Over 2.6 million U.S. children are raised by grandparents, other relatives or close family friends. Many Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) and Title VI Native American Aging Programs (Title VI programs) provide a variety of supportive services for kinship/grandfamilies. Learn about a new research report that documents how AAAs and Title VI programs are helping these families.
Hear from Area Agencies on Aging and Title VI programs about their successes in serving kinship/grandfamilies and why it’s important to develop and sustain programs to support these families. Learn about professional resources available to you from the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network: A National Technical Assistance Center, led by Generations United.
During this webinar you will learn about:
- Kinship/grandfamily strengths and challenges.
- A new USAging report that documents how Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) and Title VI Native American Aging programs are serving this population.
- Innovative kinship/grandfamily programs offered by Area Agencies on Aging.
- Resources offered by the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network that can bolster attendees’ efforts to serve this population.
Ana Beltran, JD, is an attorney and the Director of the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network: A National Technical Assistance Center at Generations United. She is a national expert on grandfamilies, authoring multiple Generations United publications on the subject and publishing articles in various publications and academic journals. For more than 20 years, Ana has provided kinship technical assistance and training across the country and has spoken extensively about relatives raising children at national and state conferences. She previously served as Co-Director of Generations United’s National Center on Grandfamilies. Through a joint collaboration, Ana was primary author of the first set of comprehensive National Model Family Foster Home Licensing Standards. As someone who was raised in part by her grandmother, Ana has a personal commitment to the families.
Leland Kiang is a program manager at USAging. He oversees USAging’s role in in the Grandfamilies and Kinship Support Network: A National Technical Assistance Center, which is funded by the Administration for Community Living and led by Generations United, to increase the capacity and effectiveness of states, territories, tribes/tribal organizations, nonprofits and other community-based organizations to serve and support kinship/grandfamilies. Leland has a master’s degree in social work and has previously worked as a case manager and as an information & referral professional in aging-services.
Other presenters will include professionals from Area Agencies on Aging and Title VI Native American Aging programs that serve kinship/grandfamilies (to be announced).