{"id":64001,"date":"2018-07-17T13:45:48","date_gmt":"2018-07-17T19:45:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/colorado-legislation-aims-to-bolster-failing-foster-system\/"},"modified":"2018-07-17T19:45:48","modified_gmt":"2018-07-17T19:45:48","slug":"colorado-legislation-aims-to-bolster-failing-foster-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/colorado-legislation-aims-to-bolster-failing-foster-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Colorado legislation aims to bolster failing foster system"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Associated
Associated Press file<br><br>Reforms to Colorado's troubled foster care program take effect in August with the goal of revamping a system where kids graduate from high school at lower rates than homeless children.<\/span>du1-i-syn<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

DENVER \u2013 Sweeping legislative reforms to Colorado\u2019s troubled foster care program take effect in August with the goal of revamping a system where kids graduate from high school at lower rates than homeless children.<\/p>\n

Crafted with the help of foster parents as well as former foster kids who aged out of the system, the package of legislation aims to provide more stability for children, the majority of whom change schools at least once per year \u2013 to the detriment of their education.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers say it\u2019s among the most comprehensive package of reforms that has been attempted in the nation. And while foster care problems are pervasive across the U.S., Colorado\u2019s system is particularly challenged.<\/p>\n

In 2017, less than 1 in 4 foster kids in Colorado graduated high school in four years, according to the state Department of Education. That\u2019s worse than the rate for homeless kids, who graduate at a 56 percent clip in Colorado.<\/p>\n

Nationally, around half of foster kids graduate on time.<\/p>\n

Reggie Bicha, executive director of the Colorado Department of Human Services, points to instability as a key driver of the broader challenges foster kids face.<\/p>\n

Around 55 percent of Colorado\u2019s 6,500 foster children changed schools at least once last year. A Denver Post investigation published this spring found that more than 1,500 foster kids \u201caged out\u201d in the last five years \u2013 meaning they were emancipated without being adopted, reunified with a parent or set up with a legal guardian.<\/p>\n

Without a support system as they transition to adulthood, the Post found, these kids often wind up unemployed, homeless or in jail.<\/p>\n

\u201cToo many kids are set up to age out of the system,\u201d Bicha said. And \u201conce you\u2019re out, you\u2019re always out,\u201d he said, meaning those who find independence too challenging can\u2019t go back for help.<\/p>\n

One bill set to become law in August will provide a mechanism for 18- to 21 year-olds to re-enter care after they have been emancipated. Another provides funding to implement a 2015 federal law aimed at providing kids with transportation so they can stay in the same school, even if they move to a new district. It requires school districts and child welfare departments to work out the logistics.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers also passed a bill to allow foster parents to obtain medical and educational information for their foster child \u2013 records they can\u2019t obtain today.<\/p>\n

\u201cImagine providing foster care to a 10-year-old, but being told you can\u2019t get educational records, or can\u2019t get medical records,\u201d Bicha said.<\/p>\n

The administration, meanwhile, has committed to an ambitious goal of its own \u2013 recruiting enough new foster parents to close a projected shortfall of 1,200 caretakers within the next five years. Prospective foster parents and others who want to help can learn out more at co4kids.org.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

25 percent of foster kids graduate high school in four years<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":64002,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[13,28],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-64001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-frontpage-lead","tag-headlines"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64001"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64001\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64001"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=64001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}