PRINTER'S NO. 2848
No. 2032 Session of 2007
INTRODUCED BY HICKERNELL, SHIMKUS, BASTIAN, BEAR, BISHOP, BOYD,
CAPPELLI, CARROLL, CAUSER, CUTLER, DENLINGER, FLECK, GEIST,
GINGRICH, HANNA, HARHART, HENNESSEY, HERSHEY, M. KELLER,
KENNEY, LEACH, LENTZ, MACKERETH, MAJOR, MANN, R. MILLER,
MURT, O'NEILL, PALLONE, PAYTON, RAPP, ROSS, SAYLOR, SIPTROTH,
STERN, THOMAS, TRUE, VULAKOVICH, WATSON AND YOUNGBLOOD,
NOVEMBER 14, 2007
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH, NOVEMBER 14, 2007
AN ACT
1 Providing for financial assistance to foster youth and youth
2 adopted from the foster care system; reducing the long-term
3 costs for taxpayers by enhancing opportunities for youth who
4 are or have been in substitute care; assisting youth who are
5 and have been in substitute care by making college
6 accessible; and encouraging the adoption of youth from
7 substitute care by assisting families with the financing of
8 postsecondary education.
9 The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
10 (a) Findings.--The General Assembly makes the following
11 findings and declarations:
12 (1) Children who live in substitute care are abused and
13 neglected individuals for whom the State has assumed parental
14 responsibility. Although foster care is designed to reunite
15 those children when appropriate with their parents, or place
16 those children with an adoptive family, many children are
17 neither reunited with their families nor adopted. Many of the
18 youth who grow up in the system leave unprepared to sustain
1 themselves independently. As a result, a disproportionate
2 number of former foster youth are homeless, dependent on
3 public assistance and unemployed. They are much less likely
4 to enter and complete college than their peers.
5 (2) Nationally and in Pennsylvania, supporting
6 postsecondary aspirations of citizens results in a great
7 benefit to the individual and society. In this Commonwealth,
8 individuals who pursue postsecondary education on average
9 earn incomes that are two times that of a high school
10 graduate and over three times higher than an individual
11 without a high school diploma. In 2003, only 3.3% of the
12 individuals with a bachelor's degree were unemployed and
13 under 1% of these individuals relied on any form of public
14 assistance.
15 (3) In this Commonwealth, there are more than 22,000
16 youth in foster care. Every year more than 1,000 age out of
17 foster care.
18 (4) Only 50% of foster youth graduate from high school,
19 compared to 70% of their peers.
20 (5) While more than 60% of high school graduates enter
21 college each year, less than 20% of foster youth in this
22 Commonwealth enroll in college.
23 (6) While the foster youth college enrollment rate is
24 extremely low, the college drop-out rate for foster youth is
25 extremely high. Studies show that while few former foster
26 youth enroll in college, even fewer go on to earn a degree.
27 One of the critical hurdles for this student population to
28 overcome is finding the financial resources to fund their
29 education.
30 (7) Emancipated foster youth, who do not have parents to
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1 rely on for support and guidance, suffer unique disadvantages
2 compared with other students. While many students are
3 preoccupied with academic pressures, the primary concerns
4 cited by foster youth are the absence of family support and
5 the fear of not having any place to go on holidays and school
6 breaks. Emancipated foster youth need emotional support and
7 specialized resources from sensitive university staff who
8 understand the circumstances and pressing needs of foster
9 youth so that they can successfully complete their education.
10 (8) In Pennsylvania in 2004, of the youth between the
11 ages of 16 and 21 who were discharged from the child welfare
12 system, only 77 were adopted. Approximately 4,000 youth in
13 the child welfare system are still waiting to be adopted.
14 Many families cite the loss of postsecondary educational
15 benefits to youth as a barrier to adoption. Youth who are
16 adopted out of the foster care system face many of the
17 challenges of emancipated foster youth. While they have found
18 permanency through a family, they struggle with barriers to
19 college enrollment and retention. These youth should not have
20 to choose between a family and a postsecondary education. By
21 supporting a youth adopted out of foster care in pursuing
22 postsecondary educational goals, we provide an incentive to
23 the adoption of youth from the foster care system.
24 (b) Declaration.--The General Assembly finds that youth
25 emancipated from foster care and adopted from the foster care
26 system face significant and unique barriers to pursuing higher
27 education and attaining their full educational capability. To
28 effectively combat the forces that prevent these youth from
29 pursuing and completing a postsecondary program, the General
30 Assembly declares that programs shall be created to provide
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1 targeted outreach to foster youth to encourage college
2 attendance, assistance to them in applying for college,
3 assistance to retain youth in college and financial assistance
4 to pay for college so that these youth have the opportunity.
5 (c) Intent.--The intent of this act is to do all of the
6 following:
7 (1) Provide financial assistance to foster youth and
8 youth adopted from the foster care system to overcome the
9 financial barriers related to higher education.
