EDCO 215, Fall 2011

Getting Former Foster Youth into College: A Group Presentation by

Introduction1)  We can have someone explain about the population we are covering and about the structure  of the foster system (1 person)

Problems Facing Foster Youth

Internal2a) problems faced by foster youth (maybe have two people cover this since there are alot of problems) (2 persons)

Two primary areas:• Education• Health

Problems Facing Foster Youth

Education• Find cool graphic

Health• Find cool graphic

Problems Facing Foster Youth

• Educationo Based on high birth trauma and many life

challenges, 50% of foster youth experience developmental delays, which is 4-5 times more than the rate found among children in the general population.

Problems Facing Foster Youth

• Healtho Former foster youth are found to suffer from post-

traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at 2 times the level of U.S. war veterans.

o 33% of all foster care alumni have no form of health insurance.

o Youth transitioning from foster care have disproportionately high rates of physical, developmental, and mental health problems.

Problems Facing Foster Youth

• Health (cont'd)o Children in foster care are more likely than other

children on Medicaid to have a mental health or substance abuse condition.

o Nearly 50% of foster children suffer from chronic health conditions such as asthma, visual and auditory problems, dental decay and malnutrition.

o 50-60% of children in foster care have moderate to severe mental health problems.

Problems Faced By Foster Youth

External2b) problems faced by foster youth (maybe have two people cover this since there are alot of problems) (2 persons)

consequences of not furthering education

What happens to some former foster youth if they do not pursue a higher education?

•  Unemployment•  Incarceration•  Dependence on public assistance•  Substance abuse•  Non-marital childbirth•  Other high-risk behaviors.

Unemployment

• Nationally, 80% of foster youth did not earn enough to be fully self-supporting 4 years after leaving care

• 45% of California’s emancipated youth are unemployed, 30% are on welfare

• 1/3 of former foster youth have incomes at, or below, $6,000 per year - substantially below the federal poverty level of $10,400 for a single individual. An annual income of $25,693 is needed for a single adult to be self sufficient in San Francisco

• A study compared the outcomes of over 600 former foster youth to those of young adults in the general population and found that 19 year old former foster youth were nearly 3 times more likely than other youth to be out of work and school.

Homelessness

• In California, 65% of youth leaving care do so without a place to live

• In California, 1 in 4 emancipated youth are homeless. Of emancipated youth in the Bay Area, it is estimated up to 44% have experienced homelessness

• Nearly 40% of transitioning youth will be homeless within eighteen months of discharge

• Without housing, youth are less likely to complete their education, find employment, and gain access to health care, all of which jeopardize their ability to make a successful transition to independence

Incarceration

• One shocking statistic best explains how the system has failed them: over 70% of all State Penitentiary inmates have spent time in the foster care system according to the May 12, 2006 Select Committee Hearing of the California Legislature.

• 25% of former foster youth will be incarcerated within two years of their emancipation

Non-Marital Childbirth

• Almost 2/3 of young women formerly in foster care become mothers within 5 years of leaving foster care

• Several studies indicate that girls who emancipate from foster care are almost 3 times more likely than their peers to have a child by the age of 19

• Parents with a history of foster care are almost twice as likely to see their own children placed in foster care

“Seventy-one percent of the young women in the Midwest Study [of former foster youth] reported having been pregnant, and half had been pregnant since their most recent interview. Repeat pregnancies were more the rule than the exception. Among those who had ever been pregnant, 62 percent had been pregnant more than once….Half of the young men in the Midwest Study reported that they had ever gotten a female pregnant….In fact, 38 percent had gotten a female pregnant since their most recent interview. Only one-third of the females and one-fifth of the males had received either family planning services or information about birth control since their last interview.” Mark E. Courtney et al., Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth: Outcomes at Age 21 (Chapin Hall Center for Children 2007).

Non-Marital Childbirth cont.

Substance Abuse

• In 2006, “[n]early half (49.4%) of the young adults [in a sample of former foster youth aged 19-25] indicated having ‘alcohol problems’ according to a screener. In the general population, 15.1 percent of 18 to 25 year olds are defined as heavy drinkers.” Havalchak, et al., Casey Family Programs Young Adult Survey 2006: Examining Outcomes for Young Adults Served in Out-of-Home Care (Casey Family Programs 2007).

• In 2006, “[n]early two in five (38.6%) respondents [in a sample of former foster youth aged 19-25] [were smokers]….40.2 percent of 18 to 25 year olds in the general population smoke cigarettes.” Havalchak, et al.,Casey Family Programs Young Adult Survey 2006: Examining Outcomes for Young Adults Served in Out-of-Home Care 24-25 (Casey Family Programs 2007).

possible solutions to their problems

4) possible solutions to their problems or info about programs that have been effective, (1 person)

Conclusions/Further Study

5) conclusions/further study. (1 person)

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