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Court’s Role in System Reform Efforts to Improve Education Outcomes For Children in Care

Court’s Role in System Reform Efforts to Improve Education Outcomes For Children in Care CIP Meeting July 23, 2010 Kathleen McNaught Ray Wahl Magistrate Carla Guenthner Elaine Fink. Overview of Session. Court’s Role in Direct Advocacy and System Reform

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Court’s Role in System Reform Efforts to Improve Education Outcomes For Children in Care

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  1. Court’s Role in System Reform Efforts to Improve Education Outcomes For Children in Care CIP Meeting July 23, 2010 Kathleen McNaught Ray Wahl Magistrate Carla Guenthner Elaine Fink

  2. Overview of Session • Court’s Role in Direct Advocacy and System Reform • Key Themes in System Reform around Education Issues • Examples of Court Leadership • Utah • Kids in School Rule! • Ohio County-based collaborative initiatives 2

  3. Court Role in Direct Advocacy • Court’s clear role in overseeing the “well being” of children in foster care- this includes their education needs • Link between addressing education needs and achieving permanency • New Program Instruction (released on July 9th, 2010): the courts “play an important role in education stability” • Example of issues: • Who makes education decisions • Access to education records • Needs identified; services provided

  4. Direct Advocacy Resources for Judges Technical Assistance Brief: Asking the Right Questions II: Judicial Checklists to Meet the Educational Needs of Children and Youth in Foster Care- NCJFCJ Outlines questions that should be asked in a courtroom with respect to the educational needs of children and youth in foster care. http://www.ncjfcj.org/content/blogcategory/363/432/ Blueprint For Change: Detailed framework is structured around eight concrete goals for youth and include benchmarks that demonstrate progress toward achieving Education Success for children in foster care. www.abanet.org/child/education/blueprint Coming Soon Fall 2010 -  Judicial Guide to Implementing the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 will be available atwww.grandfamilies.org

  5. Why do we need system reform for the education issues? • To hard to solve individually for each child • Coordination between child welfare and education agencies, the courts, and others, is needed • Collaborative protocols and policies must be created to ensure all are on same page. • Consistent practices across jurisdiction or state are necessary when issues involve mobility in the child’s living and school placements. • CFSRs – Well Being Outcome #2

  6. Court’s Role in System Reform Key Themes • Prioritize education as an key issue in achieving permanency for children in care; • Securing buy-in support and participation by leadership from education agencies and child welfare agencies; • maintaining progress and momentum over time; • addressing the need for data to demonstrate how children are doing educationally and identify larger picture view on greatest areas of need; • identifying “small wins” and reachable short term goals; and • strategies for working with LEAs and child welfare agencies and interpreting and coordinating languages and priorities of each agency

  7. Prioritizing Education Needs of Children in Foster Care • For Child Welfare Agencies: the need is to prioritize education • For Education Agencies: the need is to prioritize children in foster care • For Courts: the need is to help ensure that the courts themselves, as well as the agencies and all other critical stakeholders, are prioritizing education

  8. Leadership Buy-In and Participation • Court Leadership on issue of education • Austin Summit • Court role is securing participation of leadership of other critical agencies • Example: Texas Order creating Education Committee of the Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth and Families and required participants, including state Commissioner of Education, Executive Directors of the State Association of School Boards and State Association of school Administrators

  9. Maintaining Progress and Momentum • Cross agency collaboration is hard work • Changes come over time and with sustained commitment from all participants • Key is to have both short and long term goals and consistent participation by the right stakeholders • Way to celebrate “victories” • Way to revisit goals and plans as revise as needed to stay current • Way to learn from others in the field and seek external support and assistance

  10. Need for Data If we haven’t measured it, it didn’t happen. Don’t wait for “perfect” data • Need to know status of how children in care are doing, and where the gaps and needs are; AND • Need to be able to track improvements as strategies and policies are implemented. • Child welfare agencies: changes to SACWIS and state data systems to allow for education information • Education agencies: NCLB requirements for education data for all students; need method to obtain that information for subset of children who are in care. • Cross system sharing is critical but challenging; court can play critical role is assisting to address confidentiality issues

  11. Data Resources • Mythbusting: Downloadable at http://www.abanet.org/child/education/ • publications/dataexchange.html • Solving the Data Puzzle: http://www.abanet.org/child/education/publications/solvingthedatapuzzle.pdf

