Op-Ed - Choice is the Key to Building Stable Foster Care System

By Congresswoman Michele Bachmann

Published by The Hill Newspaper on May 12, 2010

This past Mother's Day my family and I had the privilege of welcoming a reporter and camera into our home from the local CBS affiliate in Minnesota. They were doing a piece commemorating the special day, and as a mom to five biological children and 23 foster children, I suppose I offered them a unique perspective. When I think of Mother's Day I usually think of my own mother; honoring her and honoring my grandmothers. Fortunately, my husband and I have had the incredible opportunity to follow in their footsteps and raise children of our own.

Folks often ask me, "Michele, you've had 28 kids in your home throughout the years. How did you do it?" Honestly, it wasn't easy, but my husband Marcus and I did our best to stay focused and prioritize our lives. It's God first, husband and wife second, our kids, and then work. And as part of that work, in addition to our small business and my work in politics, I am proud that we opened our doors to help troubled teens, bringing in 23 foster teenagers throughout the years.

Our goal and our desire was to open our home and bring the children in to show them love between a mom and dad in a stable home environment. To show them what structure was and the importance of adhering to a schedule. To not only give them an idea of what a family looks like, but throughout all this working towards the long term goal of reuniting them with their mom and dad.

And now as a member of Congress, I'm fortunate to be able to continue my work with foster children by serving on the Advisory Board of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI). It is an absolute honor to serve on the Board because now more than ever we need to do all we can to speak up for these precious children whose voices are often not heard and easily overlooked. In fact, one of the biggest obstacles foster children face is the lack of public awareness of their precarious situations. Here are some startling statistics compiled by CCAI:

* More than 29,000 foster youth age out of the system each year with no one to call family and no place to call home.
* 80% of foster youth did not earn enough to be fully self-supporting four years after leaving care, and 90% were earning less than $10,000 a year.
* 65% of former foster children and youth experienced 7 or more school changes while living in the foster care system.
* Only 3% of foster care alumni complete a 4-year college degree.
* 46% of foster youth who age out of the system have not completed high school; 48% were unemployed in the first 12-16 months; 25% experienced homelessness within four years after leaving care; 84% became parents outside of wedlock; and 30% became dependent on public assistance.

There are approximately 460,000 children in the U.S. living in foster care today, and while great progress has been made in getting the word out through organizations like CCAI, there's still more work to be done on behalf of these special children.

As a federal policymaker, I have introduced the School Choice for Foster Kids Act, a bipartisan bill aimed at helping foster children gain access to quality, stable education early in life. Many foster children must change schools whenever they change homes, causing them to be uprooted from their daily routine and separated from their friends and the teachers who are familiar with their needs. The School Choice for Foster Kids Act would give states the flexibility to make younger foster children eligible for education vouchers -- currently designated only for students 16 to 23 years old -- through the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program, and it allow foster parents to send a child to his or her original school or to choose a school that can undertake the unique challenges their foster child may face.

Instead of separating foster children from trusted friends and teachers, we should give them the opportunity to stay at a school if it is fulfilling their needs. At a time when these children need stability the most, we should strive to meet that need first and foremost. I've already testified before the House Ways and Means Committee regarding this bill, and I'll continue to fight for this common sense piece of legislation.

In the end, families who choose to take part in foster care will be rewarded over and over with the joy and success their children have. It was the best decision my husband and I made together, and the 23 calls I received on Mother's Day proved we made the right choice.

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