A youth in care applies to any youth that is currently in foster care, or has been placed in an OCFS facility. This information also applies to older youth who have been adopted from the child welfare system after age 16.

2. How many youth in care graduate from high school?

Research shows that 50 percent of youth in foster care complete high school. The high school graduation rate in New York State is 69% in 2007 and New York City is 52%.

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3. How many youth in care receive a General Equivalency Diploma (GED) versus a high school diploma?

Youth in foster care were five times more likely than the general population to have received a general equivalency diploma (GED) instead of a high school diploma according to a survey of alumni of foster care.

4. What are some postsecondary education statistics related to youth in foster care?

Seventy percent of youth in foster care describe wanting to attend to college, however studies show that between 7- 13% percent of college-qualified youth in foster care attend postsecondary education compared to 60 percent of youth not in care.

Nationally, there are approximately 300,000 of these youth in foster care between the ages of 18 and 25, the prime college-going years. About 150,000 of these youth in foster care have graduated from high school and are college qualified. Of these college-qualified youth in foster care about 30,000 are attending postsecondary education. 1 in every 5 foster youth are entering college. If youth in foster care completed high school and attended postsecondary education at the same rate as their peers, nearly 100,000 additional youth in foster care in the 18 to 25-year-old age group would be attending higher education.

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5. How many youth in foster care attend vocational training?

Approximately 7-13% of youth in foster care enroll in post-secondary education and vocational training or training programs immediately after aging out/emancipating from care.

6. How many youth in foster care complete a Bachelors degree?

A Casey Family Programs study found that only 2% of youth from foster care received a compared to the 24% rate for the general population

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7. What are some of the unique challenges that youth in foster care face?

Youth in foster care are more likely to experience higher rates of special education enrollment, school interruptions, placement disruptions, low reading ability and poor grades—all factors that severely limit postsecondary access and success.

Many youth in foster care are diagnosed with serious mental or emotional conditions that significantly compromise their ability to be successful in school.

Unlike many college students, most youth from care will have to work full time in order to survive since they do not have a safety net of parental support to fall back on. It is difficult for these youth to make long-term plans since their lives have been so unstable, especially since others have controlled the lives of youth from care for a long time.

Some youth have difficulty being self-sufficient, acquiring and maintaining employment, finding adequate transportation, balancing work and school, budgeting their time and money, and putting into play other basic life skills.

Financial aid forms are an added barrier to these youth especially because the youth may often lack a permanent address or contact information, as well as access to a phone. The quantity of forms is also overwhelming for most youth, who are often given no personal guidance in how to fill them out. Youth from foster care may be frequently intimidated by the financial aid process and are hesitant to ask for help. Many youth in foster care in college lack a permanent home or a caring adult resource, and they find themselves homeless during college breaks including the summer and holidays.

Some youth in foster care are traumatized for a third time by the treatment they receive while in the foster care system—frequent changes in foster care placements that disrupt relationships with adults, peers, and schools; inadequate services and supervision from child welfare agencies and courts; and additional maltreatment.

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8. What are some of the results of a study of over 700 foster care alumni from the Midwest?

40-60% of young women were pregnant within a year to a year and a half of leaving foster care. 18% had been homeless at least once since exiting care and more than half of these young adults had been homeless more than once.

www.chapinhall.org/article_abstract.aspx?ar=1355&L2=61&L3=130

9. What are the income expectations of postsecondary education or career training?

In 2004, men with an associate’s degree had median annual incomes $8,000 higher than men with high school degrees only. Women with a bachelors’ degree outpaced women with high school degrees by $16,000 annually.

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10. What are the benefits of attending postsecondary education?

Increased education is correlated with better job satisfaction and mobility, lower likelihood of disability status, and longer tenure. Better health is associated with a college education. Graduates are less likely to engage in unhealthy behaviors, such as smoking. Furthermore, they are more likely to have jobs that provide health insurance. College graduates are also less likely to have experienced teen pregnancy or incarceration. The incarceration rate for adults with at least some postsecondary education is about a quarter of that for individuals whose highest educational attainment is a high school diploma. Higher education leads to greater career opportunities thus creating more stability for youth and ultimately, greater self-sufficiency.

