The Outlook For Children Foster Care During The U.s. Is...

The outlook for children in foster care in the U.S. is cause for alarm (Zetlin, MacLeod, Kimm, 2012). Foster youth, otherwise known as youth who are ward of the court, are one of the most at risk populations in areas such as physical and emotional health, juvenile delinquencies and educational achievement. This is primarily due to factors such as disruptive a history of abuse, school changes, social stigma and isolation, lack of educational supports, disproportionately high rates of special education services, and exclusionary disciplinary actions (Gallegos White, 2013). Specific to education, foster youth are twice as likely to be suspended and almost four times as likely to be expelled on a national scale (Courtney, Terao, Bost, 2004). Additionally, approximately 30-50% of children in care qualify for special education compared with 11.5% children not in foster care (Zetlin, MacLeod, Kimm, 2012). As a result, interventions have been developed to support foster youth to overcome such detrimental challenges in their academic journey. To negate the educational consequences of undergoing the foster care system, many higher education institutions have emplaced programs to encourage the academic achievement and success of foster youth in higher education. One such program is the Guardian Scholars Program (GSP) at Los Angeles Pierce College (LAPC). The GSP aims to provide social, academic and financial support to foster youth in order to reduce some of the more critical