The 2008 It’s My Life Conference will be held Oct. 31 to Nov. 2 in Hollywood, Calif.
                                                     
The It’s My Life (IML) Conference convenes over 700 participants—youth in foster care, alumni of care, caregivers, practitioners and advocates—who share innovative practices designed to guide preparation for adulthood services for youth aging out of foster care.

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Call for presentations is now closed.

The IML National Advisory Committee seeks proposals for 75 or 90 minute presentations aligned with the Casey’s 2020 strategy and geared toward one or more of the seven key domains (elements) that impact a young person’s ability to succeed.

Presentations can be delivered as workshops, panels or reverse panels (conversation driven primarily by the audience). We strongly encourage presentations that engage and connect to both youth and adults in an interactive way.

Presentations should ideally provide attendees an opportunity to build their knowledge base on a specific topic or subject area. To that end, we seek presentations that will provide one or more of the following:

• Broad or general awareness on a subject
• More specific or “drilled down" information about a subject
• An experiential/hands-on opportunity for the attendees

Casey values the engagement and involvement of alumni, youth, and families as partners in our work and as leaders in foster care policy and practice. We expect at least 40% of IML Conference participants to be youth and alumni. We strongly encourage youth and alumni to submit proposals or to be co-presenters.

Conference Goals

• Showcase best and innovative practices for youth aging out of care.
• Provide information that participants can take back home and apply in their work.
• Include youth and alumni as sole or co-presenters whenever possible.
• Create a welcoming, respectful, and safe environment for youth and alumni to fully engage with child welfare professionals.
• Reinvigorate advocates and practitioners in their challenging work.
• Highlight information that supports Casey’s 2020 strategy and the It’s My Life framework.

Selection Criteria

Proposals must be submitted by 5 p.m. (PST) on April 9, 2008. No late applications will be considered. The National Advisory Team will accept the highest quality proposals that:

• Specifically address one or more of the 2020 areas/IML domains.
• Include youth and alumni where appropriate and possible.
• Appeal to a mix of young people, professionals, and caregivers.
• Include defined outcomes useful to participants after they leave the conference.
• Engage participants in highly interactive learning.
• Present information in a new or creative way.
• Increase motivation, energy, and commitment to the issues that affect foster youth, practitioners, and caregivers.
• Foster meaningful dialogue—particularly between youth and adults.