| | April is National Second Chance Month CCA’s legal advocacy supports youth re-entering their communities from secure facilities, and all children who need a second chance. Our programs recognize the potential of all children and youth who face obstacles to growth. We advocate for a fresh start, and for the support children and youth need to realize their potential. |
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| | Facilitating Successful Youth Re-entry CCA’s unique re-entry legal services model combines legal rights training for youth in facilities with legal services prior to and during re-entry. The model allows attorneys to establish relationships with re-entering youth before they are discharged and ensures early identification and legal intervention to remove barriers to successful re-entry. Attorney Marisa Halm leads re-entry rights trainings for youth inside Manson Youth Institution, and provides legal consultation and representation to make sure youth have their education needs met and are able to transition to an appropriate education program when they re-enter their community. Other legal issues addressed include DCF re-entry, employment rights and record erasure. |
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| CCA is also advocating for systemic reforms to promote youths’ successful reentry, by co-chairing the Re-entry Subcommittee of the Legislature’s Juvenile Justice Policy and Oversight Committee (JJPOC) and spearheading the state’s exploration of re-entry models from across the country to bring the best practices to Connecticut’s systems. Sharing CCA's Model: On April 18, Attorney Karrol-Ann Brown presented CCA’s model at the City of Bridgeport’s re-entry event hosted by the Mayor’s Initiative for Re-Entry Affairs. To request youth re-entry rights training, contact Marisa Halm at mhalm@cca-ct.org. CCA’s Do I Have a Record? Can I get my Record Erased? explains state laws regarding record erasure. For more information about the JJPOC’s Re-entry Subcommittee, contact Martha Stone at mstone@cca-ct.org. |
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 | Left to Right: CCA Attorney Karrol-Ann Brown, Bridgeport City Council President Aidee Nieves, CCA Bridgeport Office Manager Janet Ortiz |
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| | Helping Children Starting Over in the U.S. CCA’s immigration legal services help undocumented children and youth have a second chance at a safe life in the U.S. CCA is the primary provider of legal services for Connecticut children and youth who have been abused or abandoned and are eligible for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). There is tremendous demand for these legal services, and last month CCA increased its capacity to meet this demand by providing a two-day SIJS training to 16 new pro bono attorneys who will partner with CCA to provide free legal representation to undocumented children and youth. For lawyers interested in SIJS Pro Bono Representation, contact Sabrina Tavi at stavi@cca-ct.org for more information. |
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|  | CCA also provided a webinar for non-lawyers interested in helping immigrant children. For the webinar recording and slides, visit our website. |
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 | Left to Right: CCA attorneys Sabrina Tavi and Angelique Torres, Edwin Colon of De Castro Foden Immigration Law, Tess Reagan of Esperanza Law, Judge Gerald Fox of the Stamford Probate Court, and two SIJS Pro Bono Alumni, Natalia Sieira Milan of Shipman and Goodwin LLP and Laura Heneghan of the Law Offices of Dana Jonson. |
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| | Homelessness Doesn’t Define a Child’s Future When children and youth lose housing, they shouldn’t also lose their education. CCA supported the development of the State Department of Education’s new “School is Here No Matter What” campaign to spread the word about educational rights of homeless students. CCA is also spreading the word about legal rights of homeless youth with outreach and training for youth in shelters and community programs in New Haven and Hartford. For more information contact Stacey Violante Cote at sviolante@cca-ct.org. |
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| | CCA’s Mobile Legal Office visits partner agency COMPASS Youth Collaborative in Hartford |
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| | How CCA’s Work Impacts Connecticut's Children |
| A Testimonial from CCA’s Board Chairman, Claude Mayo: "Over the eight years that I've been affiliated with this organization, I've come to know and understand what a change agent it is in the lives of so many of the most vulnerable children in our state, from the huge legislative wins to the individual cases that provide access to education and healthcare, and even prevent homelessness. |
