Today, September 10, is World Suicide Prevention Day. It’s a good time to reflect on the role that mentoring can play in addressing the problem. According to the CDC, young people under the age of 25 have the lowest rates of suicide, but suicide is the second leading cause of death for young teens. Even…

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act require youth-serving organizations to provide reasonable accommodations for disabilities, including developmental delays, behavioral disorders, and mental health problems. Putting that principle into practice can be very difficult, particularly when many mental health and behavioral disorder diagnoses depend entirely on subjective criteria.  It…

A debate raging in Washington state captures in microcosm the controversy throughout the country about the child welfare system can balance the safety of children against the trauma of unnecessary removals. In 2021, Washington state lawmakers passed the Keeping Families Together Act, with the goal of reducing unnecessary removals of children from their homes and…

In two weeks, I’ll be speaking at an Adventist Attorney’s Conference and Retreat in Victoria, BC, Canada. My topic will be “Safeguarding the Vulnerable: Avoiding and Responding to Domestic Violence and Abuse.” I have always enjoyed attending these conferences and forging friendships, even though I’m not Adventist. This year’s conference promises the usual outstanding legal…

A new study shines a spotlight on something we might not always think about: how unpredictable environments in childhood can have lasting effects on mental health, behavior, and even physical health by the time kids hit adolescence. There are some good pointers in the results for those of us who work with kids in chaotic…

One of the most common mistakes I see my youth-serving clients make is having written child protection policies that they don’t adequately explain to on-the-ground staff. The case I highlighted last week may be an example of that problem. Having written policies that your staff members either don’t know about or don’t follow can set…

A recent article highlights the unintended consequences of extending the statute of limitations for abuse claims. In 2020, California made important changes to its statute of limitations, with the noble goal of allowing survivors to hold institutions accountable. The unintended effect, however, has been to harm current students and institutions. AB 218, which took effect…

Today is Wrong Way Corrigan Day, and it has a lot of great lessons for those of us who work in youth-serving organizations. Douglas Corrigan, a 1930s pilot, became famous for flying from New York to Ireland instead of California, claiming it was a navigational error. The tale offers an interesting case study in dealing…

The reports about a district attorney’s recent press conference in Massachusetts contain some important lessons for youth-serving organizations.  The DA in Pittsfield, MA has charged two middle school educators with involuntary manslaughter and related crimes after the 2024 drowning death of a young teen during a school field trip.  We are seeing more frequent criminal…

The reports about a district attorney’s recent press conference in Massachusetts contain some important lessons for youth-serving organizations. The DA in Pittsfield, MA has charged two middle school educators with involuntary manslaughter and related crimes after the 2024 drowning death of a young teen during a school field trip. We are seeing more frequent criminal…