The Transition of Youth with Disabilities from the Child Welfare System

1
The Transition of Youth with Disabilities from
the Child Welfare System

• Elizabeth Lightfoot , PhD
• Katharine Hill, MSW, MPP, LISW
• School of Social Work
• University of Minnesota
• Curriculum Module
• Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
• Funded in part by the Minnesota Agricultural
  Experiment Station and Title IV-E
• Citation Lightfoot, E. Hill, K. (2008). The
  transition of youth with disabilities from the
  child welfare system A curriculum module. Center
  for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare, University
  of Minnesota. Website http//cehd.umn.edu/ssw/cas
  cw

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Overview

• Incidence of children with disabilities within
  child welfare and foster care
• Definitions
• Transition outcomes for youth from foster care,
  youth with disabilities, and youth served by both
  systems
• Best practices What the research says
• Areas for future research

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Prevalence of maltreatment of children with
disabilities

• No Federal Reporting Requirements
• Uneven State Reporting Requirements
• No Standard Definition of Disability
• Administrative Data has serious limitations for
  determining prevalence

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Prevalence of children with disabilities who
experience maltreatment

• Two Main Studies
• 1988 NIS-2 National Study
• Prevalence of children with disabilities in the
  child welfare system
• Omaha Population Studies
• Prevalence of maltreatment of children with
  disabilities

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National Survey NIS-2, 1988

• Children with disabilities were 1.7 times more
  likely to be maltreated than children w/o
  disabilities
• (Crosse et al., 1993)
• Children with disabilities 35.5 per 1000
• Children w/o disabilities 21.3 per 1000
• Nationally representative sample of 35 CPS
  Agencies
• Recording substantiated CPS investigations
• Disability worker assessment

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Omaha Population Studies

• 1) Survey of maltreated children found 64 of
  maltreated children had a disability, while 32
  of non-maltreated children had a disability
• Merging hospital records with social service
  records, law enforcement 1982-1992
• Sullivan, 1997
• 2) Children with disabilities 3.4 times more
  likely to be maltreated than those without
  disabilities
• Merging school records, social service, law
  enforcement 1994-1995
• Sullivan Knutson, 2000

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Children with Disabilities in Out of Home
Placement

• Nearly 50 of children/youth in foster care
  receive special education services (not including
  youth with DD) (Chapin Hall, 2005)
• 80 of children/youth in foster care have
  behavioral emotional or development conditions
  (CWLA, 2005)
• 30-40 of children/youth in foster care have
  chronic medical conditions (GAO, 2004)

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What is transition?

• Passage the act of passing from one state or
  place to the next
• The passage of youth from youth-serving systems
  and services to adulthood. Also called aging
  out.
• Policies and services generally encompasses youth
  ages 14-18 or 21, although this varies from
  program to program and state to state.

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Transition outcomes for youth with disabilities
in placement

• Very little research on outcomes for youth who
  are eligible for and receive services from both
  child welfare and special education systems.
• Research on foster care leavers and special
  education leavers indicates that youth who have
  aged out of each system have poor outcomes in
  education, employment, and self-sufficiency.

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Findings from Chapin Halls Midwest Study Youth
aging out of foster care

• 37 of youth had not earned a high school diploma
  within 12-18 months of leaving care.
• 63 of youth who had left foster care not
  enrolled in any kind of education or training
  program within 12-18 months of leaving care.
• Fewer than half of youth are employed 12-18
  months after leaving care .
• 33 arrested, 23.7 spent at least one night in
  correctional facility.

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Transition for youth with disabilities from
special education

• 28 of youth with disabilities leave high school
  without a diploma this number changes
  dramatically depending on diagnosis. For example,
  youth diagnosed with behavior disorders have a
  44 dropout rate. 1
• 40 of youth with disabilities employed 12 months
  after graduation. 1
• 33 of youth with emotional disturbances not
  employed or in school- more likely to be in
  mental health services, foster care, or homeless.
  1
• 32-50 of total juvenile corrections population
  are youth with disabilities. 2
• 1 Wagner, M., Newman, L., Cameto, R. Garza N,
  Levine P. (2005). After high school A first look
  at the Postschool experiences of youth with
  disabilities. A report from the National
  Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS2).
  (Executive Study). Menlo Park, CA SRI
  International
• 2Quinn, M., Rutherford, R., Leone, P. (2001).
  Students with disabilities in correctional
  facilities. Arlington, VA ERIC Clearinghouse on
  Disabilities and Gifted Education, Council for
  Exceptional Children. (ERIC Document Reproduction
  Service No. ED461958).

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Foster Care Transition for Youth with Disabilities

• Very little research available on this
  population, mostly smaller, qualitative studies.
• Very few opportunities for youth to practice
  self-determination skills prior to emancipation,
  although they were expected to be fully
  independent as soon as they had aged out of the
  system (Geenen Powers, 2007 Hill Lightfoot,
  in press.)
• Caregivers and service providers emphasize the
  importance of supportive relationships with
  caring adults as a key to a successful
  transition, most of the youth report feeling
  disconnected, isolated, and without these kinds
  of adult supports (Geenen Powers, 2007 Hill
  Lightfoot, in press).

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Foster Care Transition for Youth with Disabilities

• Youth are often unidentified in one system while
  receiving services in another (Geenen Powers,
  2007 George Van Voorhis, 1992).
• In comparison to youth who are not in foster
  care, IEPs of youth in care have lower quality
  transition plans, vaguer goals, and fewer goals
  listed around independent living skills and post
  secondary education (Geenen Powers, 2006).
• None of the IEPs acknowledged transition
  planning that goes on through child welfare
  (Geenen Powers, 2006)

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Foster Care Transition for Youth with Disabilities

• Youth often report feeling isolated, abnormal,
  or outside of typical adolescent experience.
  (Geenen and Powers 2007 Hill Lightfoot, in
  press)
• Youth with disabilities in foster care transition
  report negative perceptions of disability and
  disability-specific services. These are similar
  to the perceptions reported by transition program
  staff. (Hill Lightfoot, in press).
• Transition program staff indicate a strong
  reluctance to label youth in foster care with
  any additional negative connotations, such as
  disability (Hill Lightfoot, in press).
• Youth and social workers report that disability
  services are unavailable, inappropriate, or not
  sensitive to the issues associated with foster
  care (Geenen Powers, 2007 Hill Lightfoot, in
  press).
• Child welfare service providers are not
  well-informed about disabilities and
  disability-specific services (Geenen Powers,
  2007).

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What is needed for a successful transition?

• Transition services areas typically include
• Independent Living
• Education
• Employment
• Community Integration
• Health
• Adult Services (if needed/eligible)
• Other areas to consider include
• Youth development and leadership experiences
• Family involvement

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Improving transition from foster care for youth
with disabilities

• Improve access to high quality, research-based
  transition services
• Identify and support meaningful, ongoing
  relationships with caring adults
• Provide young people with disabilities with
  positive adult role models and positive models of
  disability.
• Create universal services for all youth in
  transition, rather than providing services in
  silos
• Increase service collaboration and coordination
• Work to improve service providers in all
  youth-serving systems perceptions/understanding
  of disability and foster care through education
  and training.

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Areas for future research

• What kinds of services and supports are most
  effective for young adults with disabilities in
  their transition from foster care to adult life?
• What are the most effective methods for
  encouraging service collaboration and
  coordination?
• How can child welfare services be made more
  disability sensitive?
• How can disability services be made more child
  welfare sensitive?