CFSP 5 Year Plan - RI Department of Children, Youth & Families

• Coordination:
the Director and many others. The Voice has also provided feedback to the
Department on policies and informational packets (e.g., webpage). Members of
The Voice participated in the planning retreat for the preparation of Rhode Island’s
new five year Child and Family Services Plan.
Objective for 2008-09:
o Ensure services are coordinated for youth involved in multiple DCYF
funded/managed programs (i.e., YESS, ETV)
o Status: The various Chafee, state and privately funded programs operated by
RICORP and RIFPA are well coordinated with each other. Examples of this level
of coordination are identified elsewhere in this document. Additionally, the YESS
program staff works closely with the staff who manage the DCYF Postsecondary
Tuition Assistance Program to ensure that each program adds value to the other
while reducing the duplication of services and supports.
o Ensure DCYF’s youth development programs are effectively connected to
programs funded/managed through other public and private agencies (i.e.,
Dept. of Labor and Training)
o Status: The Department and our youth providers have developed strong
relationships with other key state public agencies, including the Department of
Human Services, the Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals, the
Department of Health, the Department of Labor and Training, the Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education, the Office of Housing and Urban
Development; Rhode Island Housing; and the Office of Higher Education. The
Department and our youth providers also have strong relationships with the student
support and financial aid services at the Community College of Rhode Island,
Rhode Island College and the University of Rhode Island. Additionally, the
Department and our providers collaborate with numerous private providers,
advocacy organizations and foundations including but not limited to the Children’s
Policy Coalition, RI KIDS Count, the Corporation for Supportive Housing, Casey
Family Services and most of the various Casey foundations.
Chafee Education and Training Voucher Program
Accomplishments
Rhode Island’s commitment to ensuring that foster care and former foster care youth have
access to postsecondary educational opportunities continues to grow and expand while at the same
time we are addressing some of our shortfalls. ETV funding can be used for any postsecondary
educational and training program that is approved by the US Department of Education for Title IV
student assistance programs with a cap of $5,000 per student per academic year. Our ETV
allocation for Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2009 is $245,391. DCYF Higher Education Grant
Program funding, an annual allocation of $200,000 can be used only for full-time students
attending one of Rhode Island’s three public higher education institutions – the University of
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R.I. Department of Children, Youth and Families
Title IV-B Child and Family Service Plan – 2010 - 2014