Youth in Transition
All youth need support as they move through adolescence to adulthood. Vulnerable youth face transitions made particularly challenging by stressful life events, emotional trauma, poverty, homelessness, discrimination, running away from home, emancipation, experience in the foster care or juvenile justice system as well as a number of other difficult circumstances. A growing body of knowledge indicates that these youth need community-wide webs of support to make these transitions to adulthood successfully.
Living Alone and On the Edge: Life After Foster Care
Foster children who age out of foster care at age 18 face tremendous challenges -- and become solely responsible for themselves almost overnight. NCSL held an all day seminar in July to assist state lawmakers in finding the resources to help this population of young adults, and in figuring out the best way to provide that assistance. Policymakers heard from the Director of the Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative, current and former foster care youth, state legislators, researchers and experts in the field. NCSL's Youth Project will continue to seek ways to help legislators help youth transitioning out of foster care.
The following materials from the meeting are available online:
Life After Foster Care, State Legislatures, October/November 2004
The Opportunity Passport™, Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative
Connected By 25: A Plan for Investing in Successful Futures for Foster Youth, Youth Transition Funders Group, Foster Care Work Group, 2004
For more information about Youth in Transition:
NCSL's Youth Project: cyf-info@ncsl.org
Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative, www.jimcaseyyouth.org
Youth Transition Funders Group, http://www.youthtransitions.org/
Juvenile Offenders Released From Confinement
Out of Lock Up, Now What? - Youth who serve time in the juvenile justice system are released at some point to resume their lives in the community, go to school and interact with their peers. Sadly, a large number of youthful offenders end up back in the system. This article examines how supporting youthful offenders re-enter the community can help kids and save states money.
Youth in Foster Care
Educating Children in Foster Care: An Emerging Policy Issue - This State Legislative Report examines the Child and Family Service Reviews on state performance in meeting the educational needs of children in the child welfare system.
For more information about youth in foster care, visit NCSL's Child Welfare page.
Vulnerable Youth
Powerful Pathways: Framing Options and Opportunities for Vulnerable Youth - This 2001 report by the Youth Transition Funders Group, in collaboration with the Forum for Youth Investment, explores options and opportunities to support vulnerable youth on the path to adulthood.
Policy Matters: Engaging Youth in Positive and Productive Roles - This 2003 discussion paper from the Center for the Study of Social Policy presents a framework for, and recommendations regarding state benchmarks and policy goals for engaging all youth productively, particularly those aging out of foster care, juvenile offenders, runaways and homeless youth. The paper provides a two-dimensional framework for conceptualizing youth policy and is an excellent tool for states to compare their youth policy efforts to established benchmarks and track their progress on youth issues over time.
For more information regarding youth issues, please contact Rochelle Finzel or Kelli Kelty in the Denver office at 303.364.7700 or cyf-info@ncsl.org or either Sheri Steisel or Lee Posey in the D.C. office at 202.624.5400 or fedhumserv-info@ncsl.org
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