Building on a decade of work at the intersection of child welfare and education, the Stuart Foundation launched the Education Equals Partnership in 2012.The Partnership is dedicated to improving educational experiences and outcomes for students from foster care, starting with preschool and extending through college.
The goal of Education Equals is to ensure that all students from foster care achieve in school at levels equal to or better than their peers and graduate with a wide range of possibilities for their future. The Partnership is a collective impact effort which recognizes that education and child welfare systems must embrace a common agenda and work together in order to achieve this vision. Four California counties—Fresno, Orange, Sacramento, and Santa Cruz—are demonstration sites.
Education Equals has been influenced by a number of factors, particularly reforms in how California funds its schools, requirements related to the identification of foster youth, and the release of several important reports on the academic performance of foster children.
To view the full progress report, click here.