Workshop Session One | 1:30 – 2:45 pm
From Access to Empowerment: Supporting Student Basic Needs
This presentation highlights Kennesaw State University’s CARE Services, a comprehensive model designed to address campuswide basic needs and promote student success. Featuring insights from a current student, the session will explore strategies that enhance stability, persistence and belonging through coordinated campus and community partnerships.
Lauren Padgett and Ashley Singh
The State of Child Welfare: Challenges, Reforms, and the Road Ahead
This workshop offers a timely and critical overview of the current landscape of child welfare in Georgia. Participants will explore key trends, systemic challenges, and recent policy shifts impacting children and families involved with the state’s child protection and foster care systems. The session will examine safety, permanency, and well-being outcomes and highlight current strategic priorities being led by DFCS, the juvenile courts, and local communities.
Melissa Carter
Reaching Teens
Adolescence is a time of opportunity! In this workshop caring adults learn communication strategies to effectively engage with today’s teenagers. This training integrates a trauma-sensitive model with the core belief that identifying, reinforcing, and building on inherent strengths can facilitate positive youth development and foster strong family and community connections. Reaching Teens was developed by Kenneth Ginsburg, MD and endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Allison Ashe and Jenny Paveglio
Exploring Embark Mini-Grants
We’ll cover essential topics such as what items to include, how to build your budget, what to outline in your scope of work, who is responsible for signing the grant agreement, and how to submit your final invoice. You’ll also hear directly from grantees who will share their accomplishments and the lessons they’ve learned throughout the process.
Elaine Martin, Julia Buwick, Yolanda Skinner, and Stephanie Martin
Workshop Session Two | 3:15 – 4:30 pm
Regional Meetings
Regional Meeting – Northeast
Regional Meeting – Northwest
Regional Meeting – Southwest
Regional Meeting – Southeast
Regional Meeting – Metro
Regional Meeting – Middle Georgia East
Regional Meeting – Middle Georgia West
Workshop Session Three | 9:00 am – 10:15 am
From Concept to Care: Launching and Scaling a Campus Pantry
Learn how a student-run Campus Pantry moved from concept to a reliable basic needs resource. The session covers idea origin, model development, and the Student Government Association’s role in shared governance and daily operations. It highlights successes, challenges, and the systems built for sourcing, staffing, inventory, communications, and stigma reduction. In addition, it explains how an EMBARK grant strengthened capacity and scalability. Participants will leave with a clear, adaptable roadmap.
Michael Butcher
By the Numbers: A 10-Year Look at Foster Youth Higher Education Participation
Youth who experience foster care often face significant barriers to accessing higher education, and national statistics suggest that enrollment and graduation rates for this population remain low. In this session, presenters will share preliminary results of a study linking administrative data to track Georgia foster youths’ participation in higher education settings between 2015 and 2024. Population-level rates and trends will be discussed, as well as the impacts of Education and Training Vouchers and other resources on students’ ability to succeed through higher education enrollment, persistence, and graduation.
Grace Bagwell-Adams, Daniel Gibbs, and Lori Tiller
University System of Georgia Funding for Foster Youth Students
Fostering Success Act, Inc. and the University System of Georgia Foundation have partnered to make it easy for eligible former foster youth attending University System of Georgia institutions to cover their expenses. In cooperation with each bursar office, the institutions will invoice USGF for any remaining charges on a student’s account after all grants, scholarship and ETV funds are applied. This means no classes being dropped, delays moving into on-campus housing, missed meals, etc.
Heidi Carr
Updates from Georgia Department of Education
In this session, an update on GaDOE federal programs division will be provided. This is especially timely given all the changes and potential changes that are taking place on the national level and how them have and will impact services available to students in Georgia, especially those who have experienced foster care and/or homelessness.
Eric McGhee
Workshop Session Four | 10:30 – 11:45 am
Empower Who? A Youth-Led Experience
Step into an interactive experience led by young people directly impacted by the foster care system. The youth of Georgia EmpowerMEnt will guide you through a candid discussion about their rights, what authentic empowerment looks like and how you can be a better ally. This is your opportunity to gain invaluable insight and see the system through their eyes.
Anthony Stover
Basic Needs Access across University System of Georgia Schools: A landscape analysis
This session presents findings from a statewide review of 26 institutions, analyzing services like housing, mental health care, academic advising, and life skills programs. The data reveals a troubling trend: schools with the greatest need often offer the fewest resources—especially in rural and underfunded areas. Join us and undergraduate researchers to explore the gaps and discuss ways forward.
Imani Callan, Erik Ness, Lori Tiller, and Jenny Trinh
From Readiness to Retention: How ILS and Embark Support Postsecondary Progress
Join Independent Living Specialists (ILS) and Embark Georgia for a practical overview of how young people navigate the post-18 transition—whether they remain in extended care or exit care. We’ll clarify what DFCS can and can’t do, outline the ILS role in planning and problem-solving, and answer common questions about paying for college (ETV, FAFSA, and stacking aid). We’ll also show how the Embark Georgia Center and designated campus liaisons help students and practitioners sustain momentum to and through postsecondary education.
Arden Bakarich, Eshontee Williams, Tashita McGhee Moses, and Larissa Thompson
Summer Jobs with Housing: Explore Opportunities for Students at Overnight Summer Camps
For college students experiencing homelessness, finding stable housing and meaningful summer employment can be a significant challenge. Summer camps across the country are a pathway to a summer job that not only pays but also provides housing. Working at camp is an opportunity for students to join a supportive community, develop leadership skills, and gain experience that looks great on a resume. Plus, it’s a summer filled with fun and rewarding work!
Kim Aycock, Kendra Perkins, and Jordyn Roark