By Lorrie Ross
Staff Writer
For many years, kids living in North Carolina foster care were not considered to be part of the foster system once they turned 18. Meanwhile, many had not even graduated from high school at their 18th birthday, let alone be ready to live on their own.
Then in 2017, Foster Care 18 to 21 began. This voluntary program offers support as youth transition from foster care into adulthood. It provides opportunities for youth to be more successful and have their needs met for better well-being by helping with things like budgeting, housing, employment and school.
According to Nicole Byrne, Links Social Worker for Clay County Department of Social Services, Clay County currently has four young adults who have voluntarily entered the 18-21 program. “We anticipate a fifth young adult to enter the program on their birthday later this month,” she said.
One young person who is part of Clay County’s 18 to 21 program shared her personal insight. “For the longest time, I never thought I could continue being involved with DSS even after I aged out, but that soon changed,” she said. “Aging out of the system with little to no help from certain people you wish could give it to you can be hard. I’ll be 21 this year and the 18-21 program has helped me tremendously over the past couple of years. Sure, you may have to meet with your social worker every so often, but they are there to help. No matter how you look at them, they only want what’s best for you and do what their job is titled to do.”
Byrne has all four members of the 18 to 21 program in her caseload and she expects program participation to stay around the same. “This is the highest number of 18-21 young adults we’ve had in the program in the four years I have been in Clay County,” she said. “I think for the next few years at least, we will see the number remain about the same. We have some foster children that will be turning 18 and then some of our young adults will be turning 21.”
According to Byrne, those who have turned 18 while still in high school stay with their current foster families until graduation. “It is ultimately up to the young adult once they turn 18, but we often encourage them to stay in their placement if it is an option for the added support as they finish school,” she said.
Participants remain with the same social worker they had before they were 18. “They often already have a rapport with the worker and the worker knows the young adults strengths and weaknesses,” Byrne explained. “We help with all aspects of being young adults, such as college applications, budgeting, career planning, FASFA, Job Searches etc.”
As part of the Foster Care 18 to 21 program, participants are provided phone service, resource referral and other valuable assets. However, they also have certain work and educational requirements after high school graduation. “We also connect them with Youth Villages LifeSet Program which assigns a counselor that meets with them weekly starting at 17 and they stay with them for a year,” Byrne added. “They generally follow them until after their 18th birthday.”
DSS staff assists the young people with finding housing and getting settled. Some have found their own housing while others have two local options: Baptist Children’s Home operates an 18-21 house and there is one in Peachtree. “We do help our young adults move as needed and provide them with support and connections as they start navigating the adult world,” Byrne said. “Our young adults are incredible individuals and they do really well at utilizing the community resources and making connections with other supportive adults in the community.”
As part of this transition, the young people have the same household and other needs as anyone moving into their first place. “We have two young adults who are already in their own places and we have already provided them with care packages,” she explained. “We have two more young adults that will be getting their own place this month, so we hope to be able to provide them with care packages when they move in to their new apartments.”
The community is invited to help fill these ongoing needs. Byrne and others at DSS have created an Amazon Wishlist which items may be ordered from and sent directly to DSS. “The best way to find the Amazon Wishlist Link is through the Fostering Clay County NC Facebook page,” Byrne said. For those not on Facebook, the link is: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1QQKY3WSG4LDF?ref_=wl_share.
For those who would like to help in some way besides using Amazon, Byrne offered these options. “We would certainly take donations at the DSS office,” she said. “We are looking for those items we all need when we are just starting out in life: cleaning supplies, pots and pans, baking sheets, towels, blankets, food storage, oven mitts and more.”
In addition, monetary donations may be made to Hearts for Kids and Seniors at the Clay County DSS office. For specific questions, call Clay County DSS at (828) 389-6301, and ask for Byrne.
Research from the National Youth in Transition Database, 2019, shows young people who leave former foster care are more likely to be homeless, unemployed or a low income, have no high school diploma and be incarcerated compared to the general population. Clay County Department of Social Services Director Todd Goins agrees this program is helpful. “The Foster Care 18-21 program launched in North Carolina in 2017 gives an opportunity for young people transitioning out of foster care on their 18th birthday to choose to continue to receive support through DSS,” he said. “That transition to adulthood can be abrupt and really difficult for many of us — this program helps young people with everyday independent living skills, such as budgeting, housing, employment and school. The program gives the young person more options if they choose to use it.”
The young woman quoted earlier ended with this. “If you’re thinking about joining the program, do it. In fact, I encourage you to so. It’s life changing.”
Visit Foster Care 18 to 21: A Path To Permanency: https://www.ncfostercare.org.