New HHSC Rules to Streamline Kinship Foster Home Licensing

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) has officially adopted amended rules in Title 26, Texas Administrative Code, Chapters 745 and 749, updating standards for kinship foster home licensing and verification. The goal of these changes is to make it easier for relatives and close family friends to become licensed (verified) caregivers while maintaining strong safety standards for children in care. These updates modernize and streamline kinship foster home standards, easing requirements for caregivers while maintaining high expectations for health and safety for children. 

Goodbye to Public Policy Director Sarah Crockett

After 11 years of incredible service, Public Policy Director Sarah Crockett will soon be leaving Texas CASA to start a new adventure. We want to take this opportunity to celebrate her outstanding contributions, dedication, skill and passion she has shared with us throughout her tenure. 

Sarah’s leadership skyrocketed our advocacy efforts, expanded our partnerships across child welfare agencies and elevated our voice on key policy issues for over a decade. She has made significant contributions to the child welfare space, the CASA mission and, most importantly, to children and families in Texas. Words cannot describe how grateful we are for the heart, expertise and integrity she brought to this position. We know her impact will continue to shape our work for years to come. Hear directly from Sarah about her remarkable journey below.

STAR Reminders

Our STAR Zoom webinar series will resume in January. This holiday season, the STAR team is grateful for the volunteer supervisors across the state and their tireless commitment to best interest CASA advocacy for every child in foster care! Volunteer supervisors, if you need a little support with coaching volunteers through this busy season, or are looking for a resource to support volunteer management and best interest advocacy, check out the resources designed specifically for your role on the Texas CASA Program Portal STAR page. Take a look and if you can’t find what you are looking for, please let us know. lbriggs@texascasa.org 

Texas Health and Human Services (HHSC) Grant Development Center

HHSC, through the Department of State Health Services, offers a phenomenal grant resource called the Grant Development Center. The grant opportunities, both public and private, are Texas-specific, and they offer many free and low-cost resources for grant writing. This resource is offered through a health-related division, but the grant opportunities are not limited to only health-related grants. The sign-up for the newsletter is at the bottom of the page at the link below.

New Guide by FosterClub: Identity Protection for Foster Youth

Many young people who have experienced foster care are at higher risk for identity theft, often through no fault of their own. Personal information may be shared between multiple adults and systems, and youth may not discover an issue until they attempt to apply for a job, housing or college. That is why FosterClub partnered with the Identity Theft Resource Center, the nation’s only nonprofit offering free identity protection and recovery services, to create a new Identity Protection & Recovery Help Guide. Developed with and by FosterClub’s Lived Experience Leaders, the guide provides real insight and practical steps that can help protect young people and support their recovery if identity theft happens.

CFE Top Ten Poster: Cultivate

As we move into the holiday season, it is a natural time to think about what it means to nurture connection. The “Top 10 Ways to Cultivate” poster encourages us to focus on the small, meaningful actions that help relationships grow. So much of this work begins in simple moments. Playing with the CFE Deck of Cards during a visit, building a Family Tree together or bringing items that spark conversation can open the door to understanding and trust. Over ten years of CFE, we have seen how these moments lay the groundwork for stronger support networks that families can carry forward.

Recruitment Bounty: Tip of the Month

Host a bi-annual Volunteer Meeting of the Minds with a small group of dedicated and influential volunteers with the goal of gathering as much insight into their volunteer experience as possible, and hopefully get some new recruitment ideas. Having volunteers’ perspectives ensures a positive experience for people coming into your program in the future. Be sure to keep the conversation open-ended and provide dinner as a thank you. CASA of the Coastal Bend hosted their first meeting and came away with a ton of eye-opening information and several recruitment strategies to try. They can’t wait to see what they learn at their next one!

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