More than 1,400 youth have benefited from a statewide pilot program that provides social services.
In 2020, Gov. Gavin Newsom created the first state-funded project aimed at providing post-release services to unaccompanied minors placed with sponsors. Administered by the, OFY relies on eight agencies across five California regions — the Bay Area, Central Coast, Central Valley, Inland Empire and Los Angeles metropolitan area — to implement “culturally and linguistically responsive, trauma-informed” post-release services to unaccompanied children and youth.
Rather than coupling government-funded social services with school enrollment and limiting its reach to students or to referrals by legal service providers, OFY agencies are uniquely able to serve the unaccompanied minors who are hardest to reach: tender-aged children, teen parents and youth workers.
Providing youth with tools like material support, trusting social connections and emotional competence are what social workers refer to asOFY also moves away from a one-size-fits-all approach and reflects the differences in each region. Whether developing math and English workshops in