Educational Challenges, and Opportunities, for Foster Children and Youth

Mark E. Courtney, Ph.D.

POC Executive Director

Ballmer Chair in Child Well-Being

School of Social Work

University of Washington

Acknowledging Needs & Strengthening Systems

• Adoption and Safe Families Act – new emphasis on child well-being

• Child welfare system still the “long-term parent” for many abused and neglected children

• Educational status a critical aspect of foster children’s well-being

Some Basic Information on Children in Care

• 27% in care are 5 years or under; 51% 10 or under• 40% entering are 5 years or under; 60% 10 or under• 46% in foster family home; 23% kinship care; 20% group care• About 2/3 go home and most of these within the first 18 months• Age matters in terms of permanency outcomes• 27% in care are 5 years or under; 51% 10 or under• 40% entering are 5 years or under; 60% 10 or under• 46% in foster family home; 23% kinship care; 20% group care• About 2/3 go home and most of these within the first 18 months• Age matters in terms of permanency outcomes

Background on the Studies

• Work in Chicago begun in 2002 as part of the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) Student Development Planning Initiative

• Continued as part of broader research program for the Illinois child welfare agency

• Included both quantitative (approx. 5500 foster children in CPS) and qualitative research

• The Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth• Foster youth in 3 states (n = 732) who were in out-of-home care at age

17, had entered care before their 16th birthday, and had been placed in care due to abuse and/or neglect

• Interviews at ages 17-18, 19, and 21

Chicago: Falling Behind Early, Never Catching Up

• Twice as likely as other CPS students to be at least a year old for their grade

• Trauma prior to placement >>> to educational delays• More likely to be retained in school in the year immediately

following placement in care

Special Education: The Most Appropriate Response?

• More likely than other Chicago Public School students to be classified as learning disabled

• More likely to have been placed in special education at least once

• Behavioral problems >>> erroneous labeling of children as emotionally or behaviorally disordered?

• Might remediation of educational deficits be more appropriate, in some cases, than special education?

• Don’t confuse behavior associated with the transition to care with emotional disability

Changes in Placement, Changes in Schools

• School mobility rates highest for those entering care for the first time

• 40% of foster children who moved once and 66% of those who moved twice also switched schools during academic year

• Over 80 percent of children changing schools attended a school within 5 miles of the school they left

Educational Consequences of School Mobility for Children

• Disrupted educational instruction and social relationships

• Delays in transfers of important school records

• Delays in access to important special or supplemental educational services

The Challenge for Caseworkers: Identifying Needs

• Finding an appropriate school

• Securing special services

• Motivating youth to stay in school• Helping prepare for and choose among post-

secondary education options

The Challenge for Caseworkers: Knowing the Schools

• Forming sustained, professional relationships between caseworkers and educators

• Building familiarity with school processes and procedures

The Challenge for Caseworkers: Identifying Needs and Knowing the Schools

• 45% of Illinois foster children had 2+ caseworkers (2003)

• Caseloads distributed among many different schools and districts

• High caseworker turnover

The Midwest Study: Educational Status at Baseline (17-18)

• Enrolled in School: 695 (94.9%)• Type of School:

– High School - 588 (80.3%)– Vocational School - 14 (1.9%)– College - 46 (6.3%)– Other - 47 (6.4%)

• Special Education: 347 (47.3%) Add Health• Repeated a Grade: 272 (37.2%) 21.5%• Out of School Suspension: 489 (66.8%) 27.8% • Expelled from School: 121 (16.5%) 4.6%• Median Grade Equivalent Reading Score (WRAT-3): 7th

Grade

Percentage of Young People Exiting Care at Various Points Up to Wave 2 Interview

0 10 20 30 40 50

Wisconsin

Iowa

Illinois

> 2 years

18 months but < 2years

1 year but < 18months

6 months but < 1year

< 6 months

Exited before 18thbirthday

Educational Attainment at 19

  Total % Still in Care %

No Longer in Care %

No high school diploma/GED

38.2 38.2 36.1

       

Enrolled in school 47.7 66.7 30.8

High school/GED program

15.2 20.9 10.1

Vocational training 8.8 8.5 9.1

2 or 4 year college 23.7 37.2 11.7

   

Receipt of Education-Related Services

Total

Sample Still in Care

No Longer in

Care Educational Support Services Reported Received Since First Interview % % # Career Counseling 23.7 29.8 18.4 Study Skills Training 20.1 26.0 15.0 School to Work Support 19.9 25.1 15.3 GED Preparation 12.1 14.6 10.0 SAT/ACT Preparation 11.6 15.0 8.8 College Application Assistance 27.9 36.2 20.6 Financial Aid/Loan Application Assistance 26.7 35.1 19.3 Attend University/College fair 15.9 21.6 10.9

Predictors of College Enrollment at Age 19

Estimated Effect

Variable on Odds

Caregiver problems 1.25

Delinquency .60

Retained a grade .51

Expects to complete college 1.93

Still in care at 19 2.84

2+ moves .34

2+ moves and still in care 6.36

Housing Mobility, Remaining in Care, and College

Observed Probability of College Enrollment for All Youth

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Low Moves High Moves

Housing Stability

Co

lle

ge

En

roll

me

nt

Not in care

In care

Lessons for Practice with Transition-Age Youth

• Service providers and the courts must take into account that many foster youth are not prepared to make the transition to independence at age 18

• Most young people appear to value and benefit from their connections to the child welfare system

• Educational deficits in high school (old for grade) are strongly related to the educational trajectory

• Externalizing behavior problems affect the educational trajectory…we need to better address emotional/behavioral problems of foster youth

• Aspirations matter (over 70 of youth report wanting to graduate from college and nearly as many expect to do so; no change over time in these aspirations and expectations)

Resources

• Educational Experiences of Children in Out-of-Home Care (2004). Cheryl Smithgall, Robert Matthew Gladden, Eboni Howard, Robert M. Goerge, Mark E. Courtney: http://www.chapinhall.org/article_abstract.aspx?ar=1372

• Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth (2005). Mark E. Courtney, Amy Dworsky, Sherri Terao, Noel Bost, Gretchen Ruth Cusick, Thomas Keller, Judy Havlicek: http://www.chapinhall.org/article_abstract.aspx?ar=1355