The Honorable Rob Hofmann, Associate Judge, Child Protection Court of the Hill Country, and Chair, Texas Blueprint Implementation Task Force

Kathleen McNaught, Assistant Staff Director of Child Welfare, American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law, and Project Director, Legal Center for Foster Care and Education

The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008

National Summit – “Child Welfare, Education and the Courts: A Collaboration to Strengthen Educational Successes of Children and Youth in Foster Care” (November 2011)

The Uninterrupted Scholars Act of 2013

Amends Title IV (Parts B and E) of the Social Security Act

Broad-reaching amendments to child welfare law

Important provisions promoting education stability and enrollment for youth in care

Changes child welfare law, but cannot be fully realized without collaboration from education system

42 U.S.C. 675(1)(C)

Amends Title IV (Parts B and E) of the Social Security Act

Broad-reaching amendments to child welfare law

Important provisions promoting education stability and enrollment for youth in care

Changes child welfare law, but cannot be fully realized without collaboration from education system

42 U.S.C. 675(1)(C)

6

Every child’s case plan must include “assurances that the placement of the child in foster care takes into account the appropriateness of the current educational setting and the proximity to the school in which the child is enrolled at the time of placement”

Child welfare agency must coordinate with school to ensure child remains in the same school unless not in the child’s best interest

Child welfare agency may use federal funds (to reimburse some of the costs for some of the children in care) to provide reasonable travel for children to remain in their school of origin

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If remaining in same school is not in child’s best interests, child’s case plan must include assurances that the child welfare agency and local education agency will:

provide immediate and appropriate enrollment in a new school; with

all of the educational records of the child provided to the school

8

Child welfare agencies have heightened responsibilities to focus on and address education issues

Can’t do what they are obligated to do without access to education information and collaboration with education partners

Not just critical for serving individual children; also key for system-level collaboration and approaches

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Education brought together 52 state teams with state leaders from the fields of child welfare, education, and the courts 

Teams developed short and long-term goals to move their state collaboration forward

Effective January 14, 2013 Amends the Family Education Rights and Privacy

Act (FERPA) Creates a new exception to FERPA that permits

schools to release education records without parental consent to a representative of a state or local child welfare agency, or tribal organization

Applies when the agency or organization is “legally responsible” for the child’s “care and protection”

Clearly includes children in foster care living in out-of-home care

The issue of the education needs of children in foster care has been growing in emphasis at the national as well as state levels

Momentum to implement change in Texas is hitting at the right time to benefit from the wave of national momentum and to serve as a state model

There is a lot to learn from other jurisdictions as well

• “Getting Started” page

• Database• Listserv• Areas of

Focus: Fostering Connections, Special Education, Data & Information sharing

• News & Updates

www.

Google Search

• Collaboration between ABA, Casey Family Programs, and Annie E. Casey Foundation, in conjunction with the Juvenile Law Center and Education Law Center-PA

• A national technical assistance resource and information clearinghouse on legal and policy matters affecting the education of children and youth in out-of-home care

www.fostercareandeducation.orgListserv, Training Materials, Conference Calls, Webinars,

Publications, Searchable Database

2007: Supreme Court establishes Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth and Families

2008: Fostering Connections passed by Congress 2009: 3rd National Judicial Leadership Summit --

Texas team adopts state action plan for improving education outcomes for foster children

2010: Supreme Court creates Education Committee

2012: The Texas Blueprint released

2013: The Implementation Task Force begins its work

“This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’ We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that ‘justice too long delayed is justice denied.’”

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Letter from Birmingham Jail (1963)

Judicial leadership at the highest levels of the State of Texas

The Education Committee’s charge: Identify and assess challenges, needs, and

current best practices Develop a collaborative model Recommend Publish

1. Inability to Remain in the Same School

2. Lack of Seamless Transitions Between Schools

3. Not Ready to Learn When Entering School

4. Lack of Equal Access and Lack of Additional Supports

5. More School Dropout, Truancy, and Disciplinary Actions

6. Not Involved and Not Empowered

7. Lack of Clear Education Advocates and Decision-makers

8. Barriers to Post-secondary Education

The Honorable Patricia Macias, ChairJudge, 388th District Court, El Paso, TXThe Honorable Cheryl Shannon, Vice-ChairJudge, 305th District Court, Dallas, TXHoward BaldwinFormer Commissioner, DFPS, Austin, TXJoy BaskinDirector, Legal Services Division, TASB, Austin, TXClaudia CanalesAttorney, Law Office of Claudia Canales P.C., Pearland, TXJames B. CrowExecutive Director, TASB, Austin, TXLori DukeClinical Professor, Children’s Rights Clinic, UT School of Law, Austin, TXAnne HeiligensteinSenior Policy Advisor, Casey Family Programs and Immediate Past Commissioner, DFPS, Washington, D.C.

