In 1999, the Foster Care Independence Act doubled the Federal funds for independent living programs. This research paper is from the Government Accountability Office and provides an overview of each State’s funding allocation, services provided, and State coordination of services. Through this research, GAO recommends that HHS actions could better prepare youth leaving foster care into independent living situations, such as improving access to program information.

Mental health-related emergency department visits range from two percent to five percent of all hospital emergency department visits for children and youth. This brief is from the National Center for Children in Poverty and outlines mental health services in emergency rooms for children. Authors provide an overview of the challenges with mental health related emergency room visits and offers recommendations for better serving children and youth in this environment.

Strategies to engage youth transitioning to adulthood is crucial to addressing needs such as education, employment, and mentoring. This report from the National League of Cities describes cross-system initiatives from eight cities across the country on supporting vulnerable youth. Specifically, Boston, Albany, and San Diego have developed creative partnerships across their cities to include a variety of public systems and agencies.

This report from the Government Accountability Office reviews how States are preparing youth in foster care for independent living. In 1999, the funding for independent living programs was increased to $140 million. GAO evaluated the funding allocations by State, the services provided, State coordination of programs to provide services, and the Administration for Children and Families' progress in meeting its accountability requirements.

This publication is part of a series on examining strategies for financing supports and services to assist youth in foster care transition into adulthood. This brief reviews financial education and asset building strategies to support youth aging out of foster care, including partner agencies and resources that communities can leverage to support youth.

This bulletin addresses the specific challenges of permanency planning with older youth and highlights successful strategies and programs from across the country. From the Child Welfare Information Gateway, recommendations include making kinship care a priority to improve permanency among older youth.

Engaging employers is key in supporting youth transition in the workforce and foster job retention and advancement. This paper, from the Center for Children at the University of Chicago, provides the findings from interviews with youth program providers, employers, and policy makers. Researchers conclude by identifying disconnects in the service delivery and offer recommendations on how providers can expand employer involvement.

This Web resource provides a wide range of resources on homelessness prevention for prisoners that include publications, best practices and programs, and policy and legislation briefs. One of the featured programs is entitled Polk County Decategorization that works in conjunction with the Iowa Department of Corrections and administers the youthful offender portion of the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Grant. The program provides a supportive and cohesive transition for juveniles aging out of the juvenile system and returning to the community.

This report identifies promising practices to provide assistance for foster parents as to work with youth preparing to live independently, as they age out of foster care.

This article reviews the foster care transition support for youth aging out of foster care in Michigan. The author summarizes outcomes for youth aging out of foster care, past literature, a State-by-State comparison of supports, and recommendations for the future in improving services to those transitioning out of foster care.