Better Outcomes for Young People January 28, 2016 Allegheny County

Agenda Overview - Jim Casey Initiative Opportunity Passport TM Outcomes Policy The Future

What We Do Our Desired Result All youth aging out of foster care have permanent connections and advancing on a path to well-being and healthy development. Our Desired Result All youth aging out of foster care have permanent connections and advancing on a path to well-being and healthy development.  The Jim Casey Initiative works nationally to ensure that young people, ages 14 to 25, make successful transitions from foster care to adulthood.  The transition to adulthood is not simple for any young person and challenging for young people who grow up in foster care. Overall well- being is critical: Social and Emotional Economic Intellectual Health and Safety

3 A Rock-Solid Adulthood

Close to 23,000 young people transition from foster care each year Homelessness: More than one in five young people leaving foster care will become homeless after age 18. School Dropout: Only 58% of young people leaving foster care will graduate high school by age 19 (compared to 87% of all 19-year-olds). Unemployment: Only half of young people leaving foster care will be employed by age 24. College: Fewer than 3% of young people leaving foster care will have a college degree by age 25 (compared to 28% of all 25-year-olds). Incarceration: One in four young people leaving foster care will have contact with the justice system within two years of leaving the child welfare system. Adolescent pregnancy: 71% of women are pregnant before age 21 (62% more than once) (compared to 33% of all 21-year-old women). Why We Do this Work - Young People in Foster Care

How We Do the Work A set of STRATEGIES and ACTIVITIES help create the conditions necessary in a community to improve outcomes for young people transitioning from foster care. Improved POLICY and PRACTICE will promote timely permanence and increase opportunities for young people. When systems are effectively supporting young people throughout their transition, they will have IMPROVED OUTCOMES.

Doing What Works STRATEGIES Youth engagement Partnerships and resources Research, evaluation, and communications Public will and policy Increased opportunities for young people OUTCOMES Permanence Education Employment Financial Capability Housing Physical & Mental Health Social Capital

Where We Are Arizona Connecticut Florida Georgia Hawai’i Indiana Iowa Maine Michigan Mississippi Nebraska New Mexico North Carolina Ohio Pennsylvania Rhode Island Tennessee

Opportunity Passport TM Benefits The critical “hook” that attracts youth, and provides an organizing tool for the youth leadership and community partnership boards Financial Education Personal Bank Account Matched Savings Participants must first complete financial education curriculum – Keys to Your Financial Future Participants may withdraw their money at any time, but savings is matched only for approved asset purchases Eligibility is for year olds placed in the public child welfare foster care system at or after the age of 14 The data element Youth enrolled complete a baseline upon enrollment and a bi-annual survey providing AECF and the field at-large with a wealth of information on older youth – information that does not exist anywhere else.

Opportunity Passport TM Purchases as of December, ,897 Participants 3,225 young people purchased 7,170 assets Total dollars matched were = $5,637,091 Total dollars spent (saved + matched) = $10,182,850 Data are based on asset purchases made by Opportunity Passport™ participants in the program since inception.

Asset Purchasers Fare Better Data are based on asset purchase history and survey responses of participants who took an Opportunity Passport™ Participant Survey between July 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015.

Most Vulnerable Purchase at Similar or Higher Rates as Other Young People Data are based on asset purchase history of participants who took an Opportunity Passport™ Participant Survey between July 1, 2015 and December 31, Parents No Permanent Connection Ever Been Homeless 4+ Congregate Care Placements All Participants

Social & Emotional Wellbeing – Adult relationships are associated with financial capability Data are based on survey responses by participants who took an Opportunity Passport™ Participant Survey between July 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015.

Sustainability of the work relies on partnerships with other philanthropies and government funding streams. The advantages are:  get data tracking progress, facilitating program planning and priority-setting  don't have to invest in building a data system: we have done that and local partners receive local and national data after each survey  focus on specific outcome measures  determine which priorities or activities best match your funding preferences Importance of community and local support to understand and advocate on the issue. The contribution of AECF is over $300,000/year, but it takes financial support for the local services, supports, and staffing as well. Our Co-Investment Approach

To Improve Outcomes for All Young People, We Improve National, State and County Policy & Practice  State and local system improvements for young people– changes in policy, programming and practice that sites including young people have made based on their own identified needs:  Extending foster care to 21  Youth Rights legislation  Visitation and placement with siblings  Tuition waivers for higher education  Federal improvements - sweeping legislation passed by federal government that aims to promote more normal and developmentally appropriate experiences for children and young people in foster care.  Many new requirements for states require policy changes  We provided public policy mini-grants to nine sites to spur their implementation efforts  Other system improvement strategies  Release of a policy brief and webinar series to educate the field on the importance of promoting normalcy opportunities for young people

Moving to the Future The Jim Casey Initiative embedded in AECF sustains an effective initiative, positions us to address challenges, and seizes new opportunities for growth and maximizing resources Key Priorities Implementation of normalcy standards through the Strengthening Families Act Race Equity and Inclusion Focus Support to Young Parents Sustainability