Model Policies
Resources to Build Model Policies
Model Policy and Practice Scan
In the summer of 2023, the National SOGIE Center commissioned a national scan of policies and practices on serving LGBTQ+ youth within child welfare systems. The scan included an assessment of over fifty LGBTQ+ child welfare policies from across the country, in which policies were ranked from most inclusive to least inclusive. The National SOGIE Center can support your agency in developing an inclusive policy or sharing example model policies. Please reach out by submitting a technical assistance request.
Further, eight essential elements emerged from the scan. These essential elements should be included in all policies for this population. Click the button below to read about them.
SNAPSHOT: LGBTQ Equality by State
The Movement Advancement Project (MAP) tracks over 50 different LGBTQ-related laws and policies. There are maps that document the overall policy tallies for each state, the District of Columbia, and the five populated U.S. territories. Viewers can click on their state or territory to view detailed information about protections for sexual orientation, gender identity, diverse families, and religious exemption laws.
Safe Havens: Closing the Gap Between Recommend Practice & Reality for Transgender & Gender-Expansive Youth in Out-of-Home Care
This report offers the first comprehensive analysis of the troubling lack of explicit laws and policies in most states to protect transgender, gender-expansive and gender non-conforming (TGNC) youth in the child welfare, juvenile justice, and runaway and homeless youth systems (“out-of-home care systems”). The report is co-authored by Lambda Legal, Children’s Rights and the Center for the Study of Social Policy.
Model Policy: Transgender, Gender Nonforming & Intersex Youth in Confinement Facilities
The National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) developed a model policy for confinement facilities that house transgender, gender nonconforming and intersex (TGNCI) youth – a population that experiences high rates of mistreatment and victimization in secure settings. NCLR and the Center for Children’s Law and Policy collaborated with a diverse group of youth justice stakeholders, including advocates for TGNCI youth, formerly incarcerated young people, facility personnel, and youth justice practitioners from across the country. Together, they produced critical guidance to youth justice agencies about how to meet the unique needs of these vulnerable youth, and to ensure their health and well-being while they are confined.