TeamChild staff and several board members are gatheres for a group portrait. Several people hold roses and everyone is wearing a creative neametag they made at the retreat.

TeamChild’s Spring Retreat – Persistent Rivers

TeamChild Staff and several Board members gathered last month at Dumas Bay Center for our first in-person retreat since 2019. This serves as a launching point for strategic planning.

Orange text on blue background reads: Education Blog. Illustrations of young people gathered are below. On a blackboard, text in chalk reads: School Exclusion and there is a red handprint behind the text.

Meeting the Moment: We CAN End School Exclusion

TeamChild’s vision for our schools is an end to exclusion and cycles of harm perpetuated onto students of color and students with disabilities.

A folder with the word BUDGET and a calculator are placed in a circular lime-green frame on the right. On the left are three people icons lifting a heart against a brick-red background.

Putting Our Money Where Our Values Are

The services and supports needed for young people, their families, and communities must be adequately funded now to assure that they can weather all of the ups and downs of growing up.

Julian wears a suit and smiles into the camera. To his left are orange and white message icons with this text (taken from Teen Vogue article): Gideon v. Wainwright Was a Landmark Decision, But Women Invented the Idea of the Public Defender

Julian with the Reframe and appreciation this Womens History Month

This Women’s History Month, and on the 60th anniversary of the legal decision Gideon v. Wainwright, TeamChild Policy Coordinator Julian Cooper references the Teen Vogue article by Emily Galvin Almanza in a letter of appreciation to, and an ask for continued accountability from, our staff.

A checkered floor is shown beneath three doors that lead to small windowless rooms. There are fluorescent lights above.

Let’s Keep ALL Students Safe at School – Take Action TODAY

Substitute House Bill 1479 (Banning isolation and restraint in schools) made it past the most recent cutoff and is still alive to become law this session.  It has many hurdles to face before this session ends on April 23, 2023.

Porsche (L, middle row) is pictured with TeamChild staff and Youth Advisory Board members on the steps of the capitol building in Olympia.

Back to the Future with the Youth Advisory Board

As we continue to build out our systemic advocacy, we hope to expand the power and reach of youth voice by growing our relationships and following guidance from young people who are directly impacted by failures of the systems we work in.

Youth have a Right of Return after School Discipline Ends – M.G. v. Yakima School District, No. 38165-0-III (Dec. 2022)

In a decision that was issued in December and published this month, the Court held that, under state law, students have a right of return after a suspension ends. State law prohibits indefinite suspension and expulsion and requires procedural protections before the right of education is taken away from a student.

Marcos wears glasses and a smokey blue blazer and smiles into the camera.

Reflections on My 1st Year at TeamChild

As we head into 2023 — a year of strategic planning for TeamChild — each one of us on our staff and Board is deeply reflecting on how we can meet the challenges of today while doing the work to prevent harm from happening in the first place.

White text on turquoise background reads: VY VU Pierce County Case Support and Outreach Specialist

Youth Voice – Are We Listening?

Young people should be able to co-design solutions to problems impacting them, and be actively involved at the table for how we implement those changes.

A small photo of Kim appears in the upper right corner of a presentation slide that reads: Safe and Stable Housing.

Holistic Youth Defense

TeamChild attorneys Marshaun Barber, Kimberly Williams and Sara Zier presented tips and resources earlier this month for Washington defenders working with youth.

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