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Bridges of Hope: From Foster Care to College | Sabrina Thomas | TEDxMarshallU

Apr 22, 2020
Why do we send more

foster

children to prison instead of

college

? The average cost of incarcerating someone for a year is $35,000 compared to the average income a

college

graduate earns, and that's $50,000 for those youth in

foster

care

, of whom one in four years will be older. involved in the justice system within two years the more placements the child has, the more likely the child will be incarcerated less than ten percent of teens who are in foster

care

attempt University of those, less than three percent They graduate at the age of twenty-five. The cost to society is enormous, but the cost to each child is immeasurable.
bridges of hope from foster care to college sabrina thomas tedxmarshallu
The ripple effect of this failure is felt for generations. Children in foster care are too often ignored by society or, when seen, viewed with suspicion. I was around nine years old. old when my friend sitting next to me in class said that his mother was thinking about adopting a child out of the foster system, he looked at me and said: I

hope

not, you never know what they'll look like when they grow up. This feeling. It was repeated from time to time throughout my life. I remember sitting with a large group of friends after work, we were grumbling about our first big jobs right after college, eventually the conversation turned to kids and whether or not we would have any.
bridges of hope from foster care to college sabrina thomas tedxmarshallu

More Interesting Facts About,

bridges of hope from foster care to college sabrina thomas tedxmarshallu...

I said I wanted to. adopt a child out of the foster system and the woman sitting in front of me said oh I would never do that and I asked her why and she said there is something fundamentally wrong with a child whose own parents would reject them. I said do you feel this way about all kids in foster care when she said yes I must make her smile. I extended my hand and said hello. My name is Sabrina and I was adopted out of the foster system. She was shocked and immediately stood up, grabbed her boyfriend and headed towards the door.
bridges of hope from foster care to college sabrina thomas tedxmarshallu
That was the end of our friendship. Our society often views children in foster care as lost causes or, worse yet, we view them and those who age similarly to how we view those released from prison on parole. One thing is easily forgotten: they are actually children. They are worthy and deserving of love and are in foster care through no fault of their own today no one associates me with severe domestic violence and neglect that I survived as a child few know that I spent years in foster care moving frequently from one place to another placement to another placement as an academic librarian with a marriage of just 20 years and three beautiful children.
bridges of hope from foster care to college sabrina thomas tedxmarshallu
My life bears little resemblance to its chaotic beginning. I survived both the trauma of childhood abuse and the additional trauma of years in foster care. Finally, unfortunately, I was adopted, but my achievements. They have allowed me to mask what I have endured and hear people's honest feelings about what they see as the potential of children in foster care. That's why I know we need to rethink what's possible for children in foster care, especially those who are aging. Changing the future of children in foster care requires us to become a trauma-informed community. Numerous studies of teens in foster care show that 75 to 80 percent of them want to go to college—that's the same number of teens who have never been in foster care—so why? there is such a disparity between the goals of these children and achieving those goals as a librarian.
I have been drawn to answering difficult questions for the past few years. I've really delved into childhood trauma and resilience research. Much of this research has been done. deeply personal to me because I was adopted. I am in a unique position to see what opportunities I had, particularly to develop resilience. I have the knowledge to see how resilience can be developed through relationships, whether one is adopted or not. Building