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| | Upcoming CCA Webinar: Using the ADA to Support Families Involved with the Child Welfare System. Join CCA attorneys Bonnie Roswig and Stacy Schleif for an informational webinar on May 10th. Special guest Robyn Powell, associate professor of law with the University of Oklahoma will also join our team. |
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| | The Great Give 2023 Celebrating its 14th year in 2023, The Great Give is returning on May 3-4. This 36-hr, online, community-wide giving event was created by The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven to raise visibility and resources for nonprofits serving Greater New Haven, like the Center for Children’s Advocacy. For more information about our work in Greater New Haven, please visit our Great Give 2023 page. |
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| | Spring for Kids 2023 Please join us on June 14th in the Yard Goat Clubhouse at Dunkin’ Park as we celebrate our 25th Anniversary, honor our 2023 Champions of Children and our inaugural Sustainability Award honoree, and support the Center for Children's Advocacy. For an inspiring evening of remarkable stories, purchase your tickets below! |
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| 2023 Champions of Children |
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| | Shelley Diehl Geballe, JD, MPH
Professor of Clinical Public Health (Health Policy) at the Yale School of Public Health, and Co-Founder and Distinguished Senior Fellow at Connecticut Voices for Children |
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Greg Jones
Founder, Legacy Foundation of Hartford, Inc. and Vice President, Hartford HealthCare |
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| 2023 Sustainability Award |
|  | Scott Murphy, JD
Partner and Managing Partner Emeritus, Shipman & Goodwin, LLP, and CCA Board Director |
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| Meet our Newest Team Members! |
| Dr. John Ducksworth Dr. John Ducksworth (he/him) was born in New York City and attended the NYC Public School system. He completed his Doctorate of Ministry Degree from New York Theological Seminary. He has a Master’s Degree in Professional Studies from New York Theological Seminary with a concentration in counseling, and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from John Jay College of Criminal Justice with a concentration in organizational management. He spent seventeen years as an Officer/Clergy in The Salvation Army rising to the rank of Captain and he has served in various administrative and social justice appointments throughout the Northeast and New England states. He has provided leadership to court-based programs, community corrections, probation and juvenile justice agencies, private corrections corporations, and social services agencies. He is a licensed trainer and facilitator of Restorative Justice Principles and Practices and a Board of Directors member of the non-profit organization Restorative Justice Initiative. He has until recently served as a Board member of the National Multifaith Campaign Ending Mass Incarceration (EMI). |
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| Nate Fox Nate (he/him) is the new Staff Attorney for the Right Direction: Youth Homelessness Advocacy Project. Even though Nate is new to the Center, he isn’t new to the work, having spent the past 15 years in various advocacy, organizing and community outreach roles related to homelessness and housing injustice. Prior to obtaining his JD from UConn School of Law in 2021, Nate obtained his MSW from the UConn School of Social Work in 2013, organized the Beat of the Street “street newspaper” and Faces of Homelessness Speakers’ Bureau, and helped to pass a Connecticut Homeless Bill of Rights. He also operated a housing navigation and resource center, where he worked to facilitate shelter access for folks living on the street. In his role at the Center, Nate works to address the legal rights of youth faced with homelessness and unstable living situations through individual casework; “know your rights” and other trainings for impacted youth, parents, and providers; and systemic and legislative advocacy. Nate is especially passionate about working and organizing with people most impacted by regressive and racist policies, and is excited to work for and alongside Connecticut youth to address systems that continue to fail them. |
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| | Chris Moore Chris is an award-winning graphic designer and the new Graphic Designer with CCA. After graduating from UConn, he worked as the Art Director at the Hartford Courant and Hartford Magazine. He has years of design experience in magazines, newspapers, books, and online. |
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| Center for Children's Advocacy
65 Elizabeth St. | Hartford, Connecticut 06105
860-570-5327 | mprendergast@cca-ct.org |
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