Aged Out of Foster Care at 18, Where Do I Go?

This& post& was originally published on& Defender Network By Aswad Walker | Houston Defender | Word In Black (WIB) – The foster care system has its own litany of issues and challenges regarding the level of care provided to children in the system. And though good, loving foster parents have been a godsend for many youth, for many others the adults in the system (parents, system administrators, etc.) have facilitated nightmarish experiences. One foster care issue that deserves more attention is life after foster care once a youth has aged out. In Texas and nationwide, state and federal laws are supposed to protect foster youth until they turn 21, thanks to the 2008 Fostering Connections Act. This extended support was enacted as a response to the horror stories of 18-year-old youth who had some level of homelife at 17, but when their next birthday came, for many, so too did homelessness, hunger, sexual exploitation, and incarceration. The push to extend foster care beyond the age of 18 is designed to support teenagers “aging out” of the system who have no adults or family to rely on, providing them with financial assistance, housing, and casework support. Assistance Issues However, that assistance...