Wisconsin Educational Collaboration for Youth in Foster Care John Elliott Hilary Shager April 25 th, 2013

Wisconsin Program Lead Agency: Wisconsin Department of Children and Families, Division of Safety and Permanence The Division of Safety and Permanence (DSP) is the division of the state agency responsible for oversight of child protective services and foster care. Wisconsin is a county administered state supervised child welfare system except DSP directly operates child welfare services in Milwaukee County through the Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare (BMCW). Partners: The Department of Public Instruction is the Wisconsin state agency responsible for K-12 education. Madison Public Schools is the school district in the second largest urban center in Wisconsin. Dane County Human Services administers the CPS system for Madison, WI. 2

Wisconsin Educational Collaboration for Youth in Foster Care Project/Program Overview The purpose of this project is to use data to improve educational outcomes for children. The short term goal of this effort is to build an infrastructure that will lay the groundwork to track trends in child-, school-, district-, and state-level outcomes. The long term goal for this effort is to specifically target educational needs of children in out-of-home care, ultimately leading to improved educational outcomes for youth in out-of-home care. Target Population for the data analysis and interventions proposed in this grant will be children in out-of-home care who are enrolled in Madison public middle and high schools, with an emphasis on children moving from middle to high school, a critical transitional period, especially for children in out-of- home care. 3

Wisconsin Educational Collaboration for Youth in Foster Care Project/Program Overview The Wisconsin Project will focus on the following key aspects: 1.Data Sharing: Build model data sharing agreements between DCF and DPI and in localities. 2.Communication: Increase local strategic coordination and communication between county child welfare workers and schools by developing a local- level data sharing portal and developing an early warning system for children facing educational challenges. 3.Policy and Intervention: Increase identification, enrollment, and attendance of targeted youths in care into comprehensive, high-quality education services and multi-disciplinary interventions that increase protective factors and decrease risk factors to improve outcomes for youths in foster care. 4.Research and Reporting: Develop state-wide research agenda and reports to evaluate and improve upon the educational outcomes of children in out- of-home care.

Evaluation Approach: Process Evaluation 5 Key research questions 1)Did the project increase strategic coordination and communication between DCF and DPI by building on initial state-level data sharing agreements? 2)Did the project increase strategic coordination and communication between county child welfare workers and schools by developing a local-level data sharing portal? 3)Did the project support the development of policies, procedures, and practices to increase the identification, enrollment, and attendance of targeted youths in care into comprehensive, high-quality education services and multi-disciplinary interventions that increase protective factors and decrease risk factors to improve outcomes for youth in foster care?

Evaluation Approach, Continued Key Data Sources Implementation data Tracking of inputs and outputs Whether project goals were met in a timely fashion Successes, challenges, and lessons learned Administrative data Child welfare data from eWiSACWIS Educational data from the DPI’s longitudinal data system Survey data Survey of school staff and county child welfare workers Pre-/post- for participating pilot county; broader sample for informing portal build Qualitative data Focus groups with school staff and county child welfare workers Interviews with project staff

Expected Opportunities and Challenges Key Opportunities Collaboration is currently inconsistent. This project will provide uniform access to education records and allow for a more consistent, collaborative approach. Increased communication between schools, social workers, foster and birth parents to help foster children achieve educational success. Development of statewide models for data sharing to make it simple for local school districts and county child-welfare agencies to share education data. Opportunity for local schools districts to gain a better understanding of the challenges and potential trauma foster kids may have experienced through the Casey Family Program Endless Dreams program. Development of ongoing research agenda and tracking of educational outcomes for children in foster care to inform better policy and practice. Key Challenges Availability and time of teachers and school administrators Utilize grant funds and other resources to “buy-out” teacher time Developing practical practices and procedures for social workers and teachers Involve teachers and social workers in the development of a simple and practical guide Involving foster and birth parents in the process Solicit feedback from foster and birth parents Concentration of students for a pilot in an individual school Identify a few schools with the ability to participate 7

Sustainability & Dissemination Plans Key Sustainability Efforts Development of model data sharing agreements that will be distributed to local schools districts and county child welfare agencies Development of practical desk guides for teachers/schools and social workers Implementation of the education data portal state- wide with long-term plans to integrate with our SACWIS system Development of state-wide quarterly reports on key educational indicators for youths in foster care and incorporation of key educational outcomes into the department’s KidStat (performance management) program Key Dissemination Efforts Communicate progress and success through various child welfare and education conferences, meetings, seminars, etc. Disseminate data sharing models, practice guides and other key information to child welfare agencies and local school districts Develop statewide online toolkit 8

Questions for fellow CWED Grantees? How are you engaging teachers and schools in your programs? How are you involving foster parents and birth parents? How are other grantees involving youths in foster care in their projects? Are there any examples of guidelines or manuals about using educational data developed for child welfare workers? 9