DES MOINES, Iowa - With the holidays near, foster families in Iowa are encouraged to maintain close connections with older teens no longer receiving foster care. A human service agency says the transition is hard enough for teens aging out of the system, and personal support can go a long way.

In Iowa, when children placed in foster care turn 18, the state considers them an adult - and they're faced with new responsibilities in managing their lives. Danette Morgan, training and development coordinator for Lutheran Services in Iowa, said there are bridge programs they can turn to - but when Thanksgiving and Christmas roll around, she said, there's still longing for a family setting.

"There are other services provided for these children," she said, "but there's just nothing like having a home to go back to."

If possible, she said, a foster family should seek care extensions during the transitional phase. Even just welcoming a young person back for the holidays can make them feel supported.

Each year, nearly 25,000 U.S. teens age out of the foster-care system. Research has shown that by their early 20s, nearly half are without a permanent home and are unemployed. Morgan said that shows how important it is to maintain connections and mentorships, even beyond the holiday season. She said these teens might make rash decisions in seeking family-level support.

"I think sometimes they end up going back to their birth families," she said, "which may not have been a healthy situation."

She said that could result in unhealthy coping skills as they take on bigger responsibilities in life.

As for bridge programs, there are options such as the Iowa Aftercare Services Network, which connects these young adults with key resources. There also is COVID relief funding for foster alumni. Those direct payments have been extended through next spring.

The number of foster youths near adulthood has dropped slightly in Washington state, according to a new report.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation looked at the transition period for young adults in foster care and found the number of young Washingtonians age 14 and up dropped from 23% in 2006 to 22% in 2021.

Neveah Brewer was part of the foster-care system, and now coaches foster youths who are transitioning into adulthood as a launch success coach with the Washington state-based organization Treehouse.

She said leaving the system is often the first time foster youths have anything of their own.

"In foster care, you don't even have your own bed, and the clothes that you get often are hand-me-downs," said Brewer. "So this is the first time being on your own completely and having everything and nothing all at the same time."

Brewer and Treehouse provide guidance for people in or coming out of foster care, including helping them find housing and get jobs.

Todd Lloyd, a senior policy associate with the Annie E. Casey Foundation, said youths are going to foster care for different reasons than they did in 2006.

"In the past, young people were coming in for foster care for reasons of adolescent behavior, child behavior problems," said Lloyd. "But now there's more of a shift towards them entering care for reasons of neglect, which are often connected to issues of poverty."

In 2006, neglect was the entry reason for 21% of Washington kids. In 2021, that number jumped to 57%.

Brewer said the state and federal governments could provide more resources to young adults coming out of foster care, including extended scholarships for higher education.

Just as important are some of the skills she's able to provide that they may not have received growing up, such as budgeting.

"Not in the sense of, like, 'Put away this amount of money every paycheck' because that's a privilege, but more in the sense of financial literacy and empowerment and understanding where they are and how to get where they want to be," said Brewer. "As well as understanding that it's OK to not be OK."

A new report found Black girls across the Keystone State are subjected to "daunting educational barriers" in K-12 public schools and offers recommendations to make the school system more inclusive.

The report detailed barriers with curriculum, dress codes, anti-Black racism, sexism and other issues.

Paige Joki, staff attorney for the Education Law Center-Pennsylvania and leader of the Black Girls Education Justice Initiative, said the purpose of the report was to hear the concerns of Black girls, because their voices were missing from conversations.

She reported students advised them they were exposed to harmful curriculum, and one of the girls' recommendations for public schools is to implement a culturally responsive and affirming curriculum.

"Black girls shared with us that the ways that they were being taught about their history and experiences was traumatic, nonresponsive, and erased experiences of those who are part of their community or have shared identities," Joki reported. "Girls spoke to subjects being handled carelessly, like American slavery."

Another recommendation in the report called for police to be removed from schools. Joki pointed out Black children disproportionately attend schools where police are present, and many of the Black girls they spoke with felt police in their schools created a climate of fear and made them unsafe.

Joki noted a recommendation from Black girls in the report said schools must provide culturally affirming mental health support and increase the number of school-based mental health providers.

"Black girls shared with us that there were not enough counselors at their school or any at all, that the focus was mainly on academics, rather than on supporting their well-being," Joki explained. "They greatly benefited from working with Black mental health support professionals who shared identities and experiences and would allow them to speak freely."

Talia, a high school senior, participated in the focus group discussion and said she is a strong believer in schools needing culturally affirming mental health support. She added being a grown adult and Black femme nonbinary, sometimes life gets stressful, and she would like to see more mental-health support at school.

"However, not just any mental health support," Talia stressed. "I would like there to be people who understand my experience and share an identity with me. It makes me feel a lot more comfortable and heard when we have similar backgrounds. It feels nice to have a Black role model at school, especially since my school is majority Black. And I feel like most of us would agree we need more Black supporters."

Joki emphasized while the report detailed many harmful things, the girls were able to envision more just spaces for their education. She added the girls loved working with people who looked like them and several girls had a beautiful positive story about a teacher who changed their education trajectory and remains in their life.

The number of Wyoming children in foster care between the ages of 14 and 21 has dropped by 54% over the past two decades, according to a new Annie E. Casey Foundation report, but many kids who age out of the system continue to face significant challenges.

Debra Hibbard, policy and program manager for the Wyoming Department of Family Services, said getting a college degree or credential can help kids land on their feet. The state currently offers educational training vouchers worth $5,000 for education expenses.

"And that can be like a training program like Wyotech, the university, junior colleges," Hibbard outlined. "We also provide them with laptops, bedding, towels, just some of those independent living needs that they might have."

The department convened a youth advisory council made up of kids currently in the system and those who have transitioned out, which has been meeting monthly over the past two years to identify challenges and craft solutions.

Hibbard pointed out one of the biggest needs is for families willing to open their doors to older kids, and she encourages anyone interested to call the department at 307-777-3570.

Todd Lloyd, senior policy associate for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, said the reasons older youth enter foster care have shifted. Wyoming saw a 62% drop in the number of kids put into foster care for behavioral issues, and one in three kids now enter the system due to neglect.

"In the past, young people were coming in for foster care for reasons of adolescent behavior, child behavior problems," Lloyd recounted. "But now, there's more of a shift towards them entering care for reasons of neglect, which are often connected to issues of poverty."

Older kids placed with a family relative, as opposed to institutions or group homes, tend to have better outcomes, and Wyoming has seen a 67% increase in the number of kids placed with family since 2006.

Hibbard added older foster youths are great kids, and are deserving of a home even if they are not kin.

"Someone who can be there for them and advocate for them," Hibbard explained. "Someone who when they do age out of the foster care system, that they have someone that they can come home to for the holidays, come home and do laundry. Just to talk to when they're struggling at school."