11. What are the benefits of vocational training?

The tuition of these vocational or career training programs is generally less expensive than four year programs and trains youth for various employment opportunities. One of the variables that predicted success in a National Casey Alumni Study was enrollment in a college or a job training program. Education is the leading indicator of youth development and self-sufficiency. Investing in education could save the state money in potential social services, such as public assistance, and incarceration.

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12. What are the statistics regarding youth of color in care?

African-American children enter foster care at the fastest rate yet are the slowest demographic to be adopted or returned to their parent. The Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care further summarized the situation in their 2004 report:

13. What scholarship and tuition waiver programs are available in other states?

States allow eligible youth in care to qualify for free tuition at a public university or college, community college or technical school.

State	Tuition Assistance Program
AK, FL, KS, KY, MD, ME, MN, NJ, OK, TX, WV	Waive tuition to a public university or college, community college or technical school
CT, NC	Waive tuition to a public or private university or college, community college or technical school, includes room and board
AL, CA, DE, GE, HI, ID, IL, IO, LA, MI, MO, MS, NM, NV, OR, RI, SD, TN, UT, WA, WI,	Scholarship solely for youth in foster care. Award amounts vary from $1,000 to $10,000
SC	Scholarship with priority to foster care youth
CA, IL, VA	Waives tuition for community college within the state

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14. How many youth in foster care are between the ages of 18-20 in New York State?

In 2007 there was almost 6,000 youth between the ages of 18-20 in foster care. Almost 3,000 youth between the ages of 18 -20 were discharged from care.

15. What is the Educational Training Vouchers (ETV) Program?

An Educational Training Vouchers is a stipend up to $5000 available to youth in foster care who are attending an accredited postsecondary or vocational training program. Visit www.statevoucher.org for application information. Over the past 4 years New York State has funded approximately 800 youth per year in the ETV program.

During the 2007 academic year 633 youth in foster care from New York City received Educational Training Vouchers.

For more College Specific or Financial Aid forms visit the College terms 101 section of the Education Resource guide. (Link)

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16. What is the General Equivalency Diploma(GED)?

The General Equivalency Diploma is a diploma that you can earn by passing the GED test instead of receiving their high school diploma. The test has five sections reading, writing, math, science and social studies. Various community colleges and nonprofit organizations across the state offer free GED preparation classes. Be weary of any colleges that require payment for a GED preparation class. Some of these programs include: The CUNY Adult Literacy/GED Program, College Now.

17. What is an Accredited Institution?

Accreditation is the recognition that an institution maintains standards requisite for its graduates to gain admission to other reputable institutions of higher learning or to achieve credentials for professional practice. The goal of accreditation is to ensure that education provided by institutions of higher education meets acceptable levels of quality.

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18. Can the institutional accreditation system be used to determine whether my credit hours will transfer or what courses will satisfy my professional license renewal?

Accreditation does not provide automatic acceptance by an institution of credit earned at another institution, but without accreditation most other colleges will not accept these transfer credits.

Learn more about accreditation at the Office of Postsecondary Institutions and Programs http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation

19. How can I know if my college or vocational program is accredited?

At the College Navigator website, you can write the name of the college and see if the school is accredited. This website will also give you information regarding how much financial aid students usually receive at this institution. http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cool/

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20. Can I still go to college or vocational programs if I have special education needs?

Yes, many colleges and vocational programs have an office dedicated to working with students with special education needs. There are also free career training programs offered through New York State known as VESID, vocational and educational services for individuals with disabilities. For more information visit http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/

21. What is an IEP diploma?

The New York State Education Department has ruled that an IEP diploma is different from a high school diploma in that it is not an indication of successful completion of high school study.

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22. Can I still attend college if I have an IEP diploma?

Each college has its own admissions criteria, but some community colleges do accept students with an IEP diploma. However, most universities or colleges prefer students to have a regent’s high school diploma. Please contact your local community college admissions coordinator to learn more. For example Clinton Community College in Plattsburgh, NY does accept students with an IEP diploma. http://www.clintoncc.suny.edu/Admissions/iepdiploma.cxml

For a guide to Special Education, please visit the Advocates for Children’s Website, or in New York City you can call the Education Hotline at 1-866-427-6033. http://www.advocatesforchildren.org