Funding Aims to Enhance Support Systems for Young Adults

CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OH – The Cuyahoga County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has received a $300,000 grant from Youth Villages, Inc. to conduct a comprehensive assessment and develop a strategic plan to implement a community-wide vision for improving support for young people transitioning from foster care, the juvenile justice system, and special needs support to adulthood.

“Our goal is to ensure that every teen aging out of a public system has a plan for their future, which they helped develop, that connects them to the skills, education, and experiences they need to be successful as an adult and achieve their career goals,” said David Merriman, Director of the Cuyahoga County Health and Human Services. “We are excited to include youth in the work of this grant as it ensures youth people have a say in the programs that touch their lives.”

As part of the grant initiative, HHS will:

Map all the programs and services in Cuyahoga County that support youth aging out of foster care, exiting the juvenile justice system, and transitioning from child and adolescent services to adult services within the Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) and the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities (DD) systems. This will include creating youth-focused media and marketing strategies to increase awareness and utilization of services.

Develop a strategic resource plan to ensure all youth transitioning from custody have access to essential resources. This plan will involve a youth-led, youth-centered assessment of current resources and recommendations on what young people need to do to move forward.

Evaluate evidence-based interventions and services for youth in transition for potential replication, along with developing recommendations based on these evaluations.

The grant from Youth Villages is part of the organization’s commitment to improve outcomes for young people who leave foster care or other children’s systems near adulthood with little or no family support. Over 10 years, it has awarded millions of dollars to strengthen and expand services in 23 jurisdictions across the country. The goal is to ensure each of the approximately 20,000 young people who age out of foster care each year in the United States have the resources and support they need to become successful independent adults.

“We are pleased to partner with Cuyahoga County DHHS as they work to enhance services for transition-age youth,” said Catherine Smith, chief strategy officer at Youth Villages. “We share a commitment to ensuring young adults with lived experience have a voice in shaping the systems that serve them, and we look forward to seeing the many ways the outcomes of this project will improve the lives of young people in care in Cuyahoga County.”

For more information about Cuyahoga County DHHS, visit hhs.cuyahogacounty.gov. To learn more about Youth Villages, visit YouthVillages.org.