce and the parents should both continue involvement in the child health education and welfare taking an active role. In December 1,…

3). Also a shelter was established called the "Newsboys' Lodging House" -- a place where homeless and "vagrant" young boys could have room and board and an education. Brace and colleagues tried to find jobs and homes for children, but O'Connor writes on page 3 that Brace and his fellow advocates "…soon became overwhelmed by the numbers needing placement.

One strategy that Brace set up was to allow citizens who would like to "adopt" children in order to get them out of the city and into the country environment. In fact, according to O'Connor, over a 75-year period 105,000 homeless children were taken on "Orphan Trains" to homes in the rural areas of the country.

The values, beliefs, and methods by Brace are linked to social practices today because it is the moral duty of social workers to prevent abuse to children. City streets are not homes to thousands of…

local city state agencies select a target population. Examples target populations poor, unemployed, children, elderly, people disabilities, persons mental illness, substance abusers, criminals, homeless, persons living HIV / AIDS.

Instructions:

eview the list of local city and state agencies and select a target population. Examples of target populations are the poor, unemployed, children, elderly, people with disabilities, persons with mental illness, substance abusers, criminals, homeless, and persons living with HIV / AIDS. Once you have selected a group, research a current issue or problem affecting this target population.

Identify the current and unmet needs of your chosen target population, and describe the possible obstacles that are preventing resolution of the problems. What human service programs addressing the problem currently exist, and how are they helping or hindering the problem?

Write a 700- to 1,050-word paper in APA format, with references, summarizing your findings. Use Appendixes C & G. And have…

Poverty

The guidelines for professional integrity are focusing on creating moral standards for everyone to follow. This is achieved through offering leadership in the areas of: duties, responsibilities, communication, interacting with stakeholders and building strong bonds. A philosophy of integrity can be created by combining these different concepts together. It is as follows, "All educators must have the flexibility to understand how various events will impact students. This requires identifying problems early and addressing them. At the same time, they must provide direction, become a mentor and follow a clear set of ethical standards. This is achieved through integrity, having strong set of principles and consistently practicing them." If these ideas are embraced, educators will be more effective in communicating and interacting with stakeholders. This will help them to reach out to students and teach them the skills they need in the future. ("NAEYC Ethical Code of Conduct and Statement…

Love and non-judgmental acceptance may be the most important things. Yes, money can help a person find a niche in life, but money is insufficient to get a person off the street. Following up later with some of the residents, I discovered that many would have returned to the streets a long time ago, despite their opportunity of free accommodation and food, were it not for the friends and care that they felt in these homes. Many of them, over and again, reiterated the bonds that they had formed one with another and, sometimes, with the staff members themselves. Some, through the staff members, had found support in the external community.

This presence of support was particularly evident in the foster home. There the 'foster parents' seemed to have a reputation for providing unconditional love, and I was greatly struck with the way that some of the residents, particularly the…

" American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 21(1), 111-35. A research team led by Dr. Michael French gathered to estimate the costs and benefits of residential and publically funded treatment programs for addiction issues. The team was derived from the University of Miami. Program and the client related economic cost estimates were obtained using data collected at the site with the drug abuse treatment cost analysis program (DATCAP). It was concluded that the economic benefit to society was almost four times what the cost of treating residential clients. Short-term follow-up treatment was also beneficial and the economic benefit was even higher.

Hanlon, T.E., Kinlock, T.W., Nurco, D.N. (1991). "Recent research on the relationship between illicit use and crime." Behavioral Sciences & the aw, 9(3), 221-242.

The study reviews previous research on the correlation of drug use and criminal behavior resulting in arrest since 1980. Advances were noted in crime…

college major was picked and what career that will lead to. In the second part of the essay describe your most significant contributions to your community.

Evaluating my career decision and how my current activities affect my community.

Selecting the right career will have an impact on your entire life. Sometimes, learning how to volunteer in your own community can provide you with the skills necessary to help you be successful in a future career.

Explain what led to your interest in your particular major and what career you ultimately wish to pursue think that it is important to chose a college major based on your own likes and dislikes and also to consider what industries are doing well in the economy. My college major is twofold: music production and business. I think it's important to have a background in business for any career that I may have chosen. My…

Therefore, although the current analysis took into consideration three of the most important countries in the world, they do not lack the problems facing each country because everywhere in the world there are poor areas and low income families who will abuse their children, will abandon them, and even torture them according to their own religious or personal beliefs. Taking these aspects into consideration, it is important to consider the three different child protection policies applied in Japan, Switzerland, and Germany in order to see the extent in which the economic development is related to the child protection policy.

Japan is well-known for the way in which the family ties and connections are mirrored in the society. More precisely, it is rather well-known the fact that in general the Japanese family is committed to their own beings and the relations that establish at the level of the family members are…

Risk factors are often found in clusters and their cumulative effect may lead to a greater probability that youth will become involved in crime (Garbarino, 1999). As a result then, there are not one or two factors that could cause someone to join a gang, but rather a collection of factors (Garbarino). It is possible then, by eliminating even one factor among the cluster, that programs could reduce gang involvement.

According to Esbensen (2000), many major cities have introduced gang prevention programs throughout the United States over the past 60 years. Community groups, social workers, and law enforcement personnel manage the different prevention programs in a variety of formats. he national government has also addressed the seriousness of gangs; President George W. Bush has proposed that funding be used for a three-year project to help keep youth out of gangs. First Lady Laura Bush will lead the new effort, Helping…

This was a clear gap in the research that was examined. The proposed research study will attempt to fill this gap by examining the importance of the adult child and parent relationship and its affect on the physical body.

Methodologies found

A number of different study methods were found amongst the studies in the literature review. Many of the studies that examined the use of psychotherapy with the treatment of a condition used a comparative study method. Clinical trials used a comparative study method in most cases. However, studies that were found to be theoretical in nature tended to use either a qualitative interview method or quantitative study methods.

No single method of study was found to be more prevalent in the group studied during the literature review. The method selected was highly dependant on the subject matter and the research question being asked in the study. no single method…

The first is the actors in the setting. The researcher will collect variables such as age and gender so as not to interfere with the natural setting of the revelers. The second category is the behaviors being carried out by these actors. These will be recorded as acts which are small units of behavior, activities which are a set of related acts and events which are a set of related acts in a sequence. The third category is the space that is occupied by these actors. This will essentially be an understanding of the setting of the underground rave. Information on ventilation, lighting, cleanliness, and setting of the underground rave will be collected. The fourth category is the arrangement of objects in the space. This will seek to collect information regarding the arrangement of tables, chairs, bars, and other items in the underground rave. The next category is the time…