Books
In Whose Best Interest?
A strategy for reclaiming angry, adult-resistant kids drawing from the lead author's own life. Removed from an abusive home, John experienced a dozen failed foster home and court placements. Today Dr. Seita is a resilience expert who is on the faculty at Michigan State University.
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God Is In The Kitchen And Other Everyday Miracles
God Is In The Kitchen is a book about spirituality and everyday miracles, parenting and learning from a child and transcending all odds to find your own greatness. Spirituality, the subtle beauty of everyday miracles, parenting with dignity, respect and the wonder of the gentle lessons from a child radiate from this refreshing and inspiring book.
Kids Who Outwit Adults
In the movie Good Will Hunting, Matt Damon portrays a troubled youth fighting a frustrated therapist. Like the fictional Will Hunting, John Seita was an angry boy who sabotaged 15 court placements until sent to Starr Commonwealth Schools, then headed by Larry Brendtro. Today, Dr. Seita and Dr. Brendtro are colleagues in reclaiming troubled youth. They describe how defiant youth outwit adults with clever strategies of "fight, flight, and fool." Only by understanding the "private logic" of distrustful youth can one break the code of negative behavior and replace hostile encounters with respectful alliances.
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Growing up in placement takes a toll, not just on the children and adolescents but also on the professionals charged with their care. Judges, policymakers, administrators, probation officers, psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors, caseworkers, social workers, foster parents, house parents, guardian ad litem, CASA volunteers, child welfare advocates, educators and program staff make critical decisions that can affect a child s life forever. The more attuned they are to what helps or hinders the development of these vulnerable young people, the more likely they are to make the appropriate decisions required to promote positive placement experiences and healthy adult outcomes.
The purpose of this book is to provide child welfare professionals insightful feedback from former clients who grew up in juvenile justice, foster care, orphanage, adoptive and mental health placements. What makes this book particularly instructive derives from the authors credentials. They are college-educated adults who masterfully intertwine their childhood stories with mature perspective and their own professional expertise.
The other audiences this book hopes to reach include youth in placement and students who plan on entering careers in child welfare. Children currently in care need to know that others have experienced childhoods as bad as or worse than their own, that they survived and how they did it. Students preparing to work with troubled or dependent young people should learn about a side of life they probably have not experienced before they make decisions that may adversely affect these at risk youth. Sometimes a wide abyss separates theory and reality.