BACKGROUND ON CA4Y PROGRAMS 

CA4Y established the Youth and Community Collaboration Fund as a field of interest fund in the Greater Houston Community Foundation early in 2020. The fund’s intent is to support organizations working directly with youth and families impacted by the child protective and/or juvenile justice systems. We envisioned the fund as a way for CA4Y staff organizing in communities to connect, build power and infuse resources to those organizations on the ground supporting youth and families with current involvement, supporting families to prevent deeper involvement or uplifting voices of youth and families with lived experience to advocate for systems change. While CA4Y staff was unable to organize on the ground in communities in 2020 the same way it had in 2019, the organizations that received funding in 2020 still came as a result of working with CA4Y Youth and Community Specialist staff.

The four organizations supported in 2020 had two distinct areas of support: community based power building and innovative legal advocacy.

For community based power building, the Youth and Community Collaboration Fund supported Montrose Grace Place and Urban Community Network. Montrose Grace Place is using the to develop a youth led board focused on policy design and decision making for the organization. Urban Community Network is using the funds to expand its operations to increase parent voice within communities across Houston to advocate for families involved in the juvenile justice system. For innovative legal advocacy, the Fund supported Foster Care Advocacy Center (FCAC) and Juvenile and Children’s Advocacy Project (JCAP). FCAC is using the fund to expand its parent representation and develop and provide oversight for its new youth partner program, modeled after its successful parent partner program. JCAP is using the funds to support operations in its juvenile law clinic for youth with dual system involvement and ensuring that all dual status youth have their records sealed.

For questions or press inquiries please contact Tiffany Echevarria, Executive Director, tiffany.echevarria@ca4y.org