Improving educational
opportunities for children
in the foster care system

The National Foster Care Coalition (NFCC) and its members strive to build consensus and public will around critical issues facing child welfare. Nationally, an estimated 20,000 to 25,000 young people "age out" of the foster care system every year without a family to support them. These alumni from foster care are less likely to graduate from high school or go to college than their peers not in foster care. It is estimated that as few as 10 percent enroll in a higher education program. In addition, they are often unemployed and when employed, earn, on average, too little to escape poverty.

Through the federally funded Chafee Foster Care Independence Program (CFCIP) and the Chafee Educational and Training Voucher Program (Chafee ETV Program), states are working to improve the outcomes experienced by this vulnerable population of young people and engage them more fully in decision making related to their transition to adult life, economic self–sufficiency, and achievement of educational and career goals.

A New Report:
The Chafee Educational and Training Voucher Program: Six States’ Experiences

This publication from the National Foster Care Coalition, in partnership with
Casey Family Programs, examines how the Chafee educational and training vouchers and other state-based supports for higher education have been working for young adults. NFCC has worked closely with six states to examine the implementation of the Chafee Educational and Training Voucher Program since its inception in 2003. Download a PDF of this report here.

Contact:

Robin Nixon
Executive Director
National Foster Care Coalition
rnixon@nationalfostercare.org

 

To subscribe to our policy alerts, click here.

MEMBER PROJECT PROFILES

Healthy Teen Network Logo

Helping Teens Help Themselves

The Healthy Teen Network recently released, “Helping Teens Help Themselves." Pregnant and parenting teens exiting foster care face the challenge of trying to raise a child, often without a network. Access to supportive housing programs is one way to provide shelter and the social supports necessary for successful transitions. Healthy Teen Network’s blueprint represents a multi-year, multidisciplinary approach to increase supportive housing options for pregnant and parenting teens exiting foster care.