Enhancing Support for Older Foster Youth: A Collaborative Ecosystem Analysis

The Division of Youth and Family Services (YFS) within Mecklenburg County’s Department of Social Services (DSS) partnered with First Place for Youth (First Place) to conduct a thorough ecosystem mapping and analysis. The analysis focused on understanding and addressing the needs and gaps of the system serving the County’s older foster youth (18-21) who are preparing to transition out of foster care. The comprehensive analysis process involved extensive stakeholder interviews, targeted focus groups, data analysis, desk research, and meaningful listening sessions with over a dozen youth with lived experience in foster care and encompassed an evaluation of services provided, available community resources, policies, and agency capacity.

To launch the endeavor, a group of young adults with lived experience in the system, YFS staff, and other key stakeholders co-created a future vision for how the system can support older foster youth in the years ahead: “All youth and young adults transitioning out of foster care in Mecklenburg County have the life skills required to thrive and attain self-sufficiency by age 21.”

Mecklenburg County Community Support Services’ Housing Innovation and Stabilization Services Division was also engaged to share insights on other supportive housing models throughout Charlotte-Mecklenburg.  Although funding and resources existed for this vulnerable population, deeper investment and more strategic engagement were necessary in order to create better outcomes for aged out youth.

This blog provides an overview of key learnings and recommendations from the ecosystem analysis and how Mecklenburg County is moving from insights to action to improve outcomes for youth transitioning out of foster care.

KEY LEARNINGS

• Housing Instability: Many older foster youth experience periods of homelessness and housing instability due to the high cost of housing and lack of adequate housing support.
• • With only a few providers offering housing, young people do not have guaranteed access to housing, with many securing non-traditional housing (couch-surfing) and moving two or more times a year.
  • On average, young adults in extended foster care received around $700 monthly plus housing vouchers, which was still insufficient to cover the rising costs of housing and additional expenses.
• Navigational Challenges: Youth face difficulties navigating the system of care due to its siloed nature, resulting in barriers to accessing crucial resources and support.
• System Strain: The system of care experiences strain, with workers expressing being overwhelmed and ill-equipped to effectively support this population.
• Youth Empowerment: Stakeholders collectively emphasized the imperative to empower and integrate the voices of youth into the foundation of transformative systemic changes.

KEY RECOMMENDATIONS

• Pilot the direct provision of housing (in place of just vouchers) and supportive wraparound services to support older foster youth with their successful transition out of care.
• Relaunch the Youth Advisory Board so that young people are partners in transforming the system to better serve them.
• Invest in programs that provide older foster youth with much-needed one-on-one life skills coaching.