LEXINGTON, Ky. — Each year, more than 500 young people in Kentucky age out of the foster care system. Because they have not found permanency through parental reunification, permanent legal custody, or adoption, these youth are often left with few safety nets. Years of out-of-home care and the instability of multiple placements means they frequently do not have the skills needed to successfully transition to independent living.
Compared to their peers, foster youth are less likely to know how to interview for a job, manage a budget, locate housing, or pay bills. This leaves them at a serious disadvantage and puts them at higher risk of unemployment and homelessness.
Enter the Fostering Success and Earn and Learn programs at the University of Kentucky College of Social Work. Housed in the College’s Training Resource Center, these programs actively seek to empower current and former foster youth to create their own journey to self-sufficiency and stability.
The 10-week Fostering Success Program is a workforce development initiative aimed at current and former foster youth between the ages 18 and 23. The statewide program is structured to provide youth with the opportunity to develop on-the-job skills through a paid internship at a local business or Department of Community Based Services (DCBS) office. Participants are matched with Job Coaches who assist them with professional development and career planning support.
“Young people aging out of the foster care system have a need for both job readiness skills and financial resources in the current employment market and economic climate,” Linda Smith, Fostering Success and Earn and Learn program coordinator, said. “Kentucky employers are struggling to find both qualified and job-ready applicants and thus are embracing the opportunity to partner with this program to develop untapped labor markets.”
The Fostering Success Program is foundationally rooted in the premise that employment, education, and training best occur along a wholistic continuum, and thus positively impact the challenges former foster youth face.
Earn and Learn, launched in 2020 as a subset of the Fostering Success Program, provides the opportunity for current and former foster youth to boost their earning potential through the completion of short-term vocational training, or by completing their GED. Earn and Learn participants receive support in selecting a vocational program for a high-demand job that matches their skill set and interests.
Earn and Learn is a key component of Fostering Success as it increases the number of current and former foster youth obtaining post-secondary credentials across the state. Because education and employment are integral to reducing the likelihood of homelessness and poverty among former foster youth, earning these credentials will increase young adults’ capacity to earn a living wage and live independently.
“Some of these individuals have never had jobs or never thought they could pursue a higher education,” said Smith. “We try to match them with their interests and offer options that will hopefully lead to long term employment. Through these programs, we hope to provide meaningful experiences and teachable moments.”
