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United for Families, Camp Foster Child, Children's services Advisory Committee B. PROGRAM NEED STATEMENT (Entire Section B not to exceed one page) FRiver is the unacceptable condition requiring change? b) Who has the need? e do they live? d) Provide local, state, or national trend data, with reference hat corroborates that this is an area of need. County has a critical shortage of foster parents. This shortage is exacerbated by a n rate: In 2005, Indian River County lost 25 percent of its foster homes. Exit ggest the No. 1 reason these foster parents opted not to renew their licenses was all lack of support. Furthermore, a 2003 survey of existing foster parents identified summer camp as a critical support component. Foster parents interviewed for this proposal agreed that summer camp is an important retention tool because it provides a few hours of respite for parents who spend much of their time grappling not only with the special needs of foster children, but also with the child-welfare system and their children' s frustrated biological parents. It also is important that foster children, who carry an increased risk for anti-social behavior, participate in safe, structured and supervised activities during non-school hours. "Most of the teen-agers I had, you couldn't leave unattended," said Beck Rexroad, an adoptive parent and former foster parent who cared for more than 50 children in a 12-year period. "There is a need for organized activities to keep them focused and out of trouble." Foster Parent Judy Watts said foster children have special needs that make it important to keep them active during the summer. "They've already got problems," she said. "Some of these children like to run, and I don' t want that." Foster children are at a greater risk for crime, delinquency and teen-pregnancy than their peers. For example, a 2001 national study by the Annie E. Casey Foundation found that 58 percent of young adults seeking homeless shelters in 1997 were former foster children, while 41 percent spent time in jail within 2.5 and 4 years after leaving foster care and 42 percent became parents within that same time frame. Summer camp plays a significant role in reducing risk to young people, as studies have found that crime and sexual activity among that population increase during non-school hours and in the summer. (Sickmond, Snyder, and Poe-Yamagata, 1997, p. 26.) a) Identify similar programs that are currently serving the needs of your targeted population; b) Explain how these existing programs are under-serving the targeted population of your program. The Early Learning Coalition provides summertime childcare funding to children under the protective services of United for Families. This funding, however, is limited in that foster parents are required to pay parent fees, registration and field trip fees and the balance of any costs above the ELC reimbursement rate. Additionally, ELC does not fund children ages 13 and older. All of these costs are unallowable expenses for United for Families under current contract language with the Department of Children and Families, which provides the bulk of UFF funding. 2