The McKinney-Vento Act and Children and Youth ... - State of Michigan

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• If a request for educational records is being made and where records should be sent • The caseworker’s name and phone number Schools also need to share information with caseworkers, so the child welfare system can implement actions to support students’ academic achievement. Arizona’s brochure for schools offers educators a clear explanation of the need and procedure for such information-sharing (see, Legal Center for Foster Care & Education, www.abanet.org/child/education). WHAT SHOULD I DO WHEN THE CASE MANAGER CALLS? The case manager is legally entitled to all information about the child allowable under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). If contacted, you should: • Confirm that the case manager is who he/she says he/she is. An official ID should be available. • Answer any questions that individual may pose about the student. • Relate positive experiences you have had with the child. • Tell the case manager about concerns you may have about the child. • Ask to be notified of court dates and medical appointments that may take the child out of school or cause emotional upheaval, even if only temporarily. • Invite the case manager to attend upcoming school events, conferences, and multidisciplinary team or IEP meetings. Of course, both schools and child welfare agencies must respect the privacy and dignity of youth in care. While certain school staff need to know if a youth is in out-of-home care, they do not need to know the details of the student’s home life or personal situation. Educators must have clear guidelines for what information to share with whom. Delaware’s Draft Memorandum of Understanding addresses such confidentiality explicitly: “ Each Department assures that the confidential character of exchanged information will be preserved and, under no 48 The McKinney-Vento Act and Children and Youth Awaiting Foster Care Placement
circumstances will exchanged information be shared with any agency, program or person not party to this agreement without the express written consent of the family or by the authority of Family Court.” (See, Legal Center for Foster Care & Education, www.abanet.org/child/education, which also includes the State of Delaware Interagency Consent to Release Information.) Arizona’s brochure for educators helps school staff understand why confidentiality is so important: “ Share the child’s status as a foster child only with those who need to know; otherwise, keep the child’s status confidential, unless you have the child’s permission. Many foster children hide from their peers the fact that they are in the child welfare system. Even though adults may understand that it is not the child’s fault that they are in foster care, your student may not want anyone to know.” (See, Legal Center for Foster Care & Education, www.abanet.org/child/education.) For an in-depth treatment of the issue of information-sharing between education and child welfare agencies, see “Mythbusting: Breaking Down Confidentiality and Decision-Making Barriers to Meet the Education Needs of Children in Foster Care” available at www.abanet.org/child/education/ mythbusting2.pdf. Protecting a youth’s confidentiality is an important way to protect dignity. Both schools and child welfare agencies must strive to treat youth in care with respect and understanding. The following section treats this critical issue in more depth. 7. Treat youth in out-of-home care with dignity, understanding, and discretion “Be empathetic—try to put yourselves in our shoes.” — Rebecca Shier 54 No strategy to support youth’s educational success will be effective if it is not accompanied by an agency-wide commitment in both schools and child welfare offices to treat youth in out-of-home care with respect and concern for their education. Every strategy will be strengthened by the substantive Strategies for Improving Educational Outcomes through School Stability 49
Page 1 and 2: BUILDING FUTURES THROUGH EDUCATION
Page 3 and 4: Table of Contents Executive Summary
Page 5 and 6: Executive Summary “ Education was
Page 7 and 8: meeting the child’s unique needs,
Page 9 and 10: Treat youth in out-ofhome care with
Page 11 and 12: Educational Challenges of Homelessn
Page 13 and 14: This residential instability too of
Page 15 and 16: • As many as three-quarters of ol
Page 17 and 18: Overview of the McKinney-Vento Act
Page 19 and 20: (iii) children and youths who are l
Page 21 and 22: From Law into Practice: Strategies
Page 23 and 24: Public Schools, it took three years
Page 25 and 26: • Create an interagency task forc
Page 27 and 28: ENSURING REGULAR INTERAGENCY CONTAC
Page 29 and 30: and roundtable discussions with sch
Page 31 and 32: stakeholders to the table, such as
Page 33 and 34: Massachusetts • “Temporary, tra
Page 35 and 36: To summarize from narrower to broad
Page 37 and 38: for the duration of the school year
Page 39 and 40: they will be better able to manage
Page 41 and 42: 4. Ensure that education and child
Page 43 and 44: Whether they function as employees
Page 45 and 46: WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ENROLLING TH
Page 47 and 48: WHO ARRANGES TRANSPORTATION? The lo
Page 49 and 50: • Immediate access to free school
Page 51: The program manager is now working
Page 55 and 56: “ I had an amazing caseworker fro
Page 57 and 58: From Practice into Law: Policy Reco
Page 59 and 60: 2. Amend federal and state child we
Page 61 and 62: 6. Implement procedures for schools
Page 63 and 64: Conclusion As the efforts of jurisd
Page 65 and 66: References Advocates for Children o
Page 67 and 68: Robertson, M., & Toro, P. (1999). H
Page 69 and 70: APPENDIX List of Interviewees Autho
Page 71 and 72: Endnotes 1 Personal communication,
Page 73 and 74: 26 Burley, M., & Halpern, M. (2001)
Page 76: For additional information, please

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