House+Bill+4311

toc =School Choice for Foster Kids Act = Bill number 4311 media type="file" key="House Bill 4311 (ABMN).mp3" Sponsored by: Michele Bachmann Rep. Minnesota-R 6th District "To authorize states to use funds provided for the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program to provide vouchers to cover tuition costs at private schools, and transportation costs to and from public schools, of foster children of all ages"

Click [|here] for full bill!

History of Foster Care

 * Before Foster Care kids were placed in a public or private orphanage that also contained adult poor and mentally retarded.
 * They had to mover farmers in the Midwest so they could shelter and care for the children in need.
 * The English Poor Law led to development and regulation of family foster care in the US.
 * Has been important since the 19th century.

School Work

 * Students lag behind their non-foster peers in school.
 * Have poor attendance and less likely to perform at grade level having lower scores on tests than their peers.
 * More likely to have behavior and discipline problems.
 * More likely to assigned to special education classes.
 * Less likely to attend college.
 * Higher rates of grade retention, higher absenteeism, tardiness, and dropout rates.
 * School change can affect them by leaving physical and mental or emotional problems.

Working with the Adults

 * Parents were tested to have low education or have bad experiences with the schools they attended.
 * Parents have worked with school teachers and school personnel who knew the children had needs, but whom they felt ill equipped with.
 * School specialists decided that, in school, it may have too many adults in their lives with each assuming it was someone else's job to address the child's educational needs.
 * Most foster kids don't have an advocate.

Obstacles

 * Their lives after foster care leads to higher than average rates of homelessness, criminality, drug abuse,and unemployments among foster care graduates.
 * No adult in foster care system wants children to do poorly in school.
 * Foster care don't often think about school.
 * School is forgotten or treated as a side issues as the adults worry about protecting children from neglect or abuse, finding them new homes, or transferring them if a placement does not work out.
 * Lack encouragement form foster families and teachers.
 * Foster children don't get the same attention as other children and are thought of going to stay in one place for a short period of time.

Affects

 * Most of the 500,000 children in foster care have scars fomr physical and emotional trauma such as: exposure to alcohol, tobacco, other drugs, parental abuse, neglect and abandonment, exposure to violence in homes or communities, separation from families, and frequent changes in foster placement.

Safe and Smart Program

 * Focused on improving school attendance and academic performance.
 * Learned that there was many obstacles facing foster care kids.
 * Including: change in placement, mandated,medical, and court appointments that keep them out of classes, and the trauma from past abuse and emotional concerns about their biological families that distract attention from their schoolwork.
 * This program increased foster parent participation at parent-teacher conferences by working directly with the foster parents of their children in the program and than with foster care contract agencies
 * Safe Smart Program highlighted real problems tested that did not come from the children, who were very receptive in the program, but from the adults and the system surrounding them.

Chafee Foster Care Independence Act

 * Supports the transition of foster children into independence and adulthood.
 * Program increased federal funds for state programs that helps youths transitions out of care.
 * Provided $60 million annual funding for education and job training and vouchers for older foster youths.
 * Assistance comes too late in life.
 * The School Choice for Foster Kids Act amends Chafee program to allow states to offer school vouchers to all foster children not just older youths.
 * Scholarships allow children to stay in their schools.

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 * Watch Michele Bachmann talk about her bill! **