Introducing the Jim Casey Youth Postsecondary Collaborative

A new collaboration is developing between the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s (AECF) Child Welfare Strategy

From JCYO website

(CWSG) and Family Economic Success (FES) groups, Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative and Jobs for the Future to deepen the education and employment success of youth transitioning from foster care into adulthood. The collaboration is drawing on the expertise and networks of each of the 4 partners:

• Jim Casey Initiative’s place-based, cross sector collaboratives and its outcome-oriented focus on education and employment;

• AECF Economic Success’s youth economic success strategies for improved employment practice and program outcomes;

• AECF Child Welfare Strategy Group’s ability to take important lessons to scale in systems; and,

• Jobs for the Future expertise working with vulnerable populations in achieving youth postsecondary success including the Postsecondary Back on Track Model and Aspen Institute’s Opportunity Youth Incentive Fund. 

The collaboration will be focusing on five of the Jim Casey Initiative sites -- Iowa, Connecticut, North Carolina, New Mexico, and Maine. 

This work is going to be really important to informing the growing body of work on re-engagement and helping students make the successful transition to post-secondary education and training as it will help us understand specifically what needs to be in place to help youth in foster care.  According to the description of the collaboration, only 58% of young people leaving foster care will graduate high school by age 19 compared to 87% of all 19 year olds)  and less than 3% will have a college degree by the age of 25 (compared to 28% of all 25 year olds).^. In addition, only half will be employed by age 25, less than the national average for ages 16-24 years.  (See study Foster Youth Transitions for more information)

We need other specialized initiatives to look at specific populations that have much lower outcomes. We definitely need to focus with much more depth on African American young men to understand the impact of the special hurdles they face that accrue through patterns of institutional racism and discrimination in the workplace.