Children in foster care face so many challenges. One of the most recurring is maintaining quality education. Many of you are aware that New Jersey passed the Education Stability Law in 2010 to assist children in foster care.

Photo by Anissa Thompson

The law recognizes how chaotic a foster child’s life can be. School should be a foundation for the child’s socialization skills, providing balance against tragic experiences such as neglect or abuse.

New Jersey seeks to assure that there is little if any disruption in the education of the child. Children in foster care should be able to participate in school related activities. Location and transportation are addressed in the New Jersey statute.

This ongoing effort of The Department of Children & Family (DCF), Department of Education (DOE) and Office of the Child Advocate (OCA) is akin to the FAFS Philosophy, “Children in foster care are the community’s children with the same hopes and dreams of all children.” A positive educational atmosphere is a key for every child achieving his/her dreams.

Thoughts on the Importance of Helping Children in Foster Care Maintain a Quality Education

In order to support resource parents, regardless of where they live, in their efforts to ensure the children they foster maintain a quality education, we thought we would share this national article on Helping Your Foster Child Succeed In School by Dr. John DeGarmo on kidspeace.org.

From Dr. DeGarmo’s website: Dr. John DeGarmo has a B.A. in History, a Masters in Media Technology, a Masters in Educational Leadership, and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership. Dr. DeGarmo wrote his dissertation on The Challenges that Foster Children Face While in Rural Schools and is the author of Fostering Love: One Foster Parent’s Journey. Dr. DeGarmo is also a speaker and trainer on the foster care system and is a regular contributor to several publications on the topic. He has recently published The Foster Parenting Manual: A Practical Guide to Creating a Loving, Safe, and Stable Home from Jessica Kinglsey Publishers.

We hope you are enriched by his work. Read Helping Your Foster Child Succeed In School by Dr. John DeGarmo.