The Imprint Weekly

In this powerful episode of innerViews, changemakers Isabel Stasa, Erica Hickey, and Lily Colby share how they transformed personal pain into public purpose through advocacy. They discuss the founding of the National Network for Fostering Sibling Connections and their fight to preserve sibling bonds in foster care. This is a masterclass in lived expertise, policy change, and healing. Guest Bios: ...

Over the course of his career leading youth and family services, Alex Briscoe has become an expert in Medicaid policy, one of the most complex but substantial corners of government funding. He recently led a multi-year initiative called the California Children's Trust, which set out to reimagine the state’s approach to screening and meeting the mental health needs of children.  He joined The...

A budget bill is moving through Congress that includes significant cuts to the Medicaid program, one the largest federal programs and the provider of health insurance for one in five people in America. And it has an outsized impact on the child welfare system, both in the prevention of families becoming involved with it and for children in foster care. Zach Laris, founder of Bolder Horizon and aut...

On this week’s “Headlines” edition of the  Imprint Weekly Podcast, we dive into Trump administration’s reduction of the federal workforce focused on children and families, and hundreds of millions of dollars in grants terminated at the Department of Justice. Then we turn to what early indications are in regard to the future of federal spending, including Republican plans for a reconciliation bill...

Head Start is a federally funded early learning operation that serves about 750,000 children every year at approximately 1,600 programs across the country. In the past month, the Trump administration has laid off several Head Start staff, and a leaked draft of an early budget request had the program slated for elimination. (A public budget document last week did not mention cuts or increases to He...

In this episode of InnerViews, Ivory Bennett and special guest Theron Ogedengbe, a licensed therapist and powerhouse lived expert, unpack the delicate balance between healing, advocacy, and humanity. Together, they spill the tea on national advocacy, accountability, and why healing must come before hustle. Tune in for real talk, restorative wisdom, and a celebration of Black excellence in action.

For decades, child welfare systems have been receiving disability and survivor benefits owed to youth in foster care. Often these dollars are not saved for those children, or used for their unique needs. Amy Harfeld, national policy director for the Children’s Advocacy Institute, has been among the staunchest advocates working to stop this practice. She joined the podcast to talk about the history...

It is the 200th episode of The Imprint Weekly Podcast! On this week’s episode we go through some fun facts about the first 199 episodes of the show, and then talk to Cheyanne Deopersaud about the virtual mayoral forum on youth issues she organized and will host this week (free registration info in the show notes).  We discuss the many things going on in Washington, D.C., including a nominee to lea...

Kelley Fong, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of California, Irvine, joins to discuss her work studying the impact of state child welfare systems and their policies on families. Fong, who has written several op-eds for The Imprint, is the author of Investigating Families: Motherhood in the Shadow of Child Protective Service, an examination of the front end of child welfare foc...

The transition from foster care to adulthood still happens for thousands of young people each year. It’s not easy anywhere, but perhaps nowhere tougher financially than places like New York City where the market rent is astronomically high and there is almost no vacancy.  Daniel Heimpel, managing director of Good River partners, and Tony Turner. director of the Fair Futures Youth Advisory Board, j...

In this powerful episode of InnerViews , Ivory Bennett sits down with Chaplain Dr. Kay Kizer — a trailblazing advocate and author — to discuss the realities of growing up in foster care, overcoming childhood trauma, and embracing the healing journey. Dr. Kizer shares her personal experiences navigating multiple foster homes and how those experiences led her to establish K's Carry On , a nonpr...

Wendy’s Wonderful Kids is a program of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption that for decades has focused on finding permanency for older youth in foster care, as well as children with special needs. The program, which received a $200 million commitment to expand in 2017, recently recorded its 15,000th adoption. Dave Thomas CEO Rita Soronen joins to discuss the experience of scaling up Wendy’s W...

