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Summer enrichment and residential programs can provide gifted students with positive social interactions and challenging curricula. However, little research has focused on gifted students’ perceptions of the learning environment in such programs. This research project evaluated the psychometric properties and practical applications of the Student Perceptions of Classroom Quality (SPOCQ) instrument. The two studies used a total sample of 1,492 diverse, gifted students in Grades 5 through 12 who participated in a university-based enrichment residential program from 2010 through 2013. Confirmatory factor analysis results indicated that although the original model was a moderately good fit for the gifted student participants in 2010 to 2011, some items on the SPOCQ were classroom specific and did not apply to residential programs. Therefore, those items were revised and retested, and results showed that the modified model was a better fit for gifted student participants in 2012 to 2013.

Commemorating the 40 th anniversary of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) III, the purpose of this commentary is to describe school-based and school-relevant interventions and instructional approaches for children and youth with autism that have been developed and employed during that time period. The commentary begins with a brief description of foundational research that provides an historical context. Research themes shaped by science, ethics, social policy, and the changes in the DSM provide an organization for describing the evolution of intervention and instructional practices over the four previous decades. The commentary concludes with a discussion of school-contextual variables that influence implementation and the promise of the “iSciences” for closing the research to practice gap in the future.

Recent media and policy focus in remote Aboriginal education has turned to boarding schools. The general rhetoric is that boarding schools will allow Indigenous Australian students to have access to quality education and to learn to ‘walk in two worlds’. However, to date, there has been very little exploration of the lived experiences of Indigenous boarding schools, either from broader political and sociological perspectives, or from the schools themselves. Furthermore, understanding of how the residential side of boarding constructs the use of time and presents educational and social development opportunities is lacking. This paper aims to begin to address this, by presenting the goals and intended outcomes of a residential program for remote central Australian Aboriginal students. Through analysis of 17 semistructured interviews with residence staff, this paper identifies the two overarching goals of the program, as well as the more specific learning outcomes from which the program expects its students to benefit. The research presented is preliminary data that forms part of a broader PhD study of postboarding school expectations and outcomes for remote Aboriginal students, their families, and their communities.

This paper presents a discussion of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) seen as traumatic events, occurring in childhood and examines how children and youth are increasingly at risk of sex trafficking. It explores the increased vulnerabilities of youth in foster care, group homes, and residential treatment centers. In addition, the paper discusses key risk factors, with an emphasis on youth who are runaways, and child recruitment into sex trafficking. Finally, the paper recommends strategies to mitigate and prevent child trafficking at individual (micro), organizational (mezzo) and community-based programmatic and policy (macro) levels of practice. A good first step is for child welfare agencies to help identify, recover, and assist persons who have been trafficked. However, this cannot be accomplished alone. Inter-professional and inter-organizational collaboration with key stakeholders in the child welfare system is key to reducing the risk of exploitation of youth in care. More research and better reporting mechanisms are essential to understand fully the depth and breadth of the problem of human trafficking. With more accurate and reliable data about the linkages between adverse childhood experiences, children and youth in care, and risk of sex trafficking, providers and other advocates can seek more funding for services and resources that will assist persons who are forced or coerced to engage in commercial sexual exploitation.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are negative events during childhood or adolescence, including abuse and maltreatment. ACEs are associated with negative life outcomes, and the risk of such outcomes increases when polyvictimization (i.e., multiple types of ACEs) occurs. This study identified patterns in ACEs among girls in a residential treatment program (RTP) and examined how these patterns were associated with trauma symptoms, substance use, and delinquent behavior. Data were coded from psychological assessment records for girls ages 13 to 18 who entered the RTP between 2017 and 2021 ( N  = 256). Adolescents identified as 43.0% White, 20.9% Biracial/Multiethnic, 16.7% Black, 12.5% Hispanic/Latina, 4.2% Native American/Indigenous Peoples, and 2.7% Middle Eastern/North African descent. Participants reported an average of 5.08 adverse experiences ( SD  = 2.47). Four distinct classes were identified through latent class analysis: polyvictimization (endorsing all 10 ACEs), abuse and non-support (maltreatment and lack of parental support), household dysfunction (parental separation, incarceration, substance use), and low adversity (exposure to only parental separation). The polyvictimization class and the abuse and non-support class reported higher levels of trauma symptoms compared to the low adversity class. The polyvictimization class reported higher substance use compared to the low adversity class. The household dysfunction class reported higher substance use and higher delinquent behaviors compared to the low adversity class. These findings provide a deeper understanding of adolescent girls’ experiences of ACEs and mental health and behavioral concerns when entering residential treatment, which helps to inform prevention, intervention, and policy.

The COVID-19 epidemic caused disruption and dislocation in the lives of people with disabilities, their families, and providers. What we have learned during this period regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the service system for people with disabilities should provide a roadmap for building a more robust and agile system going forward. Based on a canvas of leaders in our field, I propose a way of outlining a reimagined system.

Currently, millions of children in the world live in residential care settings (Desmond et al., 2020). This article addresses the intersection of social determinants of health and child welfare practice in the context of rapid return of children from institutions to communities experienced as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic. This paper describes the implications from a study of 164 children living in 100 families case managed by ten programs across Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Mexico, and Uganda. Each program was governmentmandated to rapidly return children to families and subsequently participated in a learning cohort dedicated to helping these programs support children in families. Data-informed recommendations for policy and practice are offered. Although the results of this program were largely positive, the greater narrative around the risks of rapid reintegration is highlighted. In an increasingly unstable world with food insecurity, natural disasters, geopolitical conflict, and mass migration (to list just a few causes of rapid reintegration of children into communities), this article's relevance is unfortunate but anticipated.

BackgroundFear of missing out (FoMO) and homesickness have been associated with a variety of negative psychosocial outcomes; however, they have rarely been studied together or with adolescents in residential settings.ObjectiveThis study examined the potential associations of FoMO and homesickness with program outcomes in a sample of adolescents attending a military-style residential program. The residential treatment context inherently involves removal and isolation from an individual’s typical living arrangements.MethodsData were collected from 185 participants (aged 16–18) at three time points (i.e., 2 weeks after entry into the 19-week program; 9 weeks into the program; at week 18 of the program). RESULTS: Overall, FoMO and homesickness declined from initial assessment to midway through the program but rebounded just prior to exit from the program. FoMO and homesickness showed no direct correlations with participant outcomes, although both showed patterns of correlation demonstrating poor adjustment (e.g., low emotion regulation, high loneliness). Decreases in FoMO and homesickness during the program were positively correlated with distress tolerance.ConclusionsGiven the negative implications of experiencing FoMO and homesickness, adolescents at risk for emotional distress tolerance may need additional support when initiating participation in residential programs.