There are hundreds of children in foster care that will turn 18 this year. Some of them will choose to “age out” of the state system. Some of them will choose to re-commit into the state’s care until they are 21.
In the first of a four part series on children “Aging Out” of the system, WFPL’s Stephanie Sanders describes their choices and how children’s advocates and legislators are trying to make their decision easier.
WFPL’s “Aging Out” series is made possible in part by a grant from the Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative and the Annie E. Casey Foundation in partnership with Kentucky Educational Television.
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There are currently more than 6,000 youth in Kentucky’s foster care system. Six hundred fifty of those will turn 18 this year. Each of those young adults will face a decision that will change their lives. The day they turn 18, they are free to leave the system and try to make it on their own, or stay with the state and receive aid until they are 21.
Maria Price is with the Coalition for the Homeless. She says that even with the possibility of three more years of state assistance, many 18-year-olds just want out of the system.
“I can imagine the great hope is that ‘I’ve got it together… I’ve got the answers…I’m grown… I’m an adult… I can make my own decisions. I am really tired of checkin’ in with a social worker.’ So I think that’s probably part of the scenario…which is very typical of any 18-year-old.”
But price says anywhere from 35 to 50 percent of those who choose to age out at 18 are homeless within a year of that decision.
She adds one reason that people may choose to opt out of state assistance is because of a stipulation regarding education. If an 18-year-old decides to stay in the system, the state requires them to continue their education. State funds will pay for tuition, books, housing, and living expenses if the young adult agrees to some form of continued education.
Price says that education can be in the form of a four-year university program. But it can also be at a technical school or other specialized training.
While the opportunity may seem like a dream to some teenagers, Price says to others it’s a nightmare.
“Certainly there are many young people who can’t imagine furthering their education… getting a high school diploma was difficult. A GED is a challenge. And so…that stipulation, even though the state feels it’s broad…that they’re not asking people to get a four-year college degree…it can be vocational education…it still might feel onerous to some of the young people. And something they couldn’t do or they’re not interested in doing.”
So for those who choose to leave state assistance, Price’s organization has advocated two pieces of legislation to help.
Part of the mission of the coalition for the homeless is to target youth aging out of foster care and help them find and afford housing. In 2004, a bill was introduced in the Kentucky General Assembly that would start pilot programs in Louisville and another rural area to help fight homelessness among aged-out teenagers.
House Bill 376 was supported by both the house and senate, but in its failure to pass a state budget, the assembly also failed to allocate funding for the program. One year later, the pilot program received $100,000.
However, the program focuses on more than one group. It also aids those who have recently left mental care facilities and prison.
Another bill…House Bill 186…is specifically tailored to bring aid to teenagers who have aged out of foster care. Under current state law, a person who chooses to leave state care can choose to return up to six months after leaving. Several advocacy groups and legislators are working to ext/files/storyimages/that time frame to two years. The bill passed unanimously in the house, but stalled in the senate.
Louisville representative Joni Jenkins is the sponsor of the bill…
“The most important thing is putting a dollar amount on it…”
Jenkins says the bill didn’t fail last session because of lack of support…she says the budget was simply passed too late and the estimate for how much the program would cost was unknown.
Jenkins adds that while the cabinet for health and family services may support the bill, they simply don’t have the money to fund it. However, in the next session Jenkins hopes all the pieces of the puzzle will fall into place.
“…and then of course next session we’ll have to do a budget. And looking within that budget… and the priority of things that the cabinet has to do to… where would that fit in? So not only do you need to pass the enabling legislation, you have to be able to account for it in the budget.”
Jenkins says the initial step may be to plan a pilot program that would only affect small areas. While she says it seems unfair, it would be the only way to accurately measure how much the program would eventually cost the state.
However, no matter what the cost to the state, Jenkins thinks the program would eventually benefit the state as well as the individual.
“I do think there is a tr/files/storyimages/in the legislature to look at these types of issues and say ‘okay, this costs us a little money up front, but what are we saving down the road? If we keep someone between the age of 18 and 20, from falling so hard on hard times that they can’t ever get up…what does that save us in the long run? That they’re not on public assistance, that they’re able to work and pay taxes and all those things.”
While many advocates say it would be a step in the right direction, one man says it would take a lot more for House Bill 186 to be successful. Bart Baldwin represents the Children’s Alliance of Kentucky. Baldwin says extending the time for a young person to go back to the state after aging out is essential to their success. However, he adds additional federal funding is needed to accommodate the growing clientele.
Currently, each state gets federal money called Chafee Funding. Named after the senator who sponsored the bill, Chafee Funding is available to 18-year-olds who have opted out of the foster program. Only 30 percent of the state’s Chafee money can be spent on housing…creating only 80 available apartments. Last year, 150 youth recommitted to the state…nearly twice as many for which the Chafee funding can provide housing.
Baldwin says that will become a bigger deficit if House Bill 186 passes.
“If we could ext/files/storyimages/it to two years from six months…theoretically that 150 number would go up. And if you could add additional apartment slots…then instead of 80 young people in those you could have...160.”
Before the start of the next general assembly session, representative Jenkins says research will be conducted to determine the best way for the legislation to proceed. Special committees will research programs in other states and be able to present more specific numbers. Jenkins says she will sponsor the bill again at the next session.
Meanwhile, 650 people under state foster care will decide if they want to age out this year. Whether they choose to leave or stay within the state’s care, Baldwin says youth advocates in the state will continue to try to afford them the same chances as children aging out of biological families.
“It’s a systematic, bureaucratic kind of way to do the exact same thing we do in our own family. You know? Where is the occasion that you turn your 18-year-old out to the world? And say ‘here ya go’? At least nowadays….”
Next week, May 11, WFPL profiles two people who chose to ext/files/storyimages/the state’s care when they were 18. Although they made the same choice, each has had a very different experience since that decision.
