The Imprint Weekly

The Imprint
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The Imprint Weekly Podcast offers listeners a regular review of news and trends in America's child welfare and juvenile justice systems, along with other critical services for youth and families. Join Imprint Senior Editor John Kelly for a discussion of the week's major headlines, plus interviews with leaders in the field.

  1. 1D AGO

    The Dark Past of Sterilization and the Bright Future for Birth Justice

    On this week’s episode, The Imprint’s Nancy Marie Spears sits down with reporter Suzette Brewer to discuss her recent two-part series on the tragic past and promising future of birth justice for the Native American community. The series examines the use of sterilization on Indigenous women, a practice many believe was intended to facilitate the dying out of tribes, and the more recent efforts to build a birth justice movement in the Native American community.  Spears and Brewer discussed their reporting careers, covering the Indian Child Welfare Act, and how her recent series came together over the course of a decade. Suzette Brewer is a journalist specializing in federal Indian law and social justice, with a focus on issues affecting Native women and children. She has reported extensively on the Indian Child Welfare Act, the U.S. Supreme Court, Native voting rights, environmental justice in Indian Country, and the opioid crisis.  Brewer is a recipient of the Richard LaCourse–Gannett Foundation Al Neuharth Investigative Journalism Award, a John Jay/Tow Juvenile Justice Reporting Fellow, and a 2024 National Fellow with the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism. She is a member of the Cherokee Nation and is from Stilwell, Oklahoma. Episode Timeline 0:00-9:10: Reporting on the Indigenous community 9:11-18:00: Covering the Indian Child Welfare Act 18:01-1:02: Suzette Brewer's two-part series on the history of forced sterilization and the future of birth justice in the Indigenous community Reading Room For Centuries, Native Women Have Been Told to ‘Trust the Doctor.’ The Results Have Been Disastrous. https://imprintnews.org/top-stories/for-centuries-native-women-have-been-told-to-trust-the-doctor-the-results-have-been-disastrous/271389 Birth Justice: The Fight for Reproductive Freedom in Indian Country https://imprintnews.org/top-stories/birth-justice-the-fight-for-reproductive-freedom-in-indian-country/271753 Reporting by Nancy Marie Spears https://imprintnews.org/author/nancy-marie-spears

    1h 2m

  2. MAR 30

    InnerViews – Artivism, Credible Messengers, and Community Power: Reclaiming Youth Voice in Brooklyn

    In this episode of InnerViews, Ivory speaks with Tashaun Sudlow and Sarah Robinson about youth voice, credible messengers, and community-led change in Brooklyn. Through artivism and coalition-building, they explore how young people transform lived experience into advocacy, healing, and action. This conversation highlights the power of storytelling as both resistance and restoration.

    1h 8m

  3. MAR 22

    The Buried History of Cheltenham

    On this week’s episode we are joined by Marc Schindler of Georgetown’s Center for Youth Justice, to discuss the Forgotten Children’s Initiative, which was born of research that he led about the history of the Maryland House of Reformation & Instruction for Colored Children between 1877-1939. As part of that research, it was discovered that more than 300 children are buried in an unmarked cemetery near where the House of Reformation was located in Cheltenham, Maryland.  We discussed that important and heartbreaking work, and how Schindler sees this research project in the context of current discussions around reforming the juvenile justice system in Maryland and elsewhere.  Marc Schindler is a research professor and senior fellow at the Center for Youth Justice at Georgetown’s McCourt School of Public Policy, and former assistant secretary & chief of staff of the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services.  Reading Room The Racist Roots of Youth Justice Are Buried Deep https://imprintnews.org/opinion/the-racist-roots-of-youth-justice-are-buried-deep/273246 Forgotten Children: Unearthing the Lives Behind the Lost Burial Sites of Incarcerated Youth https://cyj.georgetown.edu/forgotten-children/ ‘Incorrigible’ No More: In Rare Memorial Service, Graveside Tribute Paid to New York’s Formerly Incarcerated Girls https://imprintnews.org/top-stories/new-york-memorial-service-incarcerated-girls/250819 Torture of Kids Remembered: A North Florida reform school acknowledges its history of abuse. https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2008/10/26/torture-of-kids-remembered/ Nickel Boys https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel_Boys

    1h 10m

  4. MAR 16

    Headlines: New Data on Foster Care Capacity, Mental Health-Driven Incarceration and More

