PA Juvenile Justice System Launches Family Involvement Work
With the recent (November 2009) publication of the monograph “Family Involvement in Pennsylvania’s Juvenile Justice System,” the state has emerged as a national leader in improving the partnership between families and the juvenile justice system. Read More »
OMHSAS Takes Public Health Approach to Children’s Mental Health
The Children’s Advisory Committee of the PA Office of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) recently formed a Public Health Workgroup to identify a framework for implementing mental health promotion efforts for all of Pennsylvania’s children and families. Read More »
Juvenile Law Center Launches Online Survey for Families
Juvenile Law Center (JLC) is seeking input from youth and families across the state who have had personal experience with Pennsylvania’s juvenile justice system—specifically, on issues being addressed by the Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice. Read More »
Juvenile Law Center Launches Online Survey for Families
Juvenile Law Center (JLC) is seeking input from youth and families across the state who have had personal experience with Pennsylvania’s juvenile justice system—specifically, on issues being addressed by the Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice. The Commission was formed not only to investigate the Luzerne County judicial corruption scandal, but also to make recommendations for [...] Read More »
PA Awarded Major Federal Grant to Improve Mental Health Services for Children
Pennsylvania has been awarded a federal grant to develop an integrated Systems of Care approach to serve children and youth ages 8-18 and their families. The grant will work to improve services to children with mental health needs who are involved with child welfare or juvenile justice, and are in or at risk of out-of-home placement. Read More »
Fixing Pennsylvania’s Children’s Wraparound Services
In Pennsylvania, children and youth who have serious behavioral problems may need more than an hour of talk therapy every week and less than a psychiatric residential placement. When the state received Federal approval to bill for flexible community based services, it was a victory for families and their children, who had lobbied hard for family centered services. Read More »
Making Schools Positive for All — New Pennsylvania Website
A wonderful resource for information, networking, and supporting the scale-up of Pennsylvania’s School-wide Positive Behavioral Supports Network is now online. Read More »
Brush Your Teeth, Take Your Psychotropic Medications!
Parenting children means making sure they do the things they need to do—”Get up!,” “Put on your coat!,” “Wash your hands!,” etc. For families of children with behavioral challenges, this can often include making sure they take the medications prescribed to help their behavior. Read More »
7 Things to Do This Summer to Improve Your Child’s Next School Year
Many families of children with learning and behavioral challenges take a sigh of relief on the last day of school in the spring. The struggles with school issues are on hold. When families are at odds with a school district, those struggles can be extremely stressful, and a break is very welcome. Families can use the summer to gather needed resources and supports to help make their child’s school experience happy and successful. Read More »
PA Parent Guide to Special Education (REVISED)
The PA Parent Guide to Special Education for School Age Children is for parents of children with disabilities who need specialized instruction to benefit from their education. It outlines how a child’s need for special education is determined, how a child’s educational program is developed, the responsibilities and protections guaranteed to parents and children, and the resources available to parents of a child with disabilities. Read More »
About Us
The Children's News is a program of the Mental Health Association in Pennsylvania (MHAPA) and its affiliates across the state. We provide information for families on children's mental health issues in Pennsylvania – including advocacy efforts, events, and policies – and offer families the opportunity to share information on these issues with us.
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