Educational issues face youth aging out of foster care

Inadequate coordination exists between schools and child welfare system.

by Brian Armstead

One key population for dropout prevention in Philadelphia is the almost 2,900 adolescents – 14 years old and older – in the custody of Philadelphia's Department of Human Services (DHS).

According to a 2003 study by the Vera Institute of Justice, youth in foster care are as much as twice as likely to drop out of school as other teens.

They often face instability in their home or placement and school lives in addition to the stresses of the abuse or neglect that got them involved in the child welfare system in the first place.

“We [the child welfare system and the school system] need to work more closely together to meet the special needs of kids in foster care...It's just a big system and these kids get lost,” said Happi Grillon, Director of Placement Services at Youth Services Incorporated. “Things work better at the elementary and middle school levels but at high school it's harder because [the schools] are so big.”

Multiple factors may get in the way of providing adequate attention to their education. Child advocates point to the lack of priority given by the child welfare system to students' educational progress, to poor coordination between the major systems that have responsibility for them, to a lack of continuing and supportive adult relationships while in care, and to a lack of connection with a significant caregiver or supporter once they leave foster care.

About 500 of Philadelphia foster care youth “age out” of dependent care each year, meaning they have reached the age when they can legally be in charge of their own lives and DHS no longer has custody. For most youth, this critical transition occurs when they turn 18, at which point they may or may not have completed school.

Data are available on the total numbers of children that are or have been in DHS custody, but not on how those in Philadelphia's foster care system are doing academically. The education and child welfare systems do not communicate and share information about these students.

But there are valuable studies of youth in foster care from around the country. When compared to the general population, children in foster care have lower literacy and numeracy rates, are less likely to be performing at grade level, and are placed in special education classes at higher rates. Foster youth also face a higher risk of grade retention, are suspended at twice the rate of other students, and are nearly four times as likely to be expelled from school.

Undiagnosed or untreated mental health disorders also limit these students' educational progress.

In a study conducted by Casey Family Programs, over half of their foster care alumni have one or more mental health disorders. The same study found that over 25 percent suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), nearly twice the rate of PTSD in U.S. war veterans. Major depression and social phobia are also very common.

Youth in out-of-home placement also change schools frequently. The Casey study found that 65 percent of the alumni changed schools seven or more times from elementary through high school.