US: Many youths become homeless when they age out of foster care. It almost happened to me (Includes video) (Commentary)
Today & NBC News – October 20, 2022
Every year tens of thousands of youths age out of the U.S. foster care system. In 1995, I became one of them on my 18th birthday. I had been placed in foster care as a teenager after experiencing abuse in the home of a biological parent. Even after gaining a safer environment, it was difficult for me to imagine turning 18. That started to change the year beforehand; after I was accepted to UPenn, I very naively thought I was in the clear. After a rocky childhood filled with uncertainty and insecurity, it felt like my life was finally beginning to smooth out and take shape: I just had to make it through the spring and summer, when I would defeat the odds by not only graduating from high school but heading off to an Ivy League university. (According to the National Foster Youth Institute, only 50% of foster kids graduate high school, and just 3% to 4% graduate from a four-year college.) But my hopes of a seamless transition were dashed the day after my high school graduation in California. As I was loading my laundry into the washer, my foster mother came out of her room to inform me that she wanted me to leave. She gave little explanation other than that, in her view, I had to go. It was the only foster home I’d ever been in and suddenly I felt as though all my fears were coming true and all my dreams were ruined. (Part of NBC News’ Series, “Unprotected: Inside the Child Welfare Crisis.”)
Also: What it’s like to age out of the foster care system (Video): https://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/what-it-s-like-to-age-out-of-the-foster-care-system-150518853511
Also: Unprotected: Aging out of foster care (Part 1) (Video): https://www.nbcnews.com/video/unprotected-aging-out-of-foster-care-part-1-150512709768
Also: Unprotected: Aging out of foster care (Part 2) (Video): https://www.nbcnews.com/video/unprotected-aging-out-of-foster-care-part-2-150529093671
https://www.today.com/parents/essay/foster-care-aging-out-homelessness-rcna53014