1. Improving Education Outcomes for Court- Involved Youth Jessica Feierman April 10, 2015

2. Website: www.fostercareandeducation.org

3. What Every Child Needs

4. Instability

5. School Instability Attended 5 or more schools Attended 3 or more schools

6. EDUCATION OUTCOMES FOR YOUTH IN CARE  Is the deck stacked against our youth?

7. EDUCATION OUTCOMES FOR YOUTH IN CARE Less than 50% of high school students in care graduate

8. EDUCATION OUTCOMES FOR YOUTH IN CARE

9. College Graduation Rate

10. EDUCATION OUTCOMES FOR YOUTH IN CARE “youth in foster care are 2.5 [to] 3.5 [times] more likely to be receiving special education services than their non foster care peers.” * *National Working Group on Foster Care and Education, Education is the Lifeline for Youth in Care.

11. Making a Change Education was one of the few stabilities I had in my life. My hope would be that a family would fill that role, but for me, it was education. That was the greatest gift. Everything else was taken away from me, but education wasn’t.... It made the difference. NCSL and Excal Consulting Partners LLC. (March 2008) Stuart Foundation Stuart Foundation Video: It Gets Awesome https://vim eo.com/use r9020769/r eview/5196 4222/95331 1af7d%22

12. IMPROVING EDUCATION OUTCOMES Youth in care who are connected to mentors are as likely to graduate than those who are not 3x

13. IMPROVING EDUCATION OUTCOMES Youth who stay in the same placement and school are more likely to graduate 50%

14. IMPROVING EDUCATION EDUCATION OUTCOMES Students who receive SIX months of one- on-one tutoring have a 1.7 grade level increase in reading

15. Blueprint for Change: Education Success for Children in Foster Care  8 Goals for Youth  Benchmarks for each goal indicating progress toward achieving education success  National, State, and Local Examples

16. Goal 1: Remain in the Same School  Innovative Examples: GIS Mapping School-Based Foster Family Recruitment Interagency Transportation Agreements Court Rules

17. Goal 2: Seamless Transitions  Innovative Example: Education Dashboards Specially Trained Liaisons Caseworker Role Specified

18. Goal 3: Young Children Ready to Learn  Prioritize young children in care for Head Start and other early learning programs  Assess young children in care for early intervention  Identify appropriate providers

19. Goal 4: Equal Access  Involvement in extra-curricular activities  Access to academic programs – including gifted and talented special education career and technical education

20. Goal 5: Address Dropout, Truancy, and Discipline  Compassionate Schools  Trauma-Informed Schools  Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports

21. Goal 6: Involving and Empowering Youth  Youth involved in court  Youth plan early and often  Youth at education meetings with supportive adults

22. Goal 7: Supportive Adults as Advocates and Decision-makers  Mentors  Education Decision-Makers Special Education General Education  Advocates  Parents  Foster parents  Liaisons  Teachers

23. Goal 8: Obtaining Postsecondary Education  Higher Education Liaisons  Transition Planning Special and General Education Needs Post-Secondary Counseling College Tours Help with applications and FAFSA Prioritizing youth in care in college prep programs  Tuition Support and Fee Waivers  Campus Housing During Breaks  Campus Support Programs

24. Resources:

25. Legal Center Database

26. Conclusion

27. Contact Jessica Feierman Juvenile Law Center 1315 Walnut Street, Suite 400 Philadelphia, PA 19107 (215) 625-0551 ext 116 jfeierman@jlc.org Legal Center for Foster Care and Education ccleducation@americanbar.org http://www.fostercareandeducation.org/