Foster care is failing.

• Author: Lips, Dan
• Position: Education of at risk youth and foster children

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THE ESTIMATED 518,000 children currently in foster care are among the most at-risk youngsters in American society. Research shows that adults who formerly were in foster care are more likely than the general population to succumb to poor life outcomes. For foster kids, one major obstacle is the difficult transition out of state care into adulthood. Education is a key factor in determining whether a foster child successfully makes this transition. Regrettably, many do not. Compared to their peers, foster children have lower scores on standardized tests and higher absenteeism, tardiness, truancy, and dropout rates.

Policymakers should improve educational opportunities for children in foster care. One promising reform is to provide them with school choice options. For example, offering tuition scholarships could address common problems such as instability and persistent low expectations, as well as encourage schools to tailor educational services to meet these youngsters' unique needs.

In 2006, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano signed the nation's first K-12 tuition scholarship program for foster children. This year, similar legislation was introduced by Florida, Maryland, Tennessee, and Texas. Understanding the need to improve educational opportunities for children in foster care begins by understanding the system itself. The Code of Federal Regulations defines foster care as "24-hour substitute care for children placed away from their parents or guardians." For a variety of reasons, those in foster care have been removed from the homes of their birth families and placed under state care. Some ultimately are returned to their birth families or placed for adoption. Others end up in long-term foster care.

Nationally, roughly half of all foster kids will spend at least one year in foster care, with 20% staying longer than three years and nine percent more than five years. Unlike their peers in traditional families, many foster children do not have an adequate safety net or social network; they cannot rely on parents or other relatives to facilitate a smooth transition out of the home and into adulthood.

Adults who formerly were in foster care are more likely than the general population to be homeless, unprepared for employment, limited to low-skill jobs, dependent on welfare or Medicaid, and convicted of crimes and incarcerated, as well as to succumb to drug and alcohol abuse, or have poor physical or mental health. Women who have been in foster care experience higher rates of early pregnancy and are more likely to see their own children placed in foster care.

Problems start early

The difficulties begin early for many foster children. For example, in Washington state public schools, youngsters placed in foster care score 16-20% below nonfoster children on standardized state tests. These results are consistent with national trends. For instance, the National Conference of State Legislatures reports that foster children have "high rates of grade retention; lower scores on standardized tests; and higher absenteeism, tardiness, truancy, and dropout rates" when compared to the general population. The American School Board Journal confirms that "foster children often repeat a grade and are twice as likely as the rest of the population to drop out before graduation.... Almost all of the reviewed studies of those who were in out-of-home care reveal that the subject's average level of educational attainment...