In an effort to investigate, assess and tackle the critical needs of young Missourians transitioning out of foster care, Gov. Matt Blunt recently appointed local Judge Mary Sheffield, of Rolla, to a newly formed, blue-ribbon task force.
The governor’s goal for the task force is to maximize the use of resources to support young Missourians and their transition to successful adult roles and responsibilities.
“We have already improved the state’s health-care system to ensure that young Missourians leaving foster care retain the health coverage they need to transition to adulthood,” Blunt said.  “I am calling on this task force to build on that successful effort and identify additional opportunities to bridge gaps in housing, education and employment that foster-care children often face as they approach their 18th birthdays.”
Sheffield, who also is the chair of the Family Court Committee for the State of Missouri, said she was honored by the appointment and was excited to participate in a panel that would address the problems young adults face when they exit the foster care system.
“We recognize a real problem exists for these kids who are coming out of foster care and not prepared to start life,” Sheffield said.  “How do we transition these foster children into a situation where they continue to be productive people?
“Most kids who are not in foster care have some sort of family support system when they turn 18.  They have somebody or somewhere to go.  Children exiting the foster-care system do not.  We put them out on the street and say, ‘Hope you make it.’”
Foster children face difficulties in finding jobs and housing, Sheffield explained.  Ordinary challenges, such as signing a rental agreement, coming up with deposits and a means by which to continue their education are particularly troublesome for youths who do not receive emotional or financial support from parents or mentors.
Moreover, many children exiting the foster-care system find themselves in a strange city, having been placed in a housing system elsewhere in the state.
“I think it’s my role as a judge to try and ease the transition for these kids,” Sheffield said.
Sheffield explained that, although the Unified Family Court in the 25th Judicial Circuit presently has a mentoring program available for juveniles, the program is not available on a statewide basis.  The Family Court that serves Phelps, Maries, Pulaski and Texas counties is a model for other circuit courts throughout Missouri.
She has seen a number of cases in her court where prior foster children, having tried to live the American dream of acquiring an education and living productive lives, run into insurmountable barriers.  Something as inconsequential as a holiday break at a university for a young adult with a family can present a real dilemma for a student with no family.
“The dorms shut down on school holidays,” Sheffield explained.  “We have kids who are trying to live in a box or a car — literally living in a car for a month — they try to get in the gym to take a shower.  I know of one or two kids who actually quit school because it was so depressing.”
According to Sheffield, research has found that foster children tend to have higher rates of absenteeism, tardiness, and truancies, as well as lower standardized test scores, when compared to the general population.
Moreover, youth who age out of foster care have only a 35 percent chance of finishing high school and a 60 percent chance of being unemployed.  These youths also are twice as likely as their peers to have a child outside of marriage.  Only 20 percent of foster children attend colleges, compared to 60 percent of the general college-age population.
Blunt has requested that the panel develop a three-year plan for Missourians aging out of foster care.  The plan could include potential legislative priorities, strategies to promote and expand existing resources and additional training for those dedicated to helping Missouri teenagers as they approach aging out.
Of the 17 appointments to the task force, four are prior foster children who can relate the difficulties of transitioning out of foster care to the other members.  Other members include professionals from the Department of Social Services, educators, business managers and faith-based organizations.
Executive Director Vincent Hillyer, of Boys & Girls Town in St. James also was named to the panel.