Helping Students in
Foster Care to Heal,
Thrive and Succeed
Michelle Lustig, Ed.D, MSW, PPSC, Program Manager
SusanneTerry, MPH, Project Specialist
FosterYouth and Homeless Education Services
San Diego County Office of Education
San Diego County Office of Education
COMMON
GROUND:
WHO ARE
OUR
CHILDREN?
 Every 40 seconds a child in this country is
born into poverty.
 Every 11 seconds a child in this country is
abused.
 Every day in California 100 children enter
the foster care system.
 Every child in foster care is a member of
our community and many are students in
our classrooms.
WHY DO
EDUCATORS
NEED TO
KNOW
ABOUT
STUDENTS
IN FOSTER
CARE?
 The needs of students in foster care go
largely unrecognized by public education
because:
 School administrators and educators receive little or no
information or training on the foster care system or on the
impact of the foster care experience.
 Communication between the education and child welfare
systems has been difficult historically.
 Public education is under tremendous pressure to increase
AYP and API scores, so other issues fall to the wayside.
LCFF
and
LCAP
San Diego County Office of Education
 In 2013 California became the first State
in the US to include students in foster
care as a sub- group for accountability
(API)
 Data will be available weekly based on
a Statewide data match
 LCAP’s must include separate services
and outcomes for students in foster
care if there are over 15 students
district wide.
GROUND
BREAKING
RESEARCH
ONTO THE
EDUCATIONAL
EXPERIENCES
OF STUDENTS
IN FOSTER
CARE IN
CALIFORNIA:
The California Child Welfare Indicators Project in
partnership with the Center for the Future of
Teaching and Learning at WestEd.
 The Invisible Achievement Gap , Part 1:
Education Outcomes of Students in Foster Care
in California Public Schools (2013)
 The Invisible Achievement Gap, Part 2: How the
Foster Care Experience of California Public
School Students Are Associated with Their
Educational Outcomes (2014)
Both reports are available at :
http://www.stuartfoundation.org/NewsAndReport
s/ReportsAndResearch
 Students in foster care constituted an at-risk
subgroup that was distinct from low-SES students.
 Students in foster care were more likely than other
students to change schools during the school year.
Primary
Research
Findings:
Part 1
 Students in foster care are more likely than the
general student population to be enrolled in the
lowest-performing schools and more likely to be
enrolled in nontraditional schools.
 Students in foster care had the lowest participation
rate in California’s statewide testing program.
 Statewide testing showed an achievement gap for
students in foster care and other at-risk student
groups
 High school students in foster care had the highest
dropout rate and lowest graduation rate.
 Students in foster care had the lowest participation
in California’s statewide testing program and
participation was tied to placement instability.
Primary
Research
Findings:
Part 2
 Statewide testing documented that the
achievement gap for students in foster care was
greatest in upper grade levels and for students who
experienced three or more foster care placements.
 Among all high school students, those in foster care
had the highest dropout and lowest graduation
rates; students in more stable placements showed
better performance for both of these education
outcomes
 Students in every type of foster care placement
experienced an achievement gap compared to their
peers in school.
 Students in foster care:
ADDITIONAL
RESEARCH
INTO
EDUCATIONAL
OUTCOMES
FOR
STUDENTS IN
OUT OF HOME
CARE HAS
FOUND:









