Lack of Stability for Foster Children Decreases Academic Performance

Foster children are a silent minority among the nation's youth. Parental drug abuse, neglect, and abandonment are a few reasons children are removed from their parents.

When children are placed into protective custody they can face multiple out of home placements. The very young are placed in emergency foster homes, while older children may be placed in group homes or agency shelters while they wait for a foster family placement.

What this means for older children is that they lack a family home with parental figures and stability. Further, it interrupts a child's education. School attendance may have been inconsistent while with their parents, but over the course of their time in foster care, children may have many moves. They can move from foster home to foster home and from school to school. The result can lower the child's academic interest and performance.

While many social workers and foster families try hard to protect and care for these children, the fact is that with so many moves we are losing this segment of our nation's youth. A recent article from AOL News* indicated that the new face of homelessness in America is youth exiting the foster care system. Lack of extended family, social resources, education, and job skills has led to an exodus of young adults unprepared to care of themselves.

The 'system' can't raise these children alone. Children, regardless of circumstance, need stability, family ties, a sense of community, job skills, and education. It is a community effort that few know about or participate in.

Volunteering to help these children is not difficult. Donating children's books to CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) or your local Department of Human Services can be a start. This can increase literacy and foster a love of reading and academics. In addition, people in every community can become mentors and provide a stable influence in the life of a child in foster care.

The foster care system is complex and flawed, and governed by strict laws which protect the privacy of each child. Although these laws are meant to protect children, it also alienates the general public from the needs of this 'closed society'. However, it does not bar people from getting involved, and learning how they can help. When communities reach out to this silent minority they can help these children succeed in their education and in life.

Ultimately, the results will become evident when we see children leaving the foster care system with a strong foundation and a solid education. Then this silent minority will be more prepared to go on to college, join the work force, and become the young men and women they were meant to be. It all starts with a community who cares, and an education that will prepare them for life.

It starts with us.

*( aolnews.com/2010/10/19/generation-homeless-young-adults-put-new-face-on-old-problem aolnews.com/2010/10/19/generation-homeless-young-adults-put-new-face-on-old-problem/ )

T.K. Richardson is the author of Return the Heart, a young adult novel. She is the founder of Partners In Print.org, a program that donates books to children in foster care. She also advocates for abused and neglected children in her community and abroad. tkrichardson.com tkrichardson.com