bridges

to resilience through relationships. It is part of becoming a trauma-informed community, this community reshapes the way we think about what is possible for children in foster care, both consciously and unconsciously, we must understand that resilience can be developed within people , is not static, resilience is the ability to adapt well or bounce back in the presence of difficult life events that you may be familiar with.
Ace Scores, that is, the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire that counts the different types of abuse and neglect that put you at higher risk for health and substance abuse problems, including mental health disorders. You may have guessed that I have very high Ace scores, but did you know that there is also a resilience score? Like the Aces questionnaire, this survey measures what combination of factors contributes to resilience. Research shows that the main factor in resilience is having loving, supportive relationships. Inside and outside of family relationships that create love and trust and provide role models who offer encouragement and reaffirm peace of mind.
I also have a very high resilience score. This research is reflected in my life. I think about the people who lifted me up and supported me. A different path is thanks to the support I received in those relationships that I began to heal. I think of Ben and Leah Renfro, a kind elderly couple at my church who demonstrated what unconditional love looks like on a daily basis by simply allowing me to interact with them, their lives were full of kindness, it was nothing extraordinary, but their friendship helped me heal and guide me just by including me in their lives.
I think of my high school English teacher, Miss Vicky Jewell. Miss Vicky Jewell came out of it. way to rewrite the narrative in my head that I wasn't smart or good enough to become much I wasn't good or talented in school because of the trauma I experienced I have difficulty remembering things and memorizing Miss Vicky Jewell saw me struggle she He saw my work ethic, he was relentless in his quest to rebuild my broken self-esteem. There are many others over the years that healed my trauma and pieces drip and fall just by simply building a connection and fostering a relationship with me.
It haunts me to this day knowing that I very well could have grown old without financial resources and emotional support. I know that the statistics of poverty, homelessness, and crime that could have been my fate in having children in foster care are so often invisible that they shock you. From placement to placement, which in turn limits their ability to learn in a stable school environment. Changing schools not only disrupts their education, but it does disrupt their relationships with their peers and teachers who can help and guide them. They imagine that you are a teenager who is aging in the foster care system through Herculean efforts, you gather your required transcripts from each of these different locations and different schools that you have attended, you pay for your college admissions tests. college and admission fees, all on you. admitted just to meet the college challenge of tuition financial aid additional fees enroll in classes meet with your advisor choose a major all without additional support no support to rely on why is there such a disparity between college-going teens and those who graduate?
I think we can see, then, how we can send more children in foster care to college? Retain them and ultimately ensure graduation. Our first thoughts are financial and yes, there are state and federal funds to help those already aging in foster care attend college. However, this is a patchwork of resources and differs from state to state. Furthermore, it is not marketable. The assumption is that these children already receive a lot of financial aid. This is only partially true and only for those children who know it. Housing is our second biggest concern because it is critical to success.
Often these dormitories are the first stable, independent living experiences these teens have found, but unlike their peers, when winter and summer vacations arrive and students They return home, these students do not have a home to return to. Without options, where do we point them to the city's mission? I think we can do better than then. I believe year-round housing is possible if we make it a priority. Becoming a trauma-informed community means bringing together cross-functional departments that work together collaboratively. Imagine resident life and financial aid working together to help these students weave a support system for themselves for the cost of housing and the cost of higher education in general.
Fortunately, there are examples of bridge programs that retain and accelerate the graduation rates of those who previously received foster care services. The young people on campus fostering success at Western Michigan University are a good example of how this program pointed out that financial and housing support alone was not adequate to meet the needs of these students. Supportive relationships. Peer mentoring. Kocha and trauma training and Ford guide. Informed guidance is necessary for student success. This university provides academic assistance in the form of seminars for freshmen to meet their unique needs. mentoring in the form of trauma-informed training. or life skills that most of us take for granted.
Examples of these exposure gaps include shopping, visiting a bank, dressing for a special occasion, and preparing for interviews. These are not corrective steps, but rather missing skills and knowledge that they simply have an experience with. however, these coaches help close these gaps due to these support services and resilience building at Western Michigan University. Retention and graduation rates have increased. These bridge programs create trauma-informed communities where collaborative departments work together combining trauma resilience treatment education and support to rethink what is possible for children in foster care means fundamentally changing our support services for them, we must think of them as we do our own children, they not only need housing and financial help, but direct guidance and mentoring when we fail them, we fail ourselves, we fail our society I encourage each of you to reach out to the programs of your community that are already in place today, in addition to your financial support, offer them your hearts and your hands, offer yourself as a mentor, offer yourself to build relationships that instill resilience in the relationship and fill the exhibition. gaps not all of us can be foster parents but we can be a person outside the system who cares and is willing to guide if you are like me and spent time in foster care.
I want to encourage you to talk about your experiences so that society rethink what is possible for children in foster care they need to see our successes they need to see what is possible it is essential that children in foster care care kit now watch us and see what your potential could be for those of you in foster care. Now I want you to know that you are not limited by the trauma of your past. Your potential is unlimited. Don't believe the lie that you are not worthy of a higher education. A sense of family and a sense of home and belonging. worthy of love and belonging just as you are your story does not define you does not define your potential and will not define your destiny your choices do that if you are aging soon I want you to know that colleges tend to be full of people who want to see you succeed.
I'd love to see you on campus. I want you to know that you now have a friend, thank you.

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