PERSPECTIVES ON THE BARRIERS ENCOUNTERED BY FOSTER YOUTH

AT THE HIGHER EDUCATION LEVEL

Thank you for your comment! From what we gathered during this research, all eleven participants were asked, “In your experience, was higher education a discussion addressed in your home or foster placement?” This question provides insight into discussions surrounding the importance of higher education in their assigned placements. It seems to provide possible answers to the question, as to the low percentage of foster youth who transition from high school to college to further education.<br />For example, participant 7 stated,<br />Higher education was never really mentioned in my home or actually with my social worker (Early Discussion of Education, February 2021). <br />For example, participant 8 discussed,<br />By my ILP mentor, my Independent Living Program mentor, but not from my foster guardians or anything (Early Discussion of Education, February 2021).<br />For example, participant 9 stated,<br />Higher education was discussed to me while I was in foster care. My social worker handed me resources and provided an educational liaison for me, so, yeah (Early Discussion of Education, February 2021).<br />According to these participants, they discuss caregivers, relatives, and county social workers provided a minimal amount or no discussion or awareness of higher education. These participants described there was a lack of conversation from trustworthy adults that could have explored and provided their perception into higher education options. It seems to indicate having meager knowledge on ideas of higher education would essentially decrease overall success rates for these youths. <br /> It could indicate that the awareness of having these discussions in their placements with their caregivers or county social workers will prompt foster youth to ask consistent questions regarding higher education. Also when looking into the literature multiple surveys from previous studies have shown that higher education has numerous advantages including greater career satisfaction, greater income opportunities, higher health quality, and lower consumption of substances, and incarceration rates as compared to those who do not attend college (Salazar, 2013). Setting these building blocks from the start of placement may enhance comprehension of topics of education and a higher quality of life.<br />With respect to your question, the focus of this research was geared towards the perspectives of foster youth in attaining higher education. Regarding the data collected, researchers found that education and support with respect to mental health, play a part in higher education among transitional youth. This might suggest that mental health clinicians need to intervene early before foster youth head to higher education. This might imply that foster youth need to be screened adequately for mental health services before assessing educational potential. It seems consistent with the idea that the prevalence of mental health issues has always been a part of foster youth care. Additionally, it might imply students who arrive to campuses with mental health concerns may utilize routine care such as emergency services, 24-hour rapid response, and general counseling. This might imply the need to incorporate a more diverse support staff that will aide with the cultural divide with the student body on campuses. This seems consistent with the idea that this intervention can potentially alleviate mental health barriers for students who are struggling to seek support.<br /> Following up with your question regarding financial literacy, we must discuss the barrier of financial instability. In this study, participants identified financial instability to be a barrier to achieving higher education. Participants identified financial instability to be interpreted as a shortage of funds while attending to their education. The lack of financial assistance is an obstacle that leads to the problems that this population encounter. Although the financial resources they utilized benefited some students, it merely touches the surface to help those in need for living necessities while achieving higher education. Financial instability is one of the key themes to understanding why foster youth students are graduating at lower rates compared to their counterparts. These financial barriers are conducive to challenges facing these transitional youth in their pursuit of education. The lack of financial support for this demographic may be due to a lack of parental or caregiver support. Moreover, many foster youths may not be exposed to financial security and healthy financial conduct because it may not be taught in their homes or placements. Many of these foster youth, may be less likely to have a constant source of funds. It may imply that the child welfare agency will want to develop youth services to support this population in order to set goals that are practical for these transitional youth who have limited financial support. When trying to achieve good results for this population, programs would better support these youth by growing their financial literacy, enhancing financial practices, information on credit scores, or boosting positive psychosocial results, instead of solely focusing on accumulating significant savings and assets.<br />Thank you again for your comment, you discussed an important issue regarding foster youth and their caregivers in placement. The researchers could have added specific questions into the research in regards to their caregivers and their knowledge about financial stability. This question can be implemented in future studies. <br />