Children's Law Center of Los Angeles

Education Summit

Nearly three quarters of children in foster care currently perform below grade level, and nearly half have been held back in school. Forty-six per cent of foster youth fail to complete high school, compared with 16% of non-foster youth. Once they leave the foster care system, typically around age 18, more than half of foster youth are unemployed, almost a third will become homeless, and one in five will be incarcerated within two years.

Children’s Law Center was instrumental in establishing the first Los Angeles Education Summit in 2003 to identify problems and find solutions to address these dismaying outcomes. Educators, the judiciary, child welfare experts, advocates, youth, caregivers, and community leaders came together to identify key issues, challenges, and possible reforms related to the educational needs of foster youth in Los Angeles County.

The Summit was a significant achievement in itself, bringing together people who represent a variety of disciplines and a wide range of governmental systems. The Summit also underscored the need to break down the institutional walls that too often prevent the community from taking effective action. The resulting creation of the Education Coordinating Council (ECC) constituted a critical step in that direction and will facilitate the development of mechanisms that will enable our entire community, working together, to turn young lives around.

In 2004, recognizing that the educational roadblocks for probation youth mirror those faced by foster youth, the Summit expanded to examine the needs of both populations.

Our community is beginning to implement the many invaluable ideas generated by the dedicated participants at the Education Summits. The recommendations coming out of these gatherings provide a thoughtful and thorough guide for the Education Coordinating Council as it explores new and effective ways to move ahead and improve the educational achievement of our foster and probation youth.

For more information, see:

2003 Education Summit Report

2004 Education Summit Report

Progress to Date and the Challenges that Remain

Education Coordinating Council Concept Paper

ECC Fact Sheet

ECC History