“It takes a village to raise a child,” this now, well-known African proverb aptly describes exactly what is needed in order to help transitioning teens from foster care to become happy, healthy and successful adults. Adults who some day will be raising the next generation.

While this proverb is also apropos for most kids growing up (with the help not just of parents and siblings, but from aunts, uncles, coaches, and ministers, etc.), it matters most when we talk about transitioning teens from out of home care.

Teens who age out of foster care at only 18, rarely have their own natural “village” around them any longer to continue to help them grow up. No more parents, foster parents, case workers, teachers, or therapists. In many cases, these courageous young people must begin adult life facing the world alone.

The most promising practices in the realm of independent living and transitional services know what is meant by “It takes a village to raise a child.” The most successful support systems for young people who age out of foster care are those community supports which are comprehensive, well funded, and extremely well coordinated. Just like the best village would be.

Over the following months, I will outline those practices essential to ensuring that “villages” around America are nurtured and developed with thoughtful attention given to transitioning teens and young people. A comprehensive array of support mechanisms must be in place (and many times actually are and are just not utilized effectively) in order to fully support the needs of a transitioning teen. From more formal, natural system components such as the secondary and higher education systems and local workforce assistance programs to more informal, naturally occurring support systems such as churches and synagogues and Boys and Girls Clubs.

For the sake of this discussion, a village will be defined by the smallest municipal entity which not only has the responsibility to ensure its citizens are taken care of, but the ability to do so as well. In the Child Welfare world, this may be a county, a specified district, or a large urban area.

Thus, the first step in ensuring that the full power of a village may be brought to bear in assisting transitioning teens is to know the good, the bad, and the ugly about the village. It is essential to know what your village has or doesn’t have in terms of its needs to best support young people. Does it have an effective education system; a system which has formalized programs to help the neediest of its students? Are elected officials educated with regards to the needs of transitioning teens and are they engaged in the process of finding solutions and building alliances? These types of questions and, more importantly, answers are essential in beginning the building process.

Step I: Community Needs Assessment/Environmental Scan – This type of due diligence must be accomplished in order to fully audit a community to discover its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. How many young people are in out of home care? How many young people will age out of foster care any given year? How many young people have graduated high school or have attained their GED by age 18, 19, or 20? Knowing the scope of the challenge first - is a must. That way, you can begin creating ways to breach obstacles which would, otherwise, preclude a young person from successfully transitioning into adulthood. The following brief bulleted outline is an example of such an Audit.

• Mandates/Laws (Federal, State, County, Zoning for Housing, Statutes regarding Foster Care, etc., examples – HUD, Title IV-E, ETV’s, Chafee, TANF, WIA.)
  
  
• Best Practices (CWLA Standards, Casey Programs, NILA, NRCYS, TIP)
  
  
• Funding Mechanisms (Public, Private, Federal, State, and Local, etc., examples – HUD, Title IV-E, ETV’s, Chafee, TANF, WIA, State Child Welfare Dollars, Medicaid, Foundations, Corporations, United Ways)
  
  
• Provider Network Who is serving or could possibly serve transitioning teens? (Child Welfare, Juvenile Justice, Education, Vocation, Housing, Healthcare, Employment Sector, Philanthropic Organizations, etc.)
  
  
• Service Statistics (Must know - Numbers of Population to be Served and their Needs, Numbers of Current Service Providers and Types of Services, i.e. housing, vocational training, GED Programs, Community Colleges, etc., Current Revenue and Expense vs Proposed (necessary) Revenue and Expense for teens transitioning from care.)

With this newly gained information in place, a village may now begin the planning and building process. I look forward to writing more later, as we begin to put together a comprehensive community plan to strengthen our village.