Post-Secondary Supports

Initiative Policy Goal 

Provide supports to enhance post-secondary educational success (e.g., tutoring, support services, books, computers, school supplies, Education and Training Vouchers, housing, financial advising)

Issue Definition

Despite their aspirations, young people in foster care face myriad academic, economic, and social barriers that affect their chances for pursuing and completing higher education.  A college degree or diploma from an accredited vocational program is equally important to young people who transition from foster care as it is to young adults who have not experienced the challenges associated with foster care.  Various studies have shown that a combination of unique factors contributes to lower rates of college attendance and completion for this population in comparison to their peers including:

• a lack of financial support from family to help pay for college including tuition and the range of education-related costs (e.g. books, supplies);
• history of educational instability resulting in missed educational benchmarks;
• low educational expectations from caregivers;
• a lack of encouragement and guidance toward pursuing this goal;
• a lack of assistance navigating the complicated application and financial aid processes;
• being unprepared for the academic demands often related to not being tracked into college preparatory classes in high school;
• a lack of emotional support from family members to manage living independently or provide housing year-round and/or during school breaks; 
• a lack of awareness of financial aid resources available;
• demands of being a single parent often coupled with lack of child care;
• mental health problems that may be untreated if health care is discontinued at discharge; and
• disparate enforcement of school rules and regulations resulting higher rates of suspension and expulsion.    

States that waive tuition and fees for young people with foster care experiences provide a policy framework that is conducive for postsecondary success, but supplementary supports are also needed.  Young people that have experienced foster care often do not have a network of support to help them overcome challenges associated with academic life, interdependent living and responsible adult citizenship. 

In order to successfully complete post-secondary education young people must responsibly manage their education, finances, health care, transportation, housing and daily living needs. This is particularly difficult for young people formerly in foster care without the kind of support that can come from a caring, committed family or family-like relationship. For instance, many young people who have experienced foster care have difficulty meeting their basic needs while enrolled in post-secondary education.  When large sums of student loans are offered to them, it is easy for a young adult without any guidance or financial experience to accumulate extensive debt even when their tuition is waived. This can lead to a multitude of challenges later in life regardless of whether they complete their post-secondary degree.

Young people need a variety of supports in order to ensure they enroll and complete post-secondary schooling, everything from help paying for books and school supplies, to having adults and peers in their life who are there to provide support, guidance, encouragement and understanding.  As one young woman from California stated, "I know with my mentor's support and my determination that I will obtain my high school diploma and graduate from a four-year university with a degree in social work."

Status

To help young people currently or formerly in foster care address the barriers to accessing post-secondary education, programs have been established by the federal government, states and private organizations.  Education and Training Vouchers (ETVs) are provided through the John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence Program. This program allows states to provide vouchers of up to $5,000 per year for post- secondary education and training for each eligible young person.  Young people 16 years or older who were adopted from foster care or who enter into a legal guardianship with a relative are eligible for ETVs.  ETVs can be used to pay for tuition as well as other education-related costs including:

• Associated fees and other equipment or materials required of all students in the same course of study
• Books, supplies and an allowance for transportation costs and miscellaneous personal expenses, including computers
• Room and board (which may vary depending on whether the student lives at home, in student-housing or an apartment)
• Child care expenses for a student who is a parent
• Accommodations related to a student's disability, such as a personal assistant or specialized equipment that is not paid for by another source
• Expenses related to a young person's work experience in a cooperative education program
• Student loan fees or insurance premiums on the student loan

Ideally, states utilize tuition waivers so that ETVs can be used for the many other expenses related to attending school (see related policy goal on tuition waivers).  Unfortunately, some states subtract ETV money from the tuition waiver amount, requiring young people to find other resources to cover room and board, books and supplies, etc.  Furthermore, states have limited ETV funds that can be used by any single student so that partial assistance can be made available to the entire class of applicants. Since the ETV program began, the federal money allocated has not increased yet the number of young people eligible for ETVs has grown dramatically. This has led states to either limit the number of young people receiving ETVs or to limit the maximum amount per student to less than the federal limit of $5,000.   However, in addition to ETV funds, some states specifically offer financial support for education-relation costs such as fees, computers, housing, books, supplies, etc.

