Episode 058: Interview with Lauren Vazquez with Valley Youth House (Bethlehem, PA)

In this episode, Lynn Tonini interviews Lauren Vazquez, Supervisor of the Adolescents Achieving Independence (AAI) program at Valley Youth House in Bethlehem, PA. We discussed AAI and the strategies they use as they serve as "adulting coaches" for foster youth and former foster youth between the ages of 14 to 23 years old. They focus their support in the domains of education, employment, housing, life skills, and permanency (relationships). We also discussed ideas for improving support for youth, including a year of transitional living in their senior year of high school and finding more foster parents willing to provide homes for older teens in foster care.