What Is Aging Out Essay

According to the National Foster Youth institute, “More than 23,000 children age out of the US foster care system every year.”() Aging out is the process of a teens transitioning from the legal control of the foster care system, to independent living. Youth aging out of foster care should be given an extension on foster care services after the age of 18, because it provides a stable home for teens, it increases the amount of college graduates and it provides healthcare for those in need.

Each year, an estimated 20,000 young people "age out" of the U.S. foster care system. Many are only 18 years old and still need support and services (. Several studies show that without a lifelong connection to a caring adult, this older youth are often left vulnerable to a host of adverse situations. Compared to other youth in the United States, kids who age out of foster care are more likely to not have completed high school or received a GED, they often suffer from mental health problems, many are unemployed and live in poverty, and nearly 40% become homeless.

For many teenagers, their 18th birthday is an exciting time in their lives. They are finally becoming a legal adult, and are free from the rules and restrictions created under their parents. But not all teens feel the same joy about this coming of age. For the hundreds of thousands of children living in foster care in the United States, this new found freedom brings anxiety and fear. Where will they live after turning 18? How will they get the medications they may need? How will they find a job with little to no experience? How will they put themselves through school? Aging out of foster care is a serious issue among America’s youth. Every year, 20,000 children will age out with nowhere to go, being expected to be able to survive on their

The purpose of this paper is four-fold: 1) briefly discuss eight peer reviewed research articles outlining the challenges youth face as they age out of the foster care system; 2) identify and describe the common theories which appear throughout the studies, including any similarities or differences; 3) elaborate on which theories best relate to the issues

The second problem hindering foster care is that teens that are placed in group homes often age out of the system without proper support. When placed into group homes, children and especially teens are left without the chance to connect with a permanent, adoptive family and the connections to create a supportive system. Unfortunately, the reality of aging out of the system is pretty upsetting. One in five teens who have aged out of the system will become homeless, more than 40% of these teen won’t complete high school and within two years of leaving foster care, one in four will end up tangled up in the justice system.

Youth aging out of foster care are one of the most disadvantaged populations in the United States. Unlike other young people in the general population who continue to live with family and receive support and financial assistance, foster youth transitioning into adulthood often struggle just to obtain and maintain general needs. Apart from the trauma associated with the history of abuse or neglect, foster youth are put in a circumstance that expect them to become independent and self-sufficient immediately as they prepare to transition out of foster care. According to Courtney, Dworsky, Lee, and Raap, young people formerly in foster care, compared to the general population, experience significantly different outcomes in areas of education, employment,

Approximately 26,000 youth age-out of foster care at 18 each year. They lack a parental safety net and face significant challenges in meeting their needs for health care, education, housing, employment and emotional support. One attempt to mitigate their challenges focuses on raising the end age of foster care and continuing to provide support services. Even most any young adults rely on some parental assistance until 26, the U.S. average age of sustainable independence.

When a child is endangered in one’s own home, child protective services interfere to ensure the safety of the child. In some cases, when conditions at home are unfit regarding the safety of a child, foster placement occurs. Over a half million children within the United States reside in foster care. Out of these children, approximately 20,000 of them continue through their lives within the foster care system until the age of 18. This is referred to “aging out”. Once a child within the foster care system turns 18, they are no longer cared for by state or government agencies and must provide for themselves. For those who do age out of the foster care system, it is often that they find themselves lacking the necessary skills needed to make it on their own, which is often due to the lack of having a stable support system such as a family.

Each year in the United States, 24000 youth who were under the state care ago out of the system and get discharged because they have reached the legal age (pathway). The literature review indicated that 12 to 36 percent of this population will be homeless at some point after being discharged from the foster home. Among this population of the subgroup, permanency becomes issues. This study will look at the youth who aged out of the foster-care system and the likeliness of became homeless due to housing outcome, using the case study of aged out foster youth housing experience. The study will explore the causal relationship and other links that may contribute to housing instability and homelessness among young people who exit foster care once they reach the legal age (18-year-old). Some definitions have been created in trying to explain the outcome of housing instability.

In the foster care system, children under 18 are represented as 64% non-Hispanic whites, 16% Hispanic, 15% Black, 4% Asian, and 1% American Indian. (Scannapieco, Connell-Carrick, & Painter, 2007) Ageing out of the foster care systems means that when a child reaches the age of 18, or in some states 21, they are emancipated from the system. They are now independent adults and can no longer rely on the system for housing, medical care, educational or any means of support. What happens to children when they age out of the foster care system? Each year this is a situation for about 30,000 children that were living in the system and age out. (Richards. 2014) This means that 11% of all children living in foster care eventually age out. This is an

Youth aging out the foster care system is a major concern for social workers. In 2012 approximately 697,000 children spent time in the foster care system. Foster care is intended as a temporary solution while addressing the needs of the family of origin to ensure the safety and stability of children in need. On average these children spend 2.2 years in the foster care with 9% spending five or more years in an out of home placement. Between the ages of 18-21, depending on the state, a child “ages out” of the foster care system. Aging out.Those youth who are unable to attain permanency through programs such as adoption, splic and appla are forced to seek alternatives such as independent living . These youth may become homeless and face larger

Although the unique circumstances facing youth aging out of foster care have been discussed by researchers, policy makers, and clinicians for over 30 years, the more than 400,000 youth in US foster care are still not being adequately prepared for the challenges of adult living.1 In addition to educational deficiencies, employment challenges, and a lack of family support, the American Academy of Pediatrics has declared that one area of particular concern among former foster youth is their health.2 Studies have repeatedly found serious health challenges within this population, including increased likelihood of chronic health conditions, behavioral/mental health disorders,2 acute health problems,3 and unmet medical needs.4 Fortunately, steps have been taken to provide greater availability of health resources to these individuals. In addition to state-run Independent Living Programs that prepare foster youth for the challenges of adult

These obstacles consist of homelessness, lack of early parenthood involvement, difficulty completing their education or finding a job. The number of youth aging out of foster care continues to rise. When children cannot return home to their families, child welfare systems must move quickly to find alternative homes. As time goes by, finding a loving and supportive family gets dimmer for foster youth. Many will “age out” of the system when they turn 18 or 21 and may not have the support network and skills to become successful citizens in society. Those who aged out of foster care were less likely to attend or graduate college. By age 26, only 4% of youth who aged out of foster care had earned a 4-year college degree while 36 percent of youth in the general population had done so. This is attributed to factors such as school interruption, lack of supportive parenting and lack of educational and support services for children with special

Researchers used a longitudinal panel study in order to find a group of adolescents whom were leaving the welfare system and transitioning over to independent living. Out of 770 cases for older adolescents leaving the foster care system ages 17-18, 732 consented to be a part of the study (2013).

An estimated 1,200 Texas youth are emancipated (or age-out) from foster care each year because they reached the age of majority (Texas Department of Family and Protective Services [TDFPS], 2015). The abrupt discharge from foster care requires youth to assume adult responsibilities and become self-sufficient with limited or no support. This critical developmental period – the transition to adulthood –for former foster youth is characterized by an increased risk for bleak outcomes across key well-being indicators. These young people are more likely than their counterparts in the general population to experience poor physical health, mental health, and substance use outcomes (Brandford & English, 2004; Courtney et al. 2007; McMillen & Raghavan,