A growing number of programs such as the Guardian Scholars program, described in the resources section below, are offered at postsecondary institutions to help address the nonfinancial supports necessary for young people making the transition out of foster care. These programs provide a continuum of support to young people on campus such as tutoring and academic support services, comprehensive social/emotional support services, and housing assistance.  Some programs also address the institutional factors related to graduating students with diverse backgrounds, such as young people who have experienced foster care, by preparing student services personnel to address the unique needs of these populations. Descriptions of programs supporting college-readiness and success, including some campus based programs, can be found in publications by The American Youth Policy Forum, The American Bar Association’s Legal Center for Foster Care and Education, and Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago and are listed in the resources section below.

Another promising approach that is being successfully implemented in Michigan and in other states involves the child welfare agency hiring education planners whose sole purpose is to support young people that have experienced foster care complete all steps and actions needed to get into post-secondary school.  Education planners help young people apply to and visit prospective schools, complete the financial aid forms and maximize the resources available to them -- support that most young people receive from their parents.  As one young man in Michigan stated, “Without [the education planner] being there, I would have taken one look at all that paperwork and said, 'Whoa!' That can really turn people off from going to college. But she helped me with all of it. Now it doesn't seem so bad."

One component of the Jim Casey Youth Opportunity Initiative’s Opportunity Passport^TM is an Individual Development Account (IDA) that allows young people to purchase assets, including supports for education, vehicles and housing. Young people often use the matched savings to cover education expenses that other sources will not support. However, just as importantly, young people use their savings for the purchase of vehicles and apartment deposits. Reliable transportation and stable housing are also critical supports that young people need in order to attend and complete post-secondary education, and areas for which most parents provide support to their college students. For more information on how matched savings accounts can support young people transitioning from foster care, see policy goal on IDAs.   

Related Resources

American Bar Association’s Legal Center for Foster Care and Education

Blueprint for Change: Education Success for Children in Foster Care (2007) pp. 41-46.  www.abanet.org/child/education/

American Youth Policy Forum

Hooker, S., Brand, B., (2009) Success at Every Step: How 23 Programs Support Youth on the Path to College and Beyond.    www.aypf.org

Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago

Dworsky, A., & P´erez, A., (2009). Helping Former Foster Youth Graduate from College: Campus Support Programs in California and Washington State. www.chapinhall.org/research/report/helping-former-foster-youth-graduate-college

Guardian Scholars Program

The Guardian Scholars is a nationally-recognized program that provides financial assistance to college-bound students exiting the foster care system. It is a comprehensive program assisting in their development and equipping them with the educational and interpersonal skills necessary to become self-supporting, community leaders, role models, and competent professionals in their selected fields. The Guardian Scholars program is offered at 20 colleges in California, Washington, Colorado, Indiana, and Massachusetts.  www.fullerton.edu/guardianscholars

John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence Program (CFCIP)

The Educational and Training Vouchers Program (ETV) for Youths Aging out of Foster Care was added to the CFCIP in 2002. ETV provides resources specifically to meet the education and training needs of young people aging out of foster care. In addition to the existing authorization of $140 million for the CFCIP program, the law authorizes $60 million for payments to States and Tribes for post-secondary educational and training vouchers for young people likely to experience difficulty as they transition to adulthood after the age of 18. This program makes available vouchers of up to $5,000 per year per young person for post-secondary education and training for eligible young people.    www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/programs_fund/state_tribal/jh_chafee

Orphan Foundation of America (OFA)

OFA is the largest national nonprofit organization dedicated entirely to helping young people formerly in foster care obtain the academic and technical skills and competencies needed to thrive in today’s economy. OFA provides scholarship and grant money to former foster students in colleges and specialized training programs across the country. www.orphan.org

References

Dworsky, A., & Perez, A., (2009). Helping Former Foster Youth Graduate from College: Campus Support Programs in California and Washington State. Chicago: Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago.

Wald, M. & Martinez, T. (2003) Connected by 25: Improving the Life Chances of the Country’s Most Vulnerable 14-25 Year Olds. Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA .

Wolanin, T.R., (2005). Higher Education Opportunities for Foster Youth: A Primer for Policymakers. Washington, D.C.,: Institute for Higher Education Policy.