A Promising Model for Transition-Age Youth

Chapin Hall released this report in May 2020 on a promising model for helping older foster youth successfully transition to adulthood and avoid homelessness. The researchers tracked 98 youth over three years who received service coordination, intensive case management, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). Youth showed significant improvement in employment, financial literacy, and developing connections. Young people involved in the study said their experience with DBT was positive, helping them learn coping skills and regulate their emotions.

Access the report here: https://www.chapinhall.org/research/ytp-alameda-county/

Can Extended Foster Care Reduce the Risk of Youth Homelessness?

Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago delves into this question in a new brief. Researchers analyzed interviews from over 600 youth in foster care in California to assess their experiences with homelessness. They examined two data collection points—the first and third interviews with transition-age foster youth conducted over a four-year period, between ages 17 and 21. They found that about one third of the youth had experienced homelessness between 17 and 21. The majority of those who had been homeless said their total number of days of homelessness was less than 3 months within that four-year period, and their longest single episode of homelessness was between one week and three months. 

Access the brief here: https://www.chapinhall.org/wp-content/uploads/CY_PH_IB0520.pdf

News Series on Foster Care’s Throwaway Youth

The Kansas City Star has written a six-part investigative series on the significantly negative outcomes experienced by youth aging out of foster care in the U.S. Based on a year-long exploration of what happens to youth who age out, reporters suggest that by nearly every measure, states across the country fail these youth. The comprehensive reporting includes analysis of the foster-care-to-prison-pipeline, the history of the foster care system, how placements harm a child’s cognitive development, and detailed analysis of why so many youth ‘graduate’ from foster care to being homeless. 

Access the six-part series here: https://fostersuccess.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Complete-Foster-Care.pdf

Tip 57: Trauma-Informed Care in Behavioral Health Services

Treatment Improvement Protocols (TIPs) are developed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Each TIP involves the development of topic-specific best practice guidelines for the prevention and treatment of substance use and mental disorders. TIPs draw on the experience and knowledge of clinical, research, and administrative experts of various forms of treatment and prevention. TIPs are distributed to facilities and individuals across the country. 

This Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) is divided into three parts:

• Part 1: A Practical Guide for the Provision of Behavioral Health Services
• Part 2: An Implementation Guide for Behavioral Health Program Administrators
• Part 3: A Review of the Literature”

Access the resource here: 
https://yoc.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/Resources/resources%20-%20tic%20in%20behavioral%20health.pdf

Creating Access to Opportunities for Youth in Transition from Foster Care: AYPF Policy Brief

In December 2014, The American Youth Policy Forum released this brief which addresses policy, systems coordination, and other relevant areas to creating access to opportunities for young people transitioning from foster care.

Here is an excerpt from the Executive Summary: "What happens to youth in foster care when they turn 18? Many face unprecedented challenges like homelessness, lack of financial resources, difficulty accessing educational opportunities, and unemployment. In this issue brief, The American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF) documented these challenges and opportunities in three distinct yet overlapping areas of need:

• Sustainable Social Capital
• Permanency Supports
• Postsecondary Opportunities

For each area of need, we defined the challenges youth face and identified promising programs and policies that are in place to help them transition from foster care to a healthy, successful adult life."