On this week’s episode, we review some of the recent action out of Washington, including what’s going on with federal funds, the impact of Trump’s executive orders on some youth with lived experience, and who is temporarily leading child welfare and youth justice policy.  We also break down the findings from a report on health care for youth who have aged out of foster care, and a new bill that wo...

In this episode of InnerViews , host Ivory Bennett sits down with Montina Myers-Galloway, a licensed clinical mental health counselor, TEDx speaker, and advocate for Black women healing from parentification. Together, they explore the impact of adultification and emotional burdens placed on Black youth in foster care and juvenile justice. Montina shares how professionals can create trauma-informed...

On this week’s episode, Imprint Indigenous Children and Families Reporter Nancy Marie Spears hosts a special roundtable discussion on the future of Indigenous child welfare. Our panel of guests break down how they will engage with a new 25-year plan to reform and improve Indigenous child welfare policy and practice through improved implementation of, and compliance with, the 1978 Indian Child Welf...

On this week’s episode, Abecedarian Group President Celia Sims joins us to discuss child welfare and education policy, and the intersection of the two. Sims, who spent most of her career on Capitol Hill, reflects on a recent op-ed she wrote for The Imprint and shares thoughts on the practicability of President Trump’s proposal to shutter the Department of Education.  Celia Sims is the founder of t...

On this week’s podcast, we go over some of the actions taken by the Trump administration in their first full week since the inauguration. We also discuss a report that finds some states are sending back federal money to help older foster youth, and a Texas bill that would bring sweeping change to the way the child welfare system works in that state.  Rena Johnson of the Aviv Foundation and Mary Bi...

In this episode of InnerViews , Sensei Dave shares his journey from foster care and juvenile detention to becoming a mentor, author, and advocate for at-risk youth. Discover how his transformative "Inspire to Aspire" program equips young people with hope, skills, and resilience while empowering caring adults to create lasting change. Tune in for an inspiring conversation about breaking c...

In November, the U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) held its first national conference in more than a decade, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the landmark Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act.  Right after the conference ended, OJJDP Administrator and longtime youth justice reformer Liz Ryan joined us to discuss the conference, in particular the lar...

On this Headlines edition of The Imprint Weekly Podcast, we stick with Capitol Hill where a lot went down around the holidays. We discuss the arrest of a former foster youth and advocate arrested after a celebration of the Chafee Act, along with some child welfare legislation that made it into law (and one bill that did not).  We also break down some long-sought data about what happens when youth...

As always, we were fortunate to have some amazing guests join us this year on The Imprint Weekly Podcast. In this episode we feature clips of 10 great interviews from 2023.  If you enjoy this podcast, or the great work our reporters do at The Imprint and Fostering Families Today, and the work that our Youth Voices Rising team does, please consider making a donation. And if you do so this month, du...

On today’s episode, Dr. Jenny Tanis of the Hope College School of Social Work and Dr. Sacha Klein of the Michigan State University School of Social Work join to talk about their research into the impact of State paid family leave policies on infant maltreatment.  The United States is among the few developed countries without paid family leave as a national policy. But four states have long had loc...

On this week’s episode we discuss the Trump transition process, the last months of the Biden administration, and recommend some interesting reads from The Imprint and elsewhere this month, including Sara Tiano’s two-part series on the intersection of addiction treatment and child welfare actions such as investigation, removal and reunification.  Marina Nitze of the Child Welfare Playbook joins us...

In this special "Best of Season 1" episode of InnerViews , host Ivory Bennett revisits powerful moments from this year’s episodes. From healing generational trauma to empowering resilience in the face of adversity, Ivory highlights transformative insights from each guest. Join us for a reflection on themes of healing, self-discovery, and empowerment, celebrating the voices that made Seas...

On this week’s episode, Brightpoint CEO Mike Shaver and University of Illinois School of Social Work researcher Will Schneider join to discuss Empower Parenting with Resource, a test of the impact of guaranteed income as a component of how child welfare systems engage parents. Empower will provide hundreds of system-involved parents with cash assistance as part of a randomized control trial. Readi...