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Ansell Casey Life Skills Assessment

In accordance with the State of Virginia Department of Social Services, Independent Living Consultants have been trained and authorized to conduct training in the use of the Ansell Casey Life Skills Assessment (ACLSA) throughout their Regions. The ACLSA is a free web-based strengths assessment to be utilized in the planning of next steps for a youth’s learning as they prepare for adulthood. Key components of the training cover administration of the ACLSA, engaging the youth in conversation about their assessment, and empowering the youth to “take the reins” in preparing their Learning Plan. The Plan can be incorporated into the Foster Care Service Plan as well as updated for their transition and discharge plan. Training typically takes a full day. The ACLSA training “curriculum design was created with the basic beliefs that assessment should always be tied to planning, people should always be involved in their own learning, and learning should be fun.

Contact your Regional Project LIFE lndependent Living Consultant if you are interested in receiving ACLSA training.

The National Youth In Transitition Database

The National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD) is a federal requirement that provides Virginia as well as other states an opportunity to see how young people are doing as they transition out of foster care. Because of NYTD, Virginia has a great chance to improve the quality of life for young people who receive Virginia’s Independent Living Services.

NYTD is a data system created to track independent living services and learn how successful states are in preparing youth to move from foster care into adulthood. Every three years beginning on October 1, 2010, Virginia will survey youth who are in foster care when they are age 17 and then do follow-up surveys of some of the same youth at age 19 and again at age 21.

If you are asked to be part of the NYTD survey, take the survey! Your input is very important. In Virginia, you could be contacted by your social worker, case worker, or Independent Living Coordinator soon after turning 17 and asked to answer some questions on a survey. You may be asked to complete another survey when you turn 19 and again at age 21. Your feedback, along with foster youth from other states, will be put into the NYTD database. Your story can help improve the foster care system for thousands of young people. Need more inspiration? Listen to the U-NYTD produced by young people in California!