Week #5 - Empirical Articles

   The question I proposed and was OK'd is

Are there different needs for LGBTQ adolescents in the Foster Care System?

   I had a gut sense that this were the case when this class began as I pondered my topic matter.  My interest was in both areas and I have come to learn that the needs of this population is vast.  Though I mentioned at the beginning that I was having difficulties finding specific resources while researching, I have found that with each additional week, the amount of learning I am doing coincides with the amount of information I am able to pull up.

   Continuously searching, losing my information by the touch of a button and searching once again, a particular author came into view each time.  His name is Gerald P. Mallon and I have cited two of his many resources for this assignment.  Each focus' on my area of concern though each shares a different and personal dimension throughout the readings.

   There might be a time in which you find some interest in this area and therefore I will share the two resources: 

   There's No Place Like Home: Achieving Safety, Permanency, and Well-Being for Lesbian and Gay Adolescents in Out-of-Home Care Settings


   Sticks and Stones Can Break Your Bones: Verbal Harassment and Physical Violence in the Lives of Gay and Lesbian Youths in Child Welfare Settings

   The research skills I have learned on a weekly basis have 'snowballed' as has the information I have learned to find.  What was once a 'gut-wrenching' thought of how I would ever manage this term in this class and all that was expected, has turned into a sense of blessings and gratitude.  This is a class that, I feel, MUST be one of the FIRST a student at Brandman University is enrolled in.

   However, as the saying goes; "Better late than never!"

WEEK #4 . . . continuation . . .

   I thought it would be quite fun to take much of what I wrote about last week and update the changes that a week can bring.

This week has been both a challenge as well as insightful. The challenge came       from finagling my way through the Leatherby Library and finally figuring out what I was doing, in part! I spent quite a long time searching books and journals.

 

   Learning to finagle one's way through the system, the times that came after were rather quick since familiarizing myself with the system.  I continue to find numerous resources that pertain to my area of research.

The knowledge I gained is rather discouraging. My focus and intent is to learn what the reality is when an LGBTQ teen is placed in a foster home within the foster care system. The books, and there were many, really did not touch upon the child/teen but rather the parent(s) who, they themselves, might be part of the LGBTQ community and the effects, if any, on the child. This is quite the opposite of what I am looking for.

   I've come to realize that the more specific I wanted to go in this study the more irrelevant the end all would be.  Foster care, as I am coming to learn, is difficult for anyone.  I do not see a specific reason to focus in on the LGBTQ community of teens.  I do know, from other studies, that teenagers across the world have the same types of issues. The relevancy within the foster care system differs not according to their sexual preference, but more so to that of being in foster care.

On the other hand, I found numerous Academic Journals that were broader and more detailed with information than any of the books I have researched up to this point. These were found through my initial visit to Leatherby Library and a further search which led to EBSCO. Now I was feeling a bit more hopeful.

   I requested a couple more academic journals and articles using the process suggested in this weeks readings.  Spent a bit more time on the EBSCO time and fiddled around there.  I'm loving the 'snowball' effect and delight in the 'knowledge of knowledge'!

The hope comes from the additional information that I will find when reading the journals that I have emailed to myself. Additional hope comes from the contact to the professor I heard speak last week at a training and his contacts. I have also placed a couple of calls to social workers within my county who work within the foster care system. Since the assignment is to ultimately find a book and use as a resource - I MUST remain hopeful!

   Awwww!  HOPE is an amazing belief!  Through scanning the information and sources I have received and knowing how to continually access further information, there really is quite a bit of information out there!  I continue to await return phone calls from the social workers in the county that I have contacted.  Within the week, I anticipate additional resources from the professor I contacted.

   A wonder to behold - I actually found a book that appears to be quite information!  This is an eBook that I will actually download if feasible.  The eyes of this 55 years old struggles with continuous reading from a computer screen and the inability to highlight and make notes in the margins!

Week #3 - Assignment 2 Michele K. Waite

   This week has been both a challenge as well as insightful.  The challenge came from finagling my way through the Leatherby Library and finally figuring out what I was doing, in part!  I spent quite a long time searching books and journals.
  
   The knowledge I gained is rather discouraging.  My focus and intent is to learn what the reality is when an LGBTQ teen is placed in a foster home within the foster care system.  The books, and there were many, really did not touch upon the child/teen but rather the parent(s) who, they themselves, might be part of the LGBTQ community and the effects, if any, on the child.  This is quite the opposite of what I am looking for.
  
   On the other hand, I found numerous Academic Journals that were broader and more detailed with information than any of the books I have researched up to this point.  These were found through my initial visit to Leatherby Library and a further search which led to EBSCO.  Now I was feeling a bit more hopeful.

   The hope comes from the additional information that I will find when reading the journals that I have emailed to myself.  Additional hope comes from the contact to the professor I heard speak last week at a training and his contacts.  I have also placed a couple of calls to social workers within my county who work within the foster care system.  Since the assignment is to ultimately find a book and use as a resource - I MUST remain hopeful!



 


 

Week #2 - Locating & Evaluating . . .

   My interest lies within the foster care systems and the way in which LGBTQ youth are treated, housed and supported.  My first step was a GOOGLE search that was tri-fold.  First, I searched LGBTQ teens.  Secondly, I searched Foster Care System.  Third and last, I searched: Treatment of LGBTQ teens in the Foster Care System.  The first two searches were quite broad based.  The third search was far more accurate and precise in the areas I was interested in.

   While choosing to use a CRAAP worksheet I further researched, again using GOOGLE, the connections that I knew were trustworthy (hoping I could rely on the governmental information).  Searching both ca.gov sites and adoption.org sites, I was further led to an even more focused area of information.  The topics that seemed to come up as more focused areas concerned: family rejection of LGBTQ teens, non-discrimination laws within the foster care system and organizations that house and support these teens.

   Though still quite broad based, I am continuing to focus and refocus on this area as I write and rewrite my research question.  Mother Jones (a political venue), captured my attention with some great articles that I have chosen to read and follow.  Perhaps this is where my 'real question' will evolve.

   I have found this assignment to be quite a challenge, while at the same time, fun.  I look forward to the additional information and sources  I shall connect to and the continuous learning I am open to. 

   Due to the passion I have for this area of a teen's life, I have requested a 'work study' opportunity that has been accepted.  I will begin the process of working with CASA and in part they state:

Nobody longs for a safe and loving family more than a child in foster care. As a CASA volunteer, you are empowered by the courts to help make this dream a reality. You will be the one consistent adult in these children’s lives, vigilantly fighting for and protecting their fundamental right to be treated with the dignity and respect every child deserves. You will not only bring positive change to the lives of these vulnerable children, but also their children and generations to come. And in doing so, you will enrich your life as well.

   I am excited to share this opportunity with those of you who have showed interest in this area and population of life.