CLEARWATER, Fla. – (April 8, 2014) – Eckerd and Pasco County Public Schools have partnered together on an initiative called Fostering Education to bring specialized guidance counselors into local high schools and middle schools that are trained in child welfare issues to work with students in the foster care system with the primary goal of increasing graduation rates.
“Eckerd is confident a focused commitment to continuing the work of the specialized guidance counselors will continue to lead to increased education and well-being outcomes for children in foster care,” said Lorita Shirley Chief of Eckerd Community Alternatives.
Fostering Education began in Hillsborough County in 2010, and has since been expanded with approximately 400 middle and high school students in the Tampa Bay area, including Pasco County where high school senior Mark attends. Mark has been in foster care since 2007. His involvement in the Fostering Education program has deeply impacted him on a personal and an academic level. When Mark turned 18 in December, he literally had nowhere to live. A school secretary agreed to be his mentor and generously opened her home to him. Fostering Education is a support system for both her and Mark to best support his academic progress. Mark’s guidance counselor through the program has coordinated math tutoring, provided an opportunity to visit Pasco-Hernando State College and monitors his academic progress. Most notably, Mark expects to graduate with his class.
“The community partnership we have with Eckerd is essential to helping foster youth graduate high school as educated, productive citizens who have the social and emotional tools to succeed in life, college, and careers,” said Superintendent Kurt Browning.
Guidance counselors are co-funded in a cooperative effort between Eckerd and the school system. Eckerd provides office space for them where counselors are readily accessible to case management organizations to address the individual needs of the student. As school district employees, the counselors have the required skills and school-based access to meet with students and support staff at the students’ assigned school. All guidance counselors have in-depth child welfare experience in addition to their educational guidance expertise.
The Department of Children and Families publishes monthly scorecards that measure the 20 community based care lead agencies based on a series of performance indicators in child safety, permanency and well-being. Each scorecard has an educational component as part of the ranking system. Eckerd regularly places in the top 5 of the 20 Florida lead agencies and is currently in the top 3. Eckerd’s score is more than 80 percent, far exceeding the state goal of 65 percent success in the area of education.
“A top priority for the Department is educational success of our foster youth since that is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty and abuse,” said Mike Carroll, SunCoast Regional Director for the Department of Children and Families.
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About Eckerd:
Eckerd is a national nonprofit organization headquartered in Clearwater, Florida, that has given much-needed second chances to more than 150,000 children and families since its founding by Jack and Ruth Eckerd in 1968. Eckerd serves over 14,000 children and their families each year through a full continuum of life-changing behavioral health, juvenile justice and child welfare programs in seven states. Eckerd’s mission is to provide and share solutions that promote the well-being of children and families in need of a second chance. To learn more visit www.eckerd.org.
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