Extended Foster Care

Extending foster care services to young people beyond age 18 helps young people and their communities and is associated with positive outcomes — including high school completion, employment and reduced homelessness and young parenthood. Learn about what it takes to extend foster care the right way, and how states are making improvements to ensure a better path for young people transitioning from foster care to adulthood.

Featured Resources:

Supporting Older Youth Beyond Age 18: Examining Data and Trends in Extended Foster Care
This report from Child Trends delivers key findings on the benefits of extending foster care beyond age 18, as well as recommendations to ensure that the foster care system is responsive to the unique needs of young people transitioning to adulthood.

Success Beyond 18 Initiative
The campaign, launched in May 2013, aims to change the status quo, and give young people in foster care better opportunities to success in family, work and life. Resources include:

• A Better Path for Young People Transitioning From Foster Care to Adulthood
  This report outlines the policy and practice goals of the Success Beyond 18 campaign, which is focused on extended foster care done right.
• Extending Foster Care Beyond 18: Getting Started
  This resource provides guidance on structuring a planning process to consider critical design issues for extending foster care and to project the net fiscal impact of that extension.
• Quality Case Planning with Young Adults in Extended Foster Care
  This resource focuses on improving the case planning process to help young people build strong social networks and prepare them to enter adulthood with confidence and purpose.
• Extending Foster Care Beyond 18: Housing Options for Young Adults
  This resource details the array of housing options that states can consider as they plan to extend foster care beyond the age of 18.
• Re-examining the Foster Care Review Process: Extended Foster Care as a Catalyst for Improved Practices and Better Outcomes
  This brief outlines the key elements of the review process required by federal law for young adults in extended foster care and discusses important considerations for jurisdictions as they design and implement review processes consistent with the federal requirements.
• A Guide to Support the Implementation of Foster Care Beyond Age 18: Questions & Answers, Summary of Federal Fostering Connections Guidance and Perspectives from the Field
  This resource provides reliable information to help stakeholders interested and involved in implementing foster care beyond age 18 to maximize opportunities to help young people through extended care.

Cost Avoidance: The Business Case for Investing in Youth Aging Out of Foster Care
This issue brief provides an update on how cost savings can be achieved through investments in extended foster care for young people aging out of the system.

Foster Care to 12: Doing It Right
This issue brief provides a policy blueprint for extended foster care done right through authentic youth engagement and support from courts and other partners.