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OREGON EDUCATION STABILITY MATTERS
CHILD WELFARE & SCHOOLS WORKING TOGETHER
PRESENTATION OVERVIEW
• Foster Care Demystified• Federal Regulations• Fostering Connections• Uninterrupted Scholars Act
• State Regulations• Best Interest Determinations• Work in Progress
FOSTER STUDENTS
• Walk a mile in their shoes…• Trouble with long-term planning• Caring for material possessions• Basic behavior/social skills may have not been taught• Fear of connecting and building relationships• Not used to structure• Trauma may be impacting reactions/decisions• Motivation is challenging
• KNOW WHO YOUR STUDENTS IN FOSTER CARE ARE!
FEDERAL REGULATIONS
• Fostering Connections• FERPA•Uninterrupted Scholars Act
FOSTERING CONNECTIONS
• In 2008, federal legislation was passed called The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act. • This Act requires Child Welfare to make certain
assurances for children in their care which include:• Consideration of foster care placement to continue school
stability and Best Interest of the Child.• Immediate enrollment and timely transfer of school
records.• Allows IV-E funds to be used for school transportation.
FERPA
• Gives parents and eligible students the right to access and seek to amend education records• Protects personally identifiable information (PII)
from education records from unauthorized disclosure• Written consent is required to disclose PII- unless
an exception applies
WHAT ARE THE EXCEPTIONS TO CONSENT?
Some of the exceptions include:• School officials with legitimate educational interests• Schools in which a student seeks or intends to
enroll• State and local officials pursuant to a State statute
in connection with serving the student under the juvenile justice system
• To comply with a judicial order or subpoena• Audits, evaluations, and studies• Directory Information• Health and safety emergencies• …and now…
THE UNINTERRUPTED SCHOLARS ACT
• A new exception to FERPA• Passed Congress with bipartisan support,
effective January 14, 2013• Supported by U.S. Department of Education and
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services• Referred to in Congress as The A+ Act
WHAT HAS CHANGED IN FERPA?
• FERPA unintentionally created obstacles for children in foster care to receive needed educational supports• USA now allows schools to release a child’s
education records to child welfare agencies without the prior written consent of the parents
TO WHOM CAN SCHOOLS RELEASE RECORDS?
• The new amendment permits schools to release education records to “an agency caseworker or other representative of a state or local child welfare agency, or tribal organization” who has the right to access a student’s case plan, and when the agency or organization is “legally responsible” for the child’s “care and protection.”
AND THAT MEANS…?
• All students in the custody of DHS, including:• Temporary Custody• Voluntary Custody• Permanent Custody
*Custody can include both In-Home or out of Home Placements*
• Child Welfare can only redisclose educational records obtained through this exception to “an individual or entity engaged in addressing the student’s education needs”.
WHAT IS A CASE WORKER?
• Self Sufficiency• Vocational Rehab• Developmental Disabilities• Child Welfare• Difference between DD foster care & Child Welfare
foster care• DD foster care w/ CW custody• DD foster care w/out CW custody
FOSTER CARE CON’T
• What are the roles of a child’s team?• Caseworker• Foster parent• Child’s Attorney• CASA• Parent• Independent Living Provider• DD CaseworkerWho has the education decision making rights?
WHAT CAN SCHOOLS DO?
• Host a welcome meeting for the child’s team• Tour of the school• Review DHS letter• Identify Special Needs
• Have a place readily available if a team member needs to meet with the child during the school day
• Communication is critical! • Child Welfare can release information relevant to education
purposes
• Prior to removal from school or other discipline issues, the team needs to come together
• Support culturally responsive needs of the foster families
WHAT CAN SCHOOLS DO?
• Costs of School Events/Activities
• Post-secondary Resources
• Independent Living
• The foster parent is the parent…treat them that way
FOSTER CARE CON’T
• How does a school know a child is in foster care?• Copy of DHS letter
• Enrollment Process• Foster Parent Enrollment• Free & Reduced Lunch eligibility• DHS Forms• Alternative Education Programs
• What is the school’s responsibility by law?• Records Transfer• Immediate Enrollment
BEST INTEREST, RESIDENCY, AND TRANSPORTATION CONNECTIONS
• A student is not AUTOMATICALLY eligible to stay in their school of origin• However, this must be the first consideration
• Best interest finding determines residency• Residency determines responsibility• Transportation• FAPE• Assessment• Attendance and Graduation
• Without a BIF, confusion occurs
ORS 339.133- RESIDENCY
(4)(a) Notwithstanding subsection (3) of this section, when a juvenile court determines that it is in a child’s best interest to continue to attend the school that the child attended prior to placement by a public agency, the child:(A) Shall be considered resident for school purposes in the school district in which the child resided prior to the placement; and(B) May continue to attend the school the child attended prior to the placement through the highest grade level of the school.(b) The public agency that has placed the child shall be responsible for providing the child with transportation to and from school when the need for transportation is due to the placement by the public agency.(c) Paragraph (b) of this subsection applies only to a public agency for which funds have been designated for the specific purpose of providing a child with transportation to and from school under this subsection.
FOSTER CARE AND MCKINNEY VENTO
• Students in the custody of DHS and residing in a foster placement are not CURRENTLY eligible for MV
• When a foster child MIGHT be eligible for MV:• Runaway from foster placement• DHS custody but living in a homeless shelter• DHS custody but living with parents in a MV approved
homeless situation.
EMERGENCIES
• What happens when the school needs to contact DHS immediately?• Foster Parent• Caseworker• Worker of the Day or Person In Charge• http://www.oregon.gov/dhs/children/pages/localoffices.aspx
SCENARIO 1
• Student is placed in a foster home outside of your school boundaries, 45 minutes away. The Court made a best interest finding to keep the student attending his school of origin (You!).
• You are a small, rural school district with only 3 school buses, and no other obvious options for transportation to pick up the student each morning.
• What could you/the team do?
SCENARIO 2
• Your registrar has contacted you and explained that a student’s CASA came in and requested copies of the student’s grades for planning purposes.
• What could you/the team do?
SCENARIO 3
• A foster parent contacts your and informs you that their child has runaway from the foster placement and is staying with friends. You look up attendance and find the student has been out of school for the past 9 days.
• What could you/the team do?
SCENARIO 4
• You have a foster student graduating this year. What are some steps your team could take to support this transition?
CURRENT WORK
• ODE and DHS working through a Joint Agreement addressing Education of Kids in Foster Care• Researching options for data sharing between
ODE and DHS• Creation of Foster Care Page on ODE site• Transportation Changes
QUESTIONS & CONTACT
Melissa GloverSpecial Education Program AssistantSalem-Keizer School DistrictPhone: (503) [email protected]
Catherine Stelzer, MSWDHS, Education Program CoordinatorPhone: (503) [email protected]
Cynthia RichardsonNorth Salem High School, PrincipalSalem-Keizer School DistrictPhone: 503-399-3241
