Tools for Transformation, the most recent set of policy proposals from the Foster Youth Internship Program
If you are, or know, a young person with experience in foster care who wants to experience professional life on Capitol Hill, the deadline is Thursday to apply for the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute‘s Foster Youth Internship Program (FYI).
FYI is a congressional internship for young adults who spent time in the foster care system. The FYI Program began in 2003 as an effort to raise awareness to federal policymakers about the needs and unique perspectives of those who spent time in foster care.
As part of the program, CCAI organizes retreats, advocacy trainings and various networking opportunities with experts in the child welfare field. Throughout the summer, the FYI program interns spend time researching policy issues affecting foster children across the country.
These experiences allow the interns to create a policy report that is presented at a congressional briefing and released to child welfare advocates across the country. The report has become a must-read piece of youth advocacy each year.
Young adults who spent at least 24 consecutive months and/or at least a total of 36 months in the U.S. foster care system are eligible to apply. All applicants must have completed at least four semesters of schooling at an accredited institution of higher learning, such as a college, university or vocational school. Participants will be placed in the Washington, D.C., offices of members of Congress. The dates for the FYI program are May 28-July 26, 2019, and the candidate must be available for the entirety of the program to qualify. Interns receive a weekly stipend and housing during their assignment in Washington, D.C.
Applications for the 2019 Foster Youth Internship Program are open until January 10, 2019 at 11 p.m. EST. For more information about the program, visit CCAI’s website.
