Pennsylvania must decide: will it be at the head of the class in ensuring quality educational opportunities for foster youth?

A quality education is one of the most effective ways to create meaningful opportunities for lifelong success for youth who are disadvantaged or in poverty. Years of research show that youth in foster care face unique challenges to educational success. Their graduation rates are poor. The number of foster youth pursuing post-secondary education and training are even more dismal. Historically, youth in care are routinely denied a good start in life in terms of their education, and being in the child welfare system can further compromise their educational success, often to a greater degree than if they had not been in care at all.

The good news is that our federal laws are finally addressing the educational needs of youth in foster care. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) guarantees that youth in foster care will have “school stability.” This meaning that they can keep attending the same school if that’s what’s best for them, even if they change school districts when entering foster care or if they are moved to a new foster home or a group home.

The law clarifies foster youth’s educational rights, including school stability, and accounts for other important needs, such as providing transportation to get foster youth to their school and designating supportive adults who will coordinate services for the youth. ESSA is a huge win for students in foster care across the country. However, like most federal laws, the benefit will not really be felt on the ground until states take action.

Pennsylvania has been a leader in implementing innovative policies to support the education of youth in foster care. For many years the state has supported educational liaisons for youth in foster care, understanding the value of providing a single point person who can make sure youth access the educational services they deserve. Pennsylvania has also excelled at prioritizing juvenile court rules that direct judges to consider education at all juvenile dependency and delinquency hearings.

Now, the state has another chance to expand its longstanding commitment to youth and become a strong model for the rest of the country. Three bills currently pending in the legislature would not only ensure the effective implementation of ESSA in Pennsylvania, but would also emphasize graduation as an educational priority for students in foster care.

Image credit: "Pennsylvania State Capitol" by Kumar Appaiah, licensed via CC Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0.