have lower GPAs and lower standardized test scores,
earn fewer credits toward HS graduation,
are more likely to be exempted from state testing,
only 56% of youth in care graduate from high school
while in care,
are more likely to be in special education programs,
read (on average), at only a seventh grade level after
completing 10th or 11th grade,
experience (on average) 1 or 2 placement changes
per year,
over a third have reported having 5 or more school
changes,
studies show that only 13% of former foster youth go
on to college versus 60% of all high school seniors.
Only 3% will graduate from college.
 Is twice as likely to drop out of school.
 Is more likely to be suspended or
expelled.
A TYPICAL
CHILD IN
FOSTER
CARE IN
CALIFORNIA
 Will take 24 more months longer to
graduate.
 Is more likely to receive a GED.
 Is less likely to be enrolled in A-G and
AP courses.
 Will attend 5 or 6 different high
schools achieve 2-3 years below their
grade level.
A
TYPICAL
CHILD IN
FOSTER
CARE
WILL:
 Have a high incidence of clinical mental
health diagnosis (54%).
 Battle social and emotional problems as a
result of abuse and placement.
 Be medicated more often than their peers.
 Experience developmental delays well into
adulthood.
King County Superior Court (2005)
 3 of 10 alumni become homeless post foster
care.
 27% of Males and 10% of females will be
FOSTER CARE incarcerated.
ALUMNI
 Alumni have a 30% higher likelihood of being
OFTEN FACE
substance abusers.
A DIFFICULT
ADULTHOOD:  Alumni have a 50% higher likelihood of
experiencing domestic violence.
 Alumni make up 75% of youth in the criminal
justice system.
-King County
Superior Court 2005
 Social Worker and/or Probation Officer
 Attorney/Guardian ad Litem
WHO ARE THE
KEY STAKEHOLDERS IN A
STUDENT IN
FOSTER
CARE’S LIFE?
 Judge
 Caregiver: Biological Parent, Foster Parent,
Relative Caregiver, Group Home Provider
 Judge
 Court Appointed Special Advocate
(CASA)/Education Rights Holder
 Live in 10 different foster homes or group
homes.
A TYPICAL
CHILD IN
FOSTER
CARE IN
WILL:
 Often be separated from their siblings.
 Often be re-traumatized by the act of being
placed.
 Experience even worse outcomes if they are
youth of color.
WHAT IS THE
ROLE OF
EDUCATORS?
Teachers, principals, counselors, school
social workers, psychologists, nurses, and
directors of child welfare and
attendance, are all critical stakeholders in
the educational success of students in
foster care.
It is imperative that you have a firm
understanding of the impact of trauma
and the types of interventions that are
potentially harmful and as well as those
that are likely to be effective.
Lets start with
hope….
Resiliency is:
“The Deep Belief that at one
time you really mattered to
another human being”
Vincent Feletti, M.D.
ADVERSE
CHILDHOOD
EXPERIENCES
(ACES)
Something happens between infancy and
adulthood to create a lifetime of
addictions, abuse and mental health
problems.
Source: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study.
Information available at http://www.cdc.gov/ace/index.htm
Of 17,000 respondents, two-thirds had at least
one adverse childhood event
 Physical, emotional or sexual abuse
 Emotional or physical neglect
ADVERSE
CHILDHOOD
EXPERIENCES
 Growing up with family members with mental
illness, alcoholism or drug problems
 Family violence
 Incarcerated family member
 One or no parents
 Parental divorce
Source: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study.
Information available at http://www.cdc.gov/ace/index.htm
Historical
Trauma
Evidence of
post-traumatic
stress disorder
across
generations
Pregnant women impacted by the World
Trade Center attacks on 9/11 who had PTSD
from the event gave birth to babies with an
elevated stress response and a hypersensitive
stress axis.
These babies will be more susceptible to
anxiety, depression and even PTSD than
those whose mothers who did not experience
PTSD
Of the 17,000+ respondents…
 More than 25% grew up in a household with an
alcoholic or drug user
ACE Study
Findings
 25% had been beaten as children
 Two-thirds had 1 adverse childhood event
 1 in 6 people had four or more ACES
Source: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study.
Information available at http://www.cdc.gov/ace/index.htm
Untreated Adverse Early Childhood Events
Only Exacerbate Over Time
Source: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study.
Information available at http://www.cdc.gov/ace/index.htm
Traumatized children are:
ACEs &
School
Performance
 2.5x more likely to fail a grade in school
 Score lower on standardized achievement
tests
 More likely to have struggles in receptive and
expressive language
 Suspended and expelled more often
 More frequently placed in special education
51% of children with 4+ ACE scores
had learning and behavior problems in school
ACEs
Impacts
Learning
Compared with only 3% of children with NO ACE
score
Source: Burke, N.J., Hellman, J.L., Scott, B.G., Weems, C.F & Carrion, V.C. (June 2011).
“The Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences on an Urban Pediatric Population,” Child
Abuse and Neglect, 35, No. 6.
Trauma, Self-Regulation
and Coping Skills:
Information and Techniques to Help
Children
 Overwhelming experience
 Involves a threat
What is
Traumatic
Stress?
 Results in vulnerability and loss of control
 Leaves people feeling helpless and fearful
 Interferes with relationships and beliefs
Source: Herman, J. (1992). Trauma and Recovery.
New York Basic Books.
Sources of
Traumatic
Stress