The Honorable Rob HofmannAssociate Judge, Child Protection Court of the Hill Country, Mason, TXApril McWilliams**Former Foster Youth, CPS Youth Specialist, DFPS, El Paso, TXCarolyne RodriguezSenior Director of Texas Strategic Consulting, Casey Family Programs, Austin, TXRobert ScottCommissioner, TEA, Austin, TXVicki Spriggs*Chief Executive Officer, Texas CASA, Austin, TXDr. Johnny L. VeselkaExecutive Director, TASA, Austin, TX

*Joe Gagen (until 2012)Former Chief Executive Officer, Texas CASA, Austin, TX**Estella Sanchez (until 2010)Former Foster Youth, San Antonio, TX

Judges Child Welfare State Education Agency CASA Foster Parents/Child Placing Agency ECI Head Start Association of School Boards Disability Rights Appleseed Foster Youth Justice Project Juvenile Probation Commission Higher Education Coordinating Board Workforce Board

Kids’ Attorneys Parent Attorneys Former Foster Youth Casey Children’s Shelter Homeless Education Office Education Attorney Drop Out Prevention Charter School Association of School Administrators Educators School Counselors 4-year universities Youth services

Patricia Macias, El Paso Cheryl Shannon, Dallas Rob Hofmann, Child

Protection Court of the Hill Country

Bonnie Hellums, Houston

Ron Pope, Richmond Phil Vanderpool, Pampa Karin Bonicoro, Child

Protection Court of Central Texas

Angela Ellis, Houston Richard Garcia, San

Antonio Virginia Schnarr,

Sabine Valley Child Protection Court

Alyce Bondurant, North Texas Child Protection Court

Kim Brown, Fort Worth Kevin Hart, South

Plains Child Protection Court

1. Children and youth in care are entitled to remain in the same school when feasible

2. Children and youth in care experience seamless transitions between schools

3. Young children in care receive services and interventions to be ready to learn

4. Children and youth in care have the opportunity and support to fully participate in all developmentally-appropriate activities and all aspects of the education experience

5. Children and youth in care have supports to prevent school dropout, truancy, and disciplinary actions and to re-engage in the education process

6. Children and youth in care are involved and empowered and prepared to self-advocate in all aspects of their education

7. Children and youth in care have consistent adult support to advocate for and make education decisions

8. Children and youth in care have support to enter into and complete post-secondary education

Judicial Practices Data and Information Sharing Multi-Disciplinary Training School Readiness School Stability and Transitions School Experience, Advocacy, and

Supports Post-Secondary Education

Geomapping – foster homes within school districts

Expedited home studies for teachers interested in fostering

Listserv for school district foster care liaisons

GAL or CASA as the surrogate parent, if child eligible for Special Education

Judicial consideration of education during CPS hearings

Begin post-secondary education discussions in middle school

Include more education information in DFPS court reports

Multi-disciplinary training

Texas TRIO DFPS Education Portfolio to include pre-K

records Texas-specific Foster Youth and Education

Website Multi-Disciplinary Training DFPS and school policy and practice

changes Exploring data-sharing Identifying school districts with many foster

students Legislative changes

Created by Supreme Court order in December 2012 Duration of 2 years Develop an implementation plan, which shall include phases for

implementing the prioritized recommendations and strategies Includes:

Hon. Rob Hofmann, Child Protection Court of the Hill Country, Mason, Chair Hon. Alyce Bondurant, Child Protection Court of North Texas, Wichita Falls Sarah Abrahams, Casey Family Programs Joy Baskin, Texas Association of School Boards Cathy Cockerham, Texas CASA Lori Duke, Clinical Professor, Children’s Rights Clinic, UT School of Law, Austin Jenny Hinson, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Austin Julie Wayman, Texas Education Agency Others as identified by the Chair, including a representative of the Texas

Association of School Administrators, an attorney who represents parents in  child abuse and neglect proceedings, a youth formerly in foster care, and a representative of a child placement organization

Judiciary Child Protection Services Educators and School Administrators Parents Children and youth Community CASA

What should you take from Texas Blueprint and the collaboration begun by the Education Committee?

We want your help.