Rocky Mountain Children's Law Center

Programs: Children in protective care: appointed by the court, children's law center attorneys serve as guardians ad litem on behalf of these children who range in age from newborn babies to young adults. Our clients grow up in foster care, residential treatment facilities, and group homes. Our goal is to ensure that their time in the child protection system is as short, stable, and healthy as possible. Our lawyers and clinical consultants zealously advocate in court to make sure that children's mental health, physical care and educational needs are met while in state care. We also help them achieve a permanent home with a safe and loving family so they can have the childhood they deserve.

domestic violence program: trains volunteer attorneys to represent children in protection order hearings, conducting independent investigations and making recommendations to the court based on the best interests of each child.

caregivers of children at risk: represent grandparents, aunts, uncles and also non-relative caregivers who step in to raise children when parents cannot. The goal of this program is to keep these families intact and, when appropriate, keep the children out of foster care.

education needs of children at risk: children who experience abuse and neglect often struggle with emotional and behavioral challenges that can make it difficult to succeed in school. Children in the child welfare system are also more likely than other children to have disabilities that affect their education. The children's law center education program ensures that children who have experienced trauma or who have emotional and behavioral disabilities receive appropriate, high quality educational opportunities. The children's law center advocates for children's educational needs in child welfare and delinquency cases, providing affordable representation for families in private special education cases, and advocating for improved policies at the state and local level. Expenses: 83,052 systemic reform: through systemic reform and public awareness, the children's law center works with community leaders to raise awareness about the plight of maltreated children and influence public policy on behalf of children. Expenses: 170,224 community education: children's law center attorneys and clinical consultants train a variety of community groups including foster parents human service providers judges and magistrates, and court appointed special advocates. We train on a variety of topics including: the signs of abuse and neglect, the impact of domestic violence on children, the educational needs of abused children, and how to advocate for an abused child. We dedicate hundreds of hours to these efforts each year. Expenses: 158,161