8. Youth in Transition to Adulthood
To ensure that the 20,000 young people aging out of foster care each year overcome the obstacles their neglect, abuse, and stays in state custody have caused, they must be assured the support and opportunities to succeed that other youth have. [i] Tragically, many of these young people experience a range of negative outcomes as they transition from state custody to adulthood – outcomes that impact their lifelong health, well-being, productivity, and contribution to society.
With educational achievement and opportunities lagging behind their peers, many young people leave foster care poorly prepared to succeed. A third of youth in foster care do not complete their high school degree. At age 19, only 18 percent of foster youth are pursuing a four-year degree, compared to 62 percent of their 19-year-old peers. [ii] By their mid-twenties, about the same percentage of foster care alumni have obtained a high school degree as the general population, but most opt for a GED, a decision associated with fewer opportunities to obtain an advanced degree or generate equivalent income. [iii] At age 25, less than three percent of foster care alumni in one study had completed a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 24 percent of the general population. [iv]
Youth transitioning to adulthood from foster care take many personal problems with them. One-third of 19 year old foster care alumni suffer from depression, dysthymia, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), social phobia, alcohol abuse, alcohol dependence, substance abuse, or substance dependence. [v] At the same time, one-third of young adults leaving foster care have no health insurance, a rate nearly double that of 18 to 44 year olds nationwide. [vi]
Studies of young adult foster care alumni reveal that in addition to health care needs, these young people face significant economic hardships. More than one in five alumni experiences homelessness after leaving foster care. [vii] A quarter of them are categorized as food insecure on a composite measure of food security. Of those who reported any income from employment during the past year, more than three-quarters earned less than $5,000, and 90 percent earned less than $10,000. [viii]
The Fostering Connections legislation requires child welfare caseworkers to help youth make this transition to adulthood by working with the youth to develop a “personal transition plan” during the 90 day period immediately before they leave foster care. The plan must include specific options for housing, health insurance, education, local opportunities for mentoring, continuing support services, workforce supports and employment services. This requirement can help youth develop a more planful approach to transition from foster care, and can be supported by the following policy actions to help meet the permanency, health, education, and housing needs of youth aging out of foster care .
Specific state policy options are presented for each of the following areas:
8.1 Foster care extended past age 18
8.2 Method of continuing participation in foster care after age 18
8.3 Permanent connectionto committed adults
8.7 Employment readiness/assistance
[i] Coutney, M. “Youth Aging Out of Foster Care.” Network on Transitions to Adulthood, Policy Brief . April 2005 (19). http://www.transad.pop.upenn.edu/downloads/courtney--foster%20care.pdf
[ii] Courtney, Mark E. and Dworsky, Amy. 2005. Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth: Outcomes at Age 19. Chapin Hall Center for Children: Chicago, IL.
[iii] Pecora, Peter; Kessler, Ronald C.; Williams, Jason; O’Brien, Kirk; Downs, A. Chris; English, Diane; White, James; Hiripi, Eva; White, Catherine Roller; Wiggins, Tamara; and Holmes, Kate. 2005. Improving Family Foster Care: Findings from the Northwest Foster Care Alumni Survey. Casey Family Programs: Seattle, WA.
[iv] Pecora,et al.
[v] Courtney and Dworsky.
[vi] Pecora, et al.
[vii] Ibid.
[viii] Courtney and Dworsky.