Supporting Transitioning Foster Youth A CASA Volunteer’s Guide to Post-secondary Education and Career Planning Post-secondary Education and Career Planning Section 1: Supporting Your CASA Youth’s High School Success .......................................... 2 Graduation Requirements for San Mateo County High School Districts ......................... 3 Monitoring Your High School Youth's Attendance and Grades ....................................... 4 Alternatives to Comprehensive High Schools .................................................................. 5 Assembly Bill 167 ............................................................................................................. 6 California High School Equivalency Tests & CA High School Proficiency Exam (CHSPE) . 7 Employment and Job Training for Youth in High School ................................................. 7 Career Research ............................................................................................................... 8 Independent Living Program (ILP) .................................................................................... 9 AB 12: Extended Foster Care ......................................................................................... 10 Section 2: Supporting Your CASA Youth on a Community College or Vocational Track ... 11 Community Colleges ...................................................................................................... 12 Unions and Trades.......................................................................................................... 14 Job Corps (San Francisco, San Jose, National) ............................................................... 15 Employment Training and Education Programs ............................................................ 15 Helping Your CASA Youth Find Employment ................................................................. 17 Section 3: Supporting Your CASA Youth on Four-Year University Track........................... 19 College Planning Tools ................................................................................................... 20 Four-Year University Prep Timeline ............................................................................... 21 High School Programs for College Bound Youth ............................................................ 22 College Prep and Entrance Exams .................................................................................. 23 College Support Programs ............................................................................................. 24 Section 4:Financial Aid and Scholarships .......................................................................... 26 Financial Aid 101 ............................................................................................................ 27 Federal Financial Aid ...................................................................................................... 27 Scholarship Opportunities.............................................................................................. 29 1 Section 1: Supporting Your CASA Youth’s High School Success 2 Graduation Requirements for San Mateo County High School Districts Sequoia Union Jefferson Union San Mateo Union So. SF Unified Cabrillo Unified SUBJECT Semesters Credits Semesters Credits Semesters Credits Semesters Credits Semesters Credits English 8 40 8 40 8 40 8 40 8 40 Math 4 20 6 30 6 30 4 20 4 20 Social Science 7 35 6 30 7 35 6 30 8 40 Science 4 20 4 20 4 20 4 20 4 20 Fine Arts/Foreign Language2 10 2 10 4 20 2 10 2 10 Physical Education 4 20 4 20 4 20 4 20 4 20 Driver’s Education 1 2.5 Health Education 1 5 1 5 1 5 1 5 Career Technical Education2 10 2 10 Electives/Service Credits 12 57.5 12 60 10 50 15 75 14 70 Required for Graduation 220 225 220 220 220 Minimum Grades: Students must earn a "D" grade or better to receive credit for a course that will count towards graduation. However, students must receive a “C” or better for the credit to count towards the UC/CSU entry requirement – more on this in 4-year college section. CAHSEE Suspended: The California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE), formerly a graduation requirement for students in the California public schools, was suspended effective January 1, 2016. Graduation for Special Education Students: Many youth in special education graduate with diplomas. However, those who cannot meet the demands of graduation requirements will instead receive a “certificate of completion” upon satisfactorily completing the benchmarks outlined in their IEP. If your youth is a special education student, contact their counselor or special education case manager to get clarification about your youth’s graduation goal. Partial Credits: If a foster youth moves mid-semester they are entitled to partial credits. This site will calculate exactly how many credits your youth should get based on the number of days enrolled during the semester: www.sacfys.org/demo/FYSPartialGradeCalc.cfm Credit Forgiveness for Foster Youth (AB 167): Foster youth who transfer schools or districts in 11th or 12th grade are exempt from local graduation requirements, if they would not be able to reasonably meet these additional local requirements (more on pg. 6). 3 Monitoring Your High School Youth's Attendance and Grades Now it's a lot easier because almost every high school in San Mateo County is providing up to date grade and attendance information online. Not every district or school uses the same system for tracking student progress online. Each system has different requirements, but users will log-in at the high school’s website. The trickiest part of accessing this information is getting a user name and password. Go to the high school’s website Locate the logo or a link to log-in Register for a new username and password You will be asked for Student ID # (School Loop) or an Activation Key (Infinite Campus or Parent Vue). o If you do not have the ID#, your CASA youth, or an adult, can provide this information. Otherwise, you may need to contact the school to register. San Mateo Union High School District (Aragon, Burlingame, Capuchino, Hillsdale, Mills, San Mateo, & Peninsula) & Half Moon Bay HS, South San Francisco HS, El Camino HS, and Baden HS: Sequoia Union High School District (Carlmont, Menlo-Atherton, Sequoia, Woodside, & Redwood): Jefferson Union High School District (Jefferson, Oceana, Terra Nova, Westmoor, & Thornton) 4 Alternatives to Comprehensive High Schools Generally speaking, your CASA youth will attend one of the comprehensive high schools in their school district. However, many will benefit from a different type of high school program. Some of the local alternatives are listed below. Middle College High Schools Middle colleges are collaborations between local high school districts and community colleges. These programs provide an alternative to students for whom the traditional high schools were not meeting their needs. Cañada Middle College describes a potential middle college student: Will be a