The Challenge of Foster Care
Annually a disturbing number of children find themselves placed in the foster care system.
As these children mature, they often feel they do not have a voice. They are subject to multiple residential placements as well as the accompanying academic disruptions. They can find themselves unprepared and disillusioned when they age out of the system.
What does foster care look like?
1. Approximately 30,000 children are currently in foster care in Los Angeles County. **
2. 38% of California’s foster care population lives in Los Angeles County. *
3. Abused and neglected children who are identified as victims in the past are 42% more likely to be abused and neglected again. The youngest children (from birth though age three) are most likely to experience a recurrence of maltreatment. *
4. Less than 50% of foster youth graduate from high school and only 3% from college. **
5. 50% of youth who have aged out of foster care end up homeless or incarcerated. **
6. Teen girls in foster care are 2.5 times more likely to become pregnant by age 19 than those not in foster care. **
7. More than 40% percent of babies born to foster youth will become a part of the foster care system before the age of nine years old.
The Biddy Mason Charitable Foundation believes the outcomes for many foster youth can be improved with more community-based support. There is no one agency that has the resources to impact the statistics cited above. The Biddy Mason Charitable Foundation believes collaborative and innovative programming can help to improve the lives of foster youth.
Reference notation:
* CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates)
** Alliance for Children’s Rights
