Transition Age Youth Online Training Series

Join NACC November 18-20 for its Transition Age Youth Online Training Series! This series will provide child welfare law attorneys, judges, and advocates guidance on how to best serve older youth as they transition out of foster care systems.

The online training sessions will cover federal and state legal developments, fighting discriminatory practices and the school-to-prison pipeline, collaborating to better advocate for youth involved in multiple systems, strategies and tools to demand accountability on clients’ behalf, and other topics. More details below. We hope you’ll register and join us!

Wednesday, November 18 

12:00–1:30pm ET – The Legal Landscape for Transition-Age Youth: Recent Developments & Emerging Issues 

Jenny Pokempner,JD – Youth Law Center

The legal landscape affecting transition-age youth continues to evolve. This session will provide an update on recent federal and state legal developments affecting older youth and young adults in foster care and transitioning from care. Jenny Pokempner will explore developments related to the Family First Prevention Services Act, Extended Foster Care, the Chafee Program, and the Fostering the Future Initiative along with recent federal guidance and emerging appellate decisions. Participants will consider what these developments mean for eligibility, services, permanency, and advocacy—and identify legal issues to watch as they represent and support transition-age youth. 

3:00–4:30pm ET – “Dangerous” Behavior: How the Discriminatory Use of Threat Appraisals in Schools Fuels the School-to-Prison Pipeline

Elie Zwiebel, JD – Student Defense Alliance, Zwiebel & Lucas Law

Lynnie Lucas, JD – Student Defense Alliance, Zwiebel & Lucas Law 

Threat appraisals are intended to avert school violence by identifying students manifesting potentially concerning behaviors without resorting to zero-tolerance policies. In reality, they function as an extralegal means of school pushout, particularly for students with disabilities, whose disability-related behaviors are deemed a safety risk, without appropriate documentation or due process. Students should receive extra protections from suspension or expulsion through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, but informal pushout through threat appraisals circumvents these procedures. Threat appraisal teams also often include law enforcement pushing students with disabilities into the criminal legal system. Attendees will learn how to fight against these discriminatory practices. 

Thursday, November 19 

12:00–1:30pm ET – One Youth, Two Systems: Turning Collaboration into Better Outcomes for Dual-Status Youth

Hon. Geoffrey Gaither – Marion County Superior Court

Janelle Rasmussen, JD – Indiana Department of Child Services

Dual-status youth – those involved in both the child welfare and juvenile justice systems – navigate trauma, instability, and fragmented support that often disrupts their path to safety and accountability. This session examines Indiana’s dual-status model, highlighting Marion County’s specialized court and the Dual-Status Assessment Team (DSAT), which brings both systems together to make informed, child-centered decisions. Participants will explore how the law was created, how the model functions in practice, and why it is leading to stronger, more positive outcomes for youth.

3:00–4:30pm ET – Navigating the Fostering Connections Act: Tools & Strategies for Cross-Agency Success by Redefining Accountability in Foster Youth Education Stability 

Alexandria Maldonado, MS – AXM Consulting

Despite legal mandates for educational protection, significant achievement gaps persist for foster youth, indicating systemic breakdowns. The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 requires a case plan to ensure educational stability, but this raises a critical question: In systems involving multiple agencies, who is definitively responsible for creating and implementing this plan? This compelling session will address this vital issue head-on. We will explore practical strategies, clarify roles and responsibilities across involved agencies, and equip advocates with the tools to demand accountability.  We will redefine advocacy roles and ensure that “educational stability” becomes a lived reality rather than a bureaucratic checkbox. 

Friday, November 20 

12:00–1:30pm ET – Question the Recommendation: Mental Health Advocacy for TAY Beyond Diagnosis and Placement

Gina Cabiddu, MSW, LSWAIC, Lived Experience Expert

Martin Irwin, MD – NYU Grossman School of Medicine

Cristal Ramirez, MS, Lived Experience Expert

Child welfare professionals routinely make consequential decisions based on psychiatric evaluations, diagnoses, and treatment recommendations, but how do we know when those recommendations warrant closer scrutiny? This interactive session provides a framework for evaluating mental health assessments, treatment plans, medication recommendations, and residential placements without requiring participants to become mental health clinicians. Participants will explore how trauma, culture, placement instability, and youth engagement affect treatment outcomes; identify warning signs of ineffective or inappropriate interventions; and practice advocacy strategies that promote quality, continuity, and appropriate community-based care for transition age youth.

3:00–4:30pm ET – The Advice Is Yours; The Decision Is Mine: Autonomy, Advice, and TAY Advocacy

Kristen Powell, BS, Lived Experience Expert – The Lost & Found Institute

Transition-age youth bring their own goals, priorities, experiences, and definitions of success to their legal representation. For attorneys, honoring that autonomy while providing meaningful legal advice can present unique challenges—particularly when a young client’s choices differ from the attorney’s recommendations or when the attorney has concerns about potential consequences. In this moderated conversation, attorneys will hear directly from people with lived experience about what it means to feel heard, respected, and supported by an attorney while making consequential decisions. Panelists will explore the difference between advising and directing, how attorneys can communicate risks and options without taking over decision-making, and what effective client-centered advocacy looks like from the client’s perspective. Participants will leave with practical strategies for navigating disagreement, supporting informed decision-making, and maintaining an attorney-client relationship grounded in trust and respect.