Our University of the Streets Café public conversations are much like any you’d have with friends or family around a dinner table, except with more people, more points of view, and slightly more structure. Conversations are hosted by a volunteer moderator who is there to welcome everyone and keep things on track. To get things started, there’s a guest, or sometimes two, who get the ball rolling by sharing their ideas, experiences and questions. After that, it's all up to the participants.

Child welfare agencies are meant to provide ongoing health, social and housing support to youth. In doing so, have we substantially learned from the failures documented in our collective history? This conversation considers our responsibility to youth in need and the strategies we could consider to improve it -, both in the context of current care services and as youth exit it.

Guests:
Arisha Khan is a student, recovering bureaucrat, and Vice-President of Youth in Care Canada, a national organization serving youth in/from care. She also serves on the Board at À deux mains / Head & Hands. Having spent time bouncing in and out of the system in Ontario, she is passionate about ensuring that youth are aware of their rights and engaged in the decisions that impact them. 

Marcelle Partouche Gutierrez is a queer woman of colour, community worker and engaged artist trying to bridge gaps linked to accessibility, and voice unheard stories of courage and resilience. Based in Montreal with roots in North-Africa and Mexico, she is the proud daughter of brave migrants. She completed a degree at McGill in Anthropology and Education, and is further pursuing academia with the intention to increase the well being of marginalized communities, restore a sense of respect to healing populations-- especially youth coming from foster care, and the child welfare system. She wishes to attain this goal through knowledge, healing spaces, love, music, dignity and humanity.

Moderator:
Jayne Malenfant is from Kapuskasing, Ontario and is a grad student at McGill University. She works on issues of educational access for precariously housed and homeless youth, and is a part of the wonderful team at the McGill Faculty of Education Community Garden. Jayne is generally excited about beekeeping, informal education and anarchy.

Accessibility: There is an access ramp at the entrance. There are gender-neutral washrooms in proximity to the room where the conversation will be held.