  12. Small Wins and Short Term Goals • Critical to sustain momentum • Examples: • Creation of forms to help facilitate communication across agencies • Reviewing and analyzing existing data • Changes to court orders to address access to education records • Letter from State Education commissioners to all LEAS to inform them of the Fostering Connections education provisions

  13. Strategies for Working Collaboratively Over Time Examples we are highlighting today: • Utah • Kids in School Rule! • Ohio County Collaborations

  14. We All Are FOR Education: “By all rights, education should be an easy sell because you never find anyone who is ‘against’ it. No advocacy groups clamor for its overthrow, no politicians or columnists protest its irrelevance. Unlike nuclear power, or abortion rights, or the graduated income tax, education has no enemies. The trouble, therefore, can only be with those who are ‘for’ it. In education, I’ve found, you can easily mistake the actions of those who are for it as being against it.” Joseph Fernandez, former Chancellor of the New York City Public Schools JOSEPH A. FERNANDEZ WITH JOHN UNDERWOOD, TALES OUT OF SCHOOL 1 (Little, Brown 1993).

  15. Legal Center for Foster Care and Education Resources www.abanet/org/child/education/publications Data and Information Sharing (Manual and Tools) Special Education Decisionmaking Series (includes Attorney Factsheet) Questions & Answer Factsheets about critical issues Fostering Connections Implementation Materials

  16. Contact Information ABA Center on Children and the Law Legal Center for Foster Care and Education www.abanet.org/child/education Kathleen McNaught Project Director mcnaughk@staff.abanet.org

  17. EDUCATION MATTERS:UTAH’S CHILDREN IN CARE Presentation at the National Court Improvement Conference July 2010

  18. ORGANIZATION • Unified Juvenile Court- 8 Judicial Districts- Dependency/ Delinquency • State Office of Education- 40 School Districts- • Department of Human Services- DCFS/ DJJS

  19. YIC ORGANIZATION • Youth in Custody • 18 million dollars • 24 school districts • Dependency/ Delinquency

  20. EDUCATION PATHWAYS

  21. INITIATIVE ON UTAH CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE (IOU) • Builds collaboration between all branches of Utah government and other key participants in the child welfare system, including leaders of the business, education, religious and charitable community. • Chaired by the Chief Justice • Work through subcommittees • Public awareness • Kinship caregiver support • Youth transitioning to adult living support • Education

  22. IOU EDUCATION WORKGROUP Discoveries Activities • Discoveries • Role Confusion • System Incompatibility • Lack of Information/Data Transferring • Quality of Teachers • Solutions • Immersion/ Summit • Education Guide/ Website • Getting Connected Trainings • Site Visits • Admission Protocols • Statewide Education Specialist • Evaluate and adjust membership of the Coordinating Council for Youth In Custody

  23. EDUCATING YOUTH IN STATE CARE http://www.hs.utah.gov/education/

  24. EDUCATING YOUTH IN STATE CARE http://www.hs.utah.gov/education/

  25. EDUCATING YOUTH IN STATE CARE http://www.hs.utah.gov/education/

  26. GETTING CONNECTED

  27. MOVING FORWARD YIC Study • How well is the YIC program educating youth in state care? • What key elements are important for educational success for youth in state care? • How can YIC improve its practices in order for youth in care to achieve better educational outcomes?

  28. CONTACT INFORMATION Ray Wahl Juvenile Court Administrator 450 South State Street Salt Lake City, UT 84111 (801) 578-3812 rayw@email.utcourts.gov Laurieann Thorpe Statewide Education Liaison 195 North 1950 WestSalt Lake City, Utah 84116 801 538-8294 lthorpe@utah.gov

  29. IMPROVING EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES FOR YOUTH IN FOSTER CARE HAMILTON COUNTY Cincinnati, Ohio

  30. DEMOGRAPHIC DATA Hamilton County: 851,494 City of Cincinnati: 332,458 Children in agency custody or under agency supervision: 1525 (2009 year end) Race: African American: 63% Caucasian: 30% Multi-racial: 6% Hispanic: 1% Gender: Male: 51% Female: 49%

