The Children's Aid Society

Aging Out of Foster Care

February 28, 2005

The Children’s Aid Society understands the struggles of teens in foster care, many of whom age out -- reach majority and are no longer required to live in the care of foster parents -- without having acquired the skills and supports needed for a successful transition to independence. In New York(state), youth may remain in foster care until the age of 21. But many choose to leave when they are legally eligible, between the ages 18 and 21. The following is a discussion, first presented at a CAS Roundtable in January, of the comprehensive services CAS is undertaking that would prepare these vulnerable youth for a more productive adulthood.

“Aging out is final and netless. Too often it results in a new batch of freshly aged outers stuck on the streets with nowhere to turn.”
-Linda Rodriguez, former foster child

“As a society, we were, by force of law, the parents of these young people while they were in foster care. We need to see the job through. We would do no less for our own children.”
- Gary Stangler, Director of the Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative, former Director of the Missouri Department of Social Services for over ten years.

The Problem
Each year, approximately 20,000 of the 542,000 children in foster care nationwide are discharged to live on their own. Five percent of these, or approximately 1,100 young adults, are discharged to fend for themselves in New York City. Having reached the age of majority, they are presumed to be productive, self-reliant and fully self-sufficient. We do not have these expectations of adolescents who grow up under the best of circumstances. But we insist that the most vulnerable and disadvantaged young people make the transition alone and unsupported.

Already burdened by their childhood experiences of abuse, neglect or abandonment, these young people leave the foster care system “without the knowledge, skills, experience, attitudes, habits, and relationships that will enable them to be productive and connected members of society.” They are not equipped to find gainful employment. Many have untreated physical and mental health needs, and no health insurance. Most have no housing options. Some have no immigration status. And none have had the benefit of parental role models to transmit the expertise needed to negotiate the trials of living on one’s own.
Without family or any other dependable adults to rely on for assistance, these young people are, not surprisingly, at high risk of homelessness, joblessness, illness, incarceration, welfare dependency, early childbearing, and sexual and physical victimization. According to studies of young people discharged to themselves in different states: 12-30 percent struggled with homelessness; 40-63 percent did not complete high school; 25-55 percent were unemployed; those employed had average earnings below the poverty level, and only 38 percent of those employed were still working after one year; 30-62 percent had trouble accessing health care due to inadequate finances or lack of insurance; 32-40 percent were forced to rely on some form of public assistance and 50 percent experienced extreme financial hardship; 31-42 percent were arrested; 18-26 percent were incarcerated; and 40-60 percent of the young women were pregnant within 12-18 months of leaving foster care.

The White House Task Force on Disadvantaged Youth acknowledged the gravity of the problem in a report recommending, among other things, that public resources be targeted specifically at youth in, and aging out of, foster care:

About 70 percent of [foster youth] are school age, and their school work often suffers for a whole range of reasons [...] They score lower on standardized tests, have higher absentee and tardy rates, are more likely to drop out of school, and are three times more likely to be referred for special education and related services.
Foster youth are also at greater risk for health problems and risk behaviors. Living in foster care before the age of 15 increases the odds of juvenile delinquency. They have a high level of disability. […] [They are also] at greater risk for sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy.

The outlook can be particularly dim for those youth who age out of foster care. Somewhere between 18,000 and 20,000 youth age out of the foster care system annually. They need help with finishing high school or applying to college, getting the health care they need, finding new housing on their own, getting a job, and more. […] Studies of youth who have left foster care have shown they are more likely than those in the general population to not finish high school, be unemployed, and be dependent on public assistance. Many end up in prison, homeless, or as parents at an early age.

The One-Stop Solution: Engaging Youth Through Concrete Services
To make a successful transition from foster care to adulthood and independence, young people need adequate preparation, support and guidance before, during and after discharge from the system. Specifically, they need well-tailored services in the following areas: career counseling and job development, health and mental health care, housing support, educational guidance, legal advocacy, mentoring and practical life skills training. These services must be designed for young adults, ages 14-21, at various stages of development and maturation. They must be offered to young people, age 14 and up, regularly and consistently. Equally important, they must be co-located in one all-purpose center, and offered outside of traditional office hours to accommodate work and school schedules.

The Program Model
The one-stop should offer a constellation of mutually enhancing, well-tailored services in one all-purpose center. These services should include: (1) Career Services consisting of ongoing job counseling and advice; access to innovative job readiness programs, internship and apprenticeship opportunities and a regularly updated listing of job openings; and assistance with resume-writing, job interviewing and professional etiquette. (2) Housing Assistance including apartment and broker listings, and assistance with rental applications as well as Section 8 and ACS housing subsidy applications. (3) Financial Management Training comprising practical instruction in budgeting, banking (including establishing Individual Development Accounts), bill-paying, borrowing and managing debt, and credit. (4) Educational Consulting consisting of guidance counseling; GED and SAT preparation; counseling and support for college-bound high school students as well as college students; and extensive information on scholarships and financial aid. (5) Health Services including eligibility screening for health insurance and information on community-based health care services. (6) Civil legal services including advocacy in the areas of public benefits (e.g., public assistance, Supplemental Security Income and survivor’s benefits), Medicaid, housing and immigration. (7) Hard & Soft Life Skills instruction including introduction to technology, the ins-and-outs of renting an apartment, finding and keeping a job, the basics of nutrition, coping with stress, locating community-based resources, and the like. (8) Mentoring Services including peer mentoring by foster care graduates, job mentors, independent living mentors, and guest mentors. (9) Identification (I.D.) Portfolio Assistance to ensure that all young people leave foster care with a birth certificate, Social Security Number and state-issued I.D.. (10) Counseling and Support Groups dealing with issues such as independent living; bereavement & trauma; relationships; substance use & abuse; sex & sexuality (including GLBTQ issues); and anger management; (11) Parenting & Family Planning Program for young parents as well as those planning to have children. (12) Leadership Training including a youth advisory board for the one-stop center to ensure appropriate, effective and high-quality programming; youth speak-outs; civics instruction; and access to public service opportunities. (13) Access to City-Wide Resources through the publication and dissemination of What’s Poppin’, a newsletter for foster youth (published monthly on the CAS website) which highlights cultural, educational, recreational and vocational programs, events and activities. (14) Recreational and cultural activities including access to organized sports, and creative arts programming.

Conclusion
As a society, we have failed young people aging out of foster care. Their safety and emotional well-being were of paramount concern when they were removed from their parents as younger children. Yet, despite conclusive research showing how vulnerable they are upon discharge from care, these young adults continue to exit the child welfare system to lives of uncertainty, pain, destitution and marginalization.

If we do not focus attention and resources on this relatively small community of young people at this crucial transitional moment in their lives, we will continue to incur exponentially greater costs in the form of wasted potential, welfare dependency, homelessness, child abuse, delinquency, crime, victimization, illness and untold sorrow.
The One-Stop model is a comprehensive and cost-effective way to support foster youth as they prepare for, and enter, adulthood. It focuses resources intensively and preventively, and engages young people with the practical services and interventions that they need. Moreover, the program gives young people the security of knowing there is somewhere they can always turn to for assistance and support as they navigate the trials of living independently.

We are moving to develop this model at The Children’s Aid Society, utilizing and enhancing an array of programs and services already in place. This project joins the extent Legal Services for Former Foster Youth, run by the Society’s Office of Public Policy & Client Advocacy and is staffed by a team of legal advocates working hand-in-hand with the staff at Adoption & Foster Care. As we reach out to our former foster youth now living independently we will invite them back to tell us about their experiences in transition and to use their stories to aid us in developing future programming.