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In honor of Black History Month, the James B. Moran Center for Youth Advocacy would like to focus on two extremely influential Black leaders from Evanston. As an organization focused on keeping youth in school and out of prison through integrated legal and social work services, we chose two Black leaders from these fields. Namely, …

Request for Parent Partner – Apply Online Here! The purpose of the Parent Partner Program is to empower caregivers to successfully navigate their special education meeting and improve outcomes for their child.  Attending school meetings alone can be intimidating and overwhelming.  If you’d like someone to sit by your side and guide you through the process, …

The Moran Center has been given the opportunity to work with eight other Evanston-based organizations that work with youth and their families through a grant awarded by Evanston Cradle to Career with funds from the United Way. Our partners are the City of Evanston’s Youth & Young Adult Division, Connections for the Homeless, Curt’s Café, …

The Dove Foundation was founded in 1986 by Ted and Elaine Welp with the mission to further educational and community opportunities for individuals with disabilities. The foundation initially focused solely on educational initiatives for the Deaf because of the Welp’s personal experience in securing supports and services for their son, Tom. He was born with …

Evanston born and raised, Betsy Lehman always knew she would come back to Evanston to raise her children. She believes growing up in Evanston was instrumental in shaping her worldview, values, and career choices. Evanston holds a special place in her heart, but she also recognizes that our community is not without its flaws. This …

On December 28, 2018, Governor Bruce Rauner righted an outrageous wrong by commuting the sentences of six youth who were unfairly prosecuted in Saline County due to childish behavior occurring at the Illinois Youth Center-Harrisburg (“IYC-Harrisburg”).   These six youth were sentenced for criminal charges which were the result of staff, acting as private citizens, …

As the Associate Vice President of Research at Northwestern University, Ann Adams works to support world-class research. Ann is also committed to improving the community in which she lives and works, not only as a long-time donor to the Moran Center but also through her active participation in the organization as a member of the …

Val Weiss has been on the Moran Center’s Board of Directors for the past 10 years, recruited by former Executive Director Naria Santa Lucia for her extensive business and non-profit management experience. From the start Val says she was impressed by the staff’s extraordinary dedication, and she has been humbled to be a part of …

The Illinois Midterm Election | Nov. 6, 2018   Why Should I Care About the Midterm Election? The Midterms are important because they decide the make-up of Congress for the next two years. In this Midterm, 35 US Senate seats and all US House of Representative seats are being voted on. Who wins these seats …

HB5104 abolishes the $5 co-pay Illinois prisoners must pay to see a doctor. Governor Rauner, however, recommended simply reducing the current $5 co-pay for inmates to $3.90. Reducing the co-pay amount by $1.10 does not support Illinois’ ability to meet its obligation to provide adequate correctional health care to the entire incarcerated population. This change …