Loss of a loved one

Accidents

Homelessness

Community/School violence

Witnessing of domestic violence

Neglect

Physical abuse

Psychological abuse

Sexual abuse

Man-made or natural disasters

Terrorism

War
The Stress
Response:
A Chemical
One
 Prepares the body for action when
threat is detected
 Helps the body respond to stress
effectively
Our
Brain’s
Trio
 Brain Stem: SAFETY/SURVIVAL (physical
responses to perceived threat; starting with
release of chemicals)
 Mid-Brain: EMOTIONAL CONNECTION
(memories stored related to triggering
incident)
 Cortex: EXECUTIVE STATE (problem
solving, critical thinking skills- reading,
writing, & arithmetic)
Body’s response to danger:
• Fight
• Flight
• Freeze
The Stress
Response
and Trauma
 Overwhelms a person’s usual ability
to cope.
 Varied responses.
 Most recover.
 Some develop more severe
difficulties.
 Triggers include seeing, feeling, or hearing
something that remind us of past trauma.
Triggers
 Triggers activate the alarm system.
 When the alarm system is activated, but
there is no danger, it is a false alarm.
 The response is as if there is current danger.
Toxic stress
from
exposure to
violence can
impair
healthy
development
One study revealed that exposure to
relationship-based violence and trauma
in the first two years of life resulted in
lower IQ scores at 5 and 8 years of age.
Enlow MB, Egland B, Blood EA, Wright RO, & Wright RJ (April 4, 2012)
Interpersonal trauma exposure and cognitive development in children
to age 8 years: a longitudinal study.
Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health Online First.
 Skills specific to each developmental stage
build on learning from previous stages.
Development
and Trauma
 Children exposed to trauma invest energy
into survival instead of developmental
mastery.
 Development in adulthood may continue to
be impacted.
“Trauma can be a single event, connected
series of traumatic events or chronic
lasting stress.”
Diagnostic Classification: 0-3R
Child
Welfare and
Trauma
Children in the child welfare system almost by
definition have suffered trauma, often multiple
traumatic events, and 50-75% exhibit behaviors or
symptoms that need mental health treatment.
Source: Landsverk, Burns, Stambaugh, & Rolls Reutz (2009). Psychosocial
Interventions for Children and Adolescents in Foster Care: Review of Research
Literature. Child Welfare, 88 (1), 49-69.
SelfRegulation
“The growth of self-regulation is a
cornerstone of early childhood
development that cuts across all domains
of behavior.”
From: Neurons to Neighborhoods, p. 26.
In other words, it is the ability to balance
self-control with self-expression.
Refers to attention, behaviors and
emotions
Examples
of SelfRegulation:
 Establishing sleep-wake patterns
 Increasing attention span
 Focusing on a goal
 Managing emotions appropriately and in
context
 Expressing feelings constructively
 “Two by Ten” Strategy
R. Smith & M. Lambert, Assuming the Best
 The Brain In The Palm of the Hand:
Teaching
SelfRegulation
Brainstem:
Mid-brain:
Cortex:
Pre-frontal Cortex:
Wrist, Palm
Thumb
Fingers over
Thumb
Fingernails
 Use and Teach what you know about
trauma:
Handouts: Jody McVittie, MD, Sound Discipline
 Self-Regulation is a Predictor of Academic
Success
Belonging &
Significance:
Relationships
Matter
 Children need to feel belonging &
significance before we can really expect
them to respond or care about our rules or
limits
 Healthy relational interactions with safe and
familiar individuals can buffer and heal
trauma related problems
 Research shows social connectedness as a
protective factor against maltreatment
 Social milieu (safe environments): major
mediator of trauma
• Safety: physical and emotional safety
 Structure: predictable, consistent routines
Creating an
Atmosphere
for Learning
 Supervision: eyes, ears, proximity to
students
 Self-Regulation: model it/teach it
 Sense of Belonging & Significance (SelfEsteem): “I can do this; I belong here”
 Success-celebrate! In or out of the
classroom
 Teach life skills
 Pay attention to the power of perception (illogical
beliefs, world view)
 Focus on encouragement (empowering vs. enabling)
Some Basic
Tools from
Alfred Adler:
 Hold the tension of kindness and firmness at the
same time (firm limits and nurturance concurrently)
 Look to mutual respect:
Respect for yourself and the situation:
firmness
Respect for the child and others: kindness
 Assume mistakes to be an opportunity to learn
 Look to solutions rather than punishment
 Biology of trauma impacts ability to
regulate (Brain Trio, survival mode)
Trauma, SelfRegulation &
Coping Skills
Summing It
Up
 Trauma impacts the caregiver-child
relationship (Worldview; attachment)
 To heal, children must feel safe in their
bodies and they must have supportive
relationships with loving caregivers
(TEACHERS) who they can trust
(Relationships Matter! Creating an
Atmosphere for Learning)
 If coping skills are more developed, a child is
much better equipped to handle stress
(Model and Teach Self-Regulation)