Child welfare agencies, courts, and local education agencies are just some of the entities that must work together to ensure positive educational outcomes for children and youth in out-of-home care. Though every discipline has a distinct role to play in supporting young people, effective collaborations are the foundation for services and supports to effectively meet the needs of the whole child. The following resources provide additional information about how these agencies can develop and maintain strong partnerships.
Children at Risk in the Child Welfare System: Collaborations to Promote School Readiness: Final Report (PDF - 1,730 KB)
Catherine E. Cutler Institute for Child and Family Policy & Oldham Innovative Research (2009)
Provides analysis of data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being. The report also includes data from a case study in Colorado involving interviews with key stakeholders and statewide surveys of caseworkers and foster parents to examine how collaborations between the child welfare, early intervention/preschool special education, and early care and education services systems meet the developmental needs of children ages 0 to 5 years who are involved in the child welfare system.
Child Welfare - Education System Collaborations to Increase Educational Stability Discretionary Grant Cluster
Child Welfare Information Gateway
Catalogs programs that were funded through Children's Bureau discretionary grants to support collaborative initiatives between State, local, or Tribal child welfare agencies and education systems to improve educational stability and permanency outcomes for youth between the ages of 10 and 17 in the child welfare system.