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Focusing on the initiative- dubbed the Porch Light Project – to safely reduce the number of children and youth in foster care in PA and to ensure a forever family for every child.

PA Senate Takes Step Towards School Stability for Foster Youth

Posted At : October 18, 2016 5:25 PM | Posted By : PPC
Related Categories: Porch Light Project

One half to three quarters of youth in foster care change schools upon entering care, and one third change schools five or more times, according to research conducted by the National Legal Center for Foster Care and Education. Such educational mobility often results in lower standardized test scores, lower school grades, a greater number of missed school days and higher dropout rates for foster youth as compared to their non-foster care peers.

This week, the Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 1271, one of three bills introduced by Senator Pat Browne (R) in an effort to minimize the educational disruption experienced by children in foster care.

SB 1271 will allow children in foster care to remain enrolled in their same school when entering foster care or experiencing a placement change, unless the court determines that remaining in the same school would be a risk to the child's safety or well-being. This determination will involve both the parents or another education decision-maker, and the child, where appropriate.

Additional legislation, Senate Bills 966 and 1272, would amend the Public School and Human Services Codes to provide guidance to school districts and child welfare agencies in regards to their responsibilities when a child in foster care faces a school change. Companion legislation has also been filed in the House: HB 1808 (Toohil-R), HB 1809 (Toohil-R), and HB 1828 (Lewis-R).

All three bills work together to implement the federal Every Students Succeeds Act (ESSA) provisions that seek to ensure school stability for youth in foster care. This week the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) released recommendations from a stakeholder process they convened around the state’s implementation of ESSA. While these recommendations do not speak to the specific requirements for the school stability of foster youth as detailed in ESSA, PDE will be engaging additional stakeholders, including PPC, to focus on their enactment of these provisions through the remainder of 2016 and leading into 2017.

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