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Below are definitions for commonly used terms related to emancipating foster youth. Some have been taken from FosterClub.com’s website of terms in youth friendly language at www.fyi3.com/fyi3/Informed/Glossary/index.cfm.
211 – Since 1993 many communities have joined the national 2-1-1 initiative to use these three digits as a quick, easy-to-remember telephone number for finding human services answers.
AB 490 – California legislation providing educational rights for children in foster care and responsibilities of local educational agencies and placement agencies.
AVID - Advancement Via Individual Determination is an educational program designed to help underachieving middle and high school students prepare for and succeed in colleges and universities.
Chafee Vouchers - The Chafee Educational and Training Voucher Program (ETV) provides resources specifically to meet the education and training needs of youth aging out of foster care. This federally funded program makes vouchers of up to $5,000 per fiscal year available to eligible youth attending post secondary edu¬cational and vocational programs.
Educational Passport - The passport is a document that contains a student's credentials from the educational world. The passport is the student's personal property that can be used in moves from high school to college, from college to college, from school to job, from job to school, and so on.
EPSDT, Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment Program is the child health component of Medicaid, the primary source of mental health services funding for former foster youth under the age of 21.
ILP or Independent Living Program - A federally funded program administered through counties which provide services to foster youth age 14 or 16 and over to prepare for adulthood. The program provides classes in life skills, vocational training, and equipment needed for job training. Also provides funds for college scholarships, skills training, and rent assistance. See how Contra Costa County describes their program www.cocoilsp.org/home.html.
Kinship Care – placements with family members other than parents. Although kinship care is one of the oldest human traditions, it was not formally recognized as a legitimate placement option for children in foster care until the passage of the federal welfare reform in 1996 and the Adoption and Safe Families Act in 1997.
Permanency is both a process and a result that includes involvement of the youth as a participant or leader in finding a permanent connection with at least one committed adult who provides: a safe, stable and secure parenting relationship; love; unconditional commitment; lifelong support in the context of reunification, a legal adoption, or guardianship, where possible, and in which the youth has the opportunity to maintain contacts with important persons including brothers & sisters. A broad array of individualized permanency options exist; reunification and adoption are an important two among many that may be appropriate. (Definition from California Permanency for Youth Project.)
Scattered Site Housing – Housing units scattered throughout the community designated for young people.
Transitional Housing Placement Programs (THPP) are for former foster youth ages 16 to 19. These programs are funded through the CDSS and licensed through community care licensing. They may be communal living or scattered site models.
THP-Plus or Transitional Housing Placement – Plus - A housing program for 18-24 year olds. THP-Plus is administered by the California Department of Social Services, and has been found to help foster youth achieve stable housing, living wage employment and higher education. Current demand exceeds availability. Counties typically contract with non-profit service providers and gets reimbursement with standard rate $1800-2200/mo/youth. No reimbursement of county administrative costs for county, but non-profit gets administration covered.
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