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Foster Youth Who Have Succeeded in Higher Education: Common Themes

Little was known regarding the numbers of young people with disabilities served in foster care and the barriers such youth face in education and the transition to adulthood until the recent report by the National Council on Disability (NCD; 2008). It sheds light on the poor education and employment outcomes and other indicators of well-being for youth with disabilities in foster care. The NCD estimates that youth with disabilities are between 1.5 and 3.5 times more likely to have experienced abuse or neglect than youth without disabilities. In addition, children born with disabilities more frequently become part of state child welfare systems. There are over 500,000 foster youth in the U.S. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 2006). According to Yu, Day, and Williams (2002), in school, these young people are more likely than non-foster children to perform below grade level, score lower on state-wide achievement tests, repeat one or more grades, have high rates of absenteeism and tardiness, and drop out of school. About 20,000 young adults age out of state foster care systems annually (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 2006). Like many youth with disabilities, youth transitioning out of foster care tend to have very poor postsecondary education and training enrollment and completion outcomes (NCD, 2008). They are less likely to take college preparatory courses; have access to special programs, advanced placement courses, and extracurricular activities; and pursue postsecondary education. However, with 70% of youth in foster care reporting a strong desire to go to college (Martin, 2003), the barriers to college access and success facing these students need to be better understood and addressed by policymakers and practitioners alike. All young people, including foster youth and youth with disabilities, can succeed academically given adequate support and advocacy from educators, professionals, and their caregivers. Casey Family Programs (www.casey.org), a Seattle-based national operating foundation that has served children, youth, and families in the child welfare system since 1966, interviewed eight former foster youth who recently graduated from college. With only about 3% of former foster youth earning a college degree (Pecora et al., 2005), these eight students had clearly beaten the odds. Their perspectives on going to college and obtaining a degree despite numerous barriers presents an opportunity learn how other young adults like them might be better supported. All were beneficiaries of the Casey Family Programs college scholarship program and supported by the Orphan Foundation of America (www. orphan.org). Of the eight students interviewed, five were female and three were male. Four were African American, two were Caucasian, one was Asian American, National Center on Secondary Education and Transition