BILL REQ. #:  H-1161.2 

Read first time 01/25/2007.   Referred to Committee on Early Learning & Children's Services.

     AN ACT Relating to supporting educational achievement for children in foster care; amending RCW 28A.150.510; adding a new section to chapter 28A.150 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 43.20A RCW; creating new sections; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that the educational achievement of children in foster care continues to be significantly lower than students in the general population. Children in foster care are more likely to change schools frequently, be retained and repeat a grade, perform at lower levels on standardized tests, and graduate at a significantly lower rate than their peers. An important strategy for supporting the educational progress of children in foster care is to facilitate continuity of school placement when children are removed from their homes or when subsequent changes in placement are necessary. The legislature also finds that the primary barriers to continuity of school placement are inadequate numbers of local foster homes and a lack of funding to provide transportation when local placements are not available. Despite some efforts to support continuity of school placement for children in foster care, limited progress has been made.
     The legislature further finds that an additional factor in supporting improved educational outcomes for children in foster care is timely data collection and analysis. Aggregate reporting about the educational attainment of children in foster care is crucial to understanding and assessing the impact of policy and practice changes on educational outcomes. The legislature, therefore, intends to promote the development, implementation, and evaluation of innovative and practical strategies for maintaining continuity of school placement for children in foster care, and to facilitate data sharing between the office of the superintendent of public instruction and the children's administration within the department of social and health services.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   (1) Subject to availability of funding amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the oversight committee established in RCW 74.13.570, by August 1, 2007, shall: (a) Select stakeholders to assist the committee with facilitating innovation and effectiveness in the recruitment and retention of foster parents; (b) identify promising and effective strategies for school enrollment stabilization; (c) select strategies for implementation and evaluation in the ten school districts with the highest rate of removal of school-age children from their homes under chapter 13.34 RCW; and (d) develop a request for qualification to community agencies and the division of children and family services within the department of social and health services for grant funding to implement school enrollment stabilization strategies. Such strategies may include practice pilot programs designed to affect a geographical cohort of children as well as programs using child-specific strategies to maintain school enrollment stability, including but not limited to strategies relating to: (i) Foster parent recruitment, retention, and support; (ii) transportation within and between school districts; (iii) incentives for schools, foster parents, and regional offices of the division of children and family services to support enrollment stability; (iv) funding of individual safety and services plan-driven strategies for individual children; and (v) public relations and communications campaigns regarding the needs of children in foster care and the opportunities in foster parenting.
     (2) Not later than October 31, 2007, the oversight committee shall select grant recipients and begin disbursing grant funds. The committee shall, to the extent practicable, provide technical support and assistance to the grant recipients with implementation and data collection.
     (3) By July 31, 2009, the committee shall inform the appropriate committees of the legislature about the strategies and practices implemented, and shall make additional policy recommendations based on evaluations of the same.
     (4) This section expires September 1, 2009.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 28A.150 RCW to read as follows:
     Subject to availability of funding amounts for this specific purpose, not later than January 1, 2008, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall facilitate interagency agreements and execute data-sharing agreements with and between local school districts and the children's administration within the department of social and health services for the purposes of: (1) Promoting school enrollment continuity of children in foster care; and (2) evaluating and analyzing the impact of changes to state, school district, and department policies and practices on the educational outcomes of children in foster care. Data-sharing agreements required under this section shall include state and school district-level data as well as data about individual children in foster care.

Sec. 4   RCW 28A.150.510 and 2000 c 88 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     In order to effectively serve students who are under the jurisdiction of the juvenile justice system as dependent pursuant to chapter 13.34 RCW, education records shall be ((released upon request to)) transmitted to the department of social and health services within two school days after receiving the request from the department ((of social and health services)) provided that the department of social and health services certifies that it will not disclose to any other party the education records without prior written consent of the parent or student unless authorized to disclose the records under state law. The department of social and health services is authorized to disclose education records it obtains pursuant to this section to a foster parent, guardian, or other entity authorized by the department of social and health services to provide residential care to or educational advocacy services on behalf of the student.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   A new section is added to chapter 43.20A RCW to read as follows:
     The children's administration within the department of social and health services shall request funding and/or approval necessary to expedite the development and implementation of an interface between the statewide automated child welfare information system and the information system within the office of the superintendent of public instruction in order to facilitate ongoing effective data sharing between the two agencies regarding the educational achievement of children in foster care.