10 (2) Reduce the long-term costs for taxpayers by
11 enhancing opportunities for youth who are or have been in
12 substitute care.
13 (3) Assist youth who are and have been in substitute
14 care by making college accessible and thus contributing to
15 the likelihood of their educational success and economic
16 self-sufficiency.
17 (4) Encourage the adoption of youth from substitute care
18 by assisting families with the financing of postsecondary
19 education.
20 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
21 hereby enacts as follows:
22 Section 1. Short title.
23 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Fostering
24 Independence Through Education Act.
25 Section 2. Definitions.
26 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
27 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
28 context clearly indicates otherwise:
29 "Adoption." Adoptions of youth who have been in the care and
30 custody of the county child welfare agency and in substitute
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1 care.
2 "Agency." The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance
3 Agency.
4 "County agency." The term as defined under 23 Pa.C.S. § 6303
5 (relating to definitions).
6 "Dependent child." The term as defined under 42 Pa.C.S. §
7 6302 (relating to definitions).
8 "State postsecondary educational institutions." All State-
9 owned universities, State-related and State-aided colleges and
10 universities, trade schools and community colleges.
11 "Substitute care." The term includes any placement
12 authorized by the court for a dependent child or a child with
13 dual case management from the dependency and delinquency
14 systems.
15 Section 3. Tuition waiver.
16 (a) Establishment.--There is established a tuition and fee
17 waiver program for youth in substitute care before, on or after
18 the effective date of this section.
19 (b) Award.--The governing bodies of all State postsecondary
20 educational institutions shall make provisions for institutions
21 under their respective jurisdictions to award a tuition and fee
22 waiver for undergraduate courses at State postsecondary
23 educational institutions for all eligible persons under this
24 section.
25 (c) Eligibility.--In order to receive a tuition and fee
26 waiver under this section, a person shall meet all of the
27 following requirements:
28 (1) Shall be at least 16 years of age but under 23 years
29 of age and be in or have been in substitute care for no less
30 than 30 days, including any of the following:
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1 (i) Have been placed in substitute care as a
2 dependent child at any time while 16 years of age or
3 older.
4 (ii) Have been placed in substitute care and had
5 shared case management through the dependency and
6 delinquency system.
7 (iii) Have been adopted from the substitute care
8 system as a dependent child.
9 (iv) Are participating in the tuition and fee waiver
10 program on their 21st birthday, until they reach 23 years
11 of age.
12 (2) Have graduated from high school or received a
13 general educational development diploma or the equivalent.
14 (3) Maintained satisfactory progress as defined by the
15 State postsecondary educational institution attended.
16 (4) Have first applied for all Federal and State grants
17 prior to having the remaining tuition and fees waived.
18 (d) Accessibility.--The governing bodies of all State
19 postsecondary educational institutions shall work with the
20 agency as well as the Department of Labor and Industry and the
21 Department of Public Welfare to ensure that eligible youth
22 access all available Federal and State grants.
23 Section 4. Outreach.
24 (a) Duties of Department of Public Welfare.--The Department
25 of Public Welfare, in conjunction with the Department of
26 Education, shall do all of the following:
27 (1) Prepare information to be disseminated by county
28 agencies and the Department of Education that describes the
29 availability of the program established under this act.
30 (2) Ensure that identified emancipated foster youth are
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1 informed of services and programs under the act of August 31,
2 1971 (P.L.423, No.101), known as the Higher Education Equal
3 Opportunity Act.
4 (b) Duties of State postsecondary educational
5 institutions.--State postsecondary educational institutions
6 shall do all of the following:
7 (1) Assist the Department of Public Welfare and the
8 Department of Education in the preparation of information
9 that describes the availability of the program established
10 under this act.
11 (2) Provide technical assistance to prospective eligible
12 students in completing admissions applications and financial
13 aid applications.
14 Section 5. Retention.
15 To improve retention, the governing bodies of all State
16 postsecondary educational institutions shall do all of the
17 following:
18 (1) Track the retention rates of students that
19 voluntarily disclose to the State postsecondary educational
20 institution their status as a former foster youth.
21 (2) Provide technical assistance and advice on ways in
22 which to improve the delivery of services to eligible
23 students.
24 (3) Annually review and identify impediments to
25 retaining eligible students, including housing for those
26 emancipated youth living in college dormitories.
27 Section 6. Report.
28 In order to determine the effectiveness of this act, the
29 Department of Public Welfare, with the assistance of the
30 Department of Education, shall collect information obtained from
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1 all State postsecondary educational institutions and prepare a
2 report to be submitted annually to the General Assembly that
3 contains all of the following:
4 (1) Information relating to the participation of
5 qualified students under this act.
6 (2) Retention rates of those students who are
7 participating under this act.
8 (3) Identification of impediments to retaining eligible
9 students.
10 (4) Strategies to address the impediments identified
11 under paragraph (3).
12 Section 20. Effective date.
13 This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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