  31. SCHOOLS County Districts:22 Cincinnati Public Schools: 58 schools 16 high schools 42 elementary schools Race: African American: 68.8% Caucasian: 23.7% Multi-racial: 4.6% Hispanic: 1.9% Other: .9% Free lunch: 68.7%

  32. IF AT FIRST YOU DON’T SUCCEED…. A bend in the road is not the end of the road…unless you fail to make the turn. Author Unknown

  33. HAMILTON COUNTY CHILD PROTECTION REPORT CARD Placements: 60% experience one or more placements Grade Level: 32% at appropriate grade level Mental/Behavioral Health: 48% diagnosed

  34. COLLABORATION STRUCTURE • Leadership Team • Advisory Committee, Model Court Committee and Workgroups 4 3 2 1 • Stakeholder Kick-Offs/Trainings • Outreach

  35. KEY STAKEHOLDERS Hamilton Co. Dept. of Job & Family Services Cincinnati Public Schools Hamilton Co. Juvenile Court Legal Aid Society of SW Ohio Public Defender: GAL Office ProKids: CASA Agency

  36. TARGET POPULATION Kindergarten through 12th grade Children in agency custody Children attending one of the 22 participating schools (identified through mapping) Minimum of 100 children in the pilot

  37. EDUCATION AS A PRIORITY Execution of a MOU Inclusion of Schools/Education Representatives on Model Court Team Judicial Checklist Court Reports on Education Cross-Training Youth Engagement

  38. SCHOOL STABILITY Development of strategies for maintaining stability in school and substitute care placements Creation of plans for maintaining school stability if agency placement disrupts Development of seamless transition plans when change in school placement cannot be avoided

  39. IMPROVED COMMUNICATION/ ENHANCED COORDINATION 2 child protection caseworkers serve as liaisons to the participating schools One representative at each school serves as a liaison to Children’s Services Access to Power School

  40. REFORM POLICIES AND PRACTICES Create visitation plans/policies that avoid school disruption Implement case plan services during non-traditional hours or access school-based services to minimize school disruption

  41. SUPPORTIVE SERVICES Education Advocacy and Legal Representation Interventions and Supports to Promote Academic Success and Achievement Tutoring Higher Education Mentoring Initiative Extracurricular Activities Summer Reading Program

  42. DATA COLLECTION AND PROGRAM EVALUATION Key Outcome Measures: 1. Youth in foster care will experience increased stability in their placement and at school. 2. Youth in foster care will demonstrate improvement in school attendance. 3. Youth in foster care will achieve school promotion and grade advancement. 4. Youth in foster care with identified special needs will receive appropriate and supportive educational services. 5. The public and private partners will create a collaborative structure that enhances the coordination and implementation of educational plans for youth in foster care.

  43. DATA/EVALUATION (continued) Critical but often elusive Persevere Document small successes You can do it!

  44. Nine tenths of education is encouragement. Anatole France, writer He who opens a school door, closes a prison. Victor Hugo, poet

  45. CONTACT INFORMATION Carla Guenthner Deputy Chief Magistrate Hamilton County Juvenile Court 800 Broadway Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 513.946.9381 Carla.Guenthner@juvcourt.hamilton-co.org

  46. Elaine E. Fink Managing Attorney Legal Aid Society of Southwest Ohio, LLC Collaboration for Education Success of Children in Foster Care

  47. Opportunity to Improve the Education of Children in Foster Care Cincinnati Public Schools Communication problems with Children’s Services Difficulty accessing agency case workers Ignorance about child welfare Awareness that foster youth not performing well Misconceptions about Children’s Services Children’s Services Communication problems with school district Difficulty accessing school district personnel Frustrations with school district Foster students failing in school Misconceptions about school district

  48. Getting Cincinnati Public Schools and Children’s Services to table • Legal Aid trusted by both groups • Created Committee to improve education for foster youth through strategy of training and communication • Juvenile Court • Children’s Services • Schools • Legal Aid

  49. Foster Care Committee • Effective collaboration • Urban school district invested and at the table • Small working group able to identify issues and set priorities • Growing desire to increase impact

  50. Expansion Determined to expand Committee to increase impact • Invited additional school districts within same county (Hamilton) • Added 2nd county (Butler County) • Became multi-disciplinary across 2 counties • Changed name • Created mission statement

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