    On this week’s episode we start by discussing the new update to Who Cares, which is The Imprint’s project on foster care capacity data around the country, and how it connects to the Trump administration’s central child welfare goal for the president’s second term. We also review some recent Trump administration actions related to LGBTQ youth in foster care, and what some recent research on juvenile detention and congregate care suggests about mental health services for youth.  Reading Room Who Cares Project https://fostercarecapacity.com/ The Latest on A Home for Every Child https://imprintnews.org/youth-services-insider/latest-a-home-for-every-child/271534 Mapping A Home for Every Child: Where Do States Stand? https://bit.ly/4716Gq0 ACF is Rescinding Biden-Era Rule on LGBTQ Foster Care Placements https://bit.ly/3PcoZCv Trump Appointee Demands States Roll Back Foster Parenting Rules That Aim to Protect LGBTQ+ Youth https://bit.ly/47xLA2E Feds Warn States: Family Gender Disputes Should Not Lead to Child Welfare Cases https://bit.ly/3PmDfZo Trump Administration Slashes Number of Regulatory Guidance Docs at ACF https://bit.ly/3P2KJAT Bipartisan Report Raises Alarm Over Widespread Incarceration of Children With Mental Health Needs https://bit.ly/4sKSeLd In Many States, Federal Funding Restrictions on Foster Care Group Facilities Has Not Reduced Placements https://bit.ly/4sLerbW HHS Should Clarify Guidance on State Spending for Congregate Care https://files.gao.gov/reports/GAO-26-107592/index.html Michigan Lawmakers and Boarding School Survivors Speak Out on Shelved Indian Boarding School Report https://bit.ly/3NAeFnr For Centuries, Native Women Have Been Told to ‘Trust the Doctor.’ The Results Have Been Disastrous. https://bit.ly/40xAJCc Birth Justice: The Fight for Reproductive Freedom in Indian Country https://bit.ly/3N7X85Y NY Judges Greenlight Class-Action Lawsuit on Behalf of Children Denied Foster Placement With Relatives https://bit.ly/4sQf5VS Amid Outcry, Foster Youth Advocate Detained by ICE https://imprintnews.org/special-series/amid-outcry-foster-youth-advocate-detained-by-ice Youth Sound Off: Foster Youth Speak Out on ICE’s Attacks in Minnesota https://bit.ly/4uOoPBR

    50 min

  5. MAR 9

    The Future of Federal Research on Youth and Families

    On this week’s episode we talk to Naomi Goldstein, who for nearly two decades led the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF). We discussed the way that the federal government decides what to research and how it gets the job done. And why she thinks the Trump administration’s recent decision to decentralize research at ACF is a mistake.  Naomi Goldstein was the deputy assistant secretary for planning, research, and evaluation at the Administration for Children and Families.  She is currently a registered nurse in Washington, D.C. Reading Room Restructuring on the Horizon for ACF’s Research Branch https://imprintnews.org/youth-services-insider/restructuring-on-the-horizon-for-acfs-research-branch/271096 Happy Birthday OPRE! https://acf.gov/archive/opre/blog/2024/08/birthday2024

    37 min

  6. MAR 2

    The Civil Rights of System-Involved Youth, with Marsha Levick

    On this week’s episode we talk to Marsha Levick, co-founder of the Juvenile Law Center, who stepped down last year after serving for decades as the organization’s chief legal officer. We discussed the origins of the center and how it survived, how to write a good amicus brief, the Kids for Cash scandal and more.  Marsha Levick is a co-founder and former chief legal officer for the Juvenile Law Center. She is currently the Phyllis W. Beck Visiting Chair in Law at Temple Law School.

    1h 10m

  7. FEB 23

    InnerViews – Love Shouldn’t Hurt: When Relationships Become About Survival

    InnerViews is trying something new. In this special episode, we bring you the audio from Youth Voices Rising’s powerful webinar, Love Shouldn’t Hurt. Panelists with lived child welfare experience reflect on how trauma, housing instability, and system involvement can shape beliefs about love and safety. This honest conversation explores survival-based relationships, healing, and what it takes to build emotionally safe connections. Listener discretion advised.

    1h 22m

  8. FEB 9

    Headlines: Treating Addiction, Youth Justice Workforce Woes, and More

    On this Headlines edition of The Imprint Weekly Podcast, we start with a discussion of three medication-assisted treatments for substance use that the Trump administration has cleared for federal child welfare funding. Also discussed on this episode: new national data on abuse and neglect investigations, Georgia’s budget woes, and two alarming indicators of the workforce crisis in youth justice.  Reading Room Top Trump Health Officials Announce New Funding for Opioid Addiction Treatment To Prevent Foster Care Removals  https://imprintnews.org/top-stories/top-trump-health-officials-announce-new-funding-for-opioid-addiction-treatment-to-prevent-foster-care-removals/270780 Rolling Out the Welcome Mat for Prevention https://imprintnews.org/uncategorized/rolling-out-the-welcome-mat-for-prevention/270728 Maltreatment Reports, Victims and Fatalities All Down in 2024 https://imprintnews.org/youth-services-insider/maltreatment-reports-victims-and-fatalities-all-down-in-2024/270409 Child Maltreatment 2024 https://acf.gov/sites/default/files/documents/cb/cm2024.pdf Georgia Child Welfare Cuts Called ‘Unacceptable,’ House Proposes Budget to Relieve Foster Care Deficit  https://imprintnews.org/top-stories/georgia-child-welfare-cuts-called-unacceptable-house-proposes-budget-to-relieve-foster-care-deficit/270856 ‘Where I Felt Loved:’ Renovated Housing Complex Supports Georgia Foster Youth Transitioning to Independence https://imprintnews.org/foster-care/where-i-felt-loved-renovated-housing-complex-supports-georgia-foster-youth-transitioning-to-independence/270632 Beshear Wants More Juvenile Detention Centers. KY Can’t Staff Existing Ones https://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article314389699.html ‘Worse Than Rikers’: Lawsuit Claims Abusive Use of Solitary Confinement in New York’s Juvenile Lockups https://imprintnews.org/top-stories/ny-official-responds-to-reports-of-abusive-conditions-in-youth-detention-facilities/270814

    28 min
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About

The Imprint Weekly Podcast offers listeners a regular review of news and trends in America's child welfare and juvenile justice systems, along with other critical services for youth and families. Join Imprint Senior Editor John Kelly for a discussion of the week's major headlines, plus interviews with leaders in the field.

Information

  • Creator
    The Imprint
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    269
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Imprint Weekly
  • Show Website
    The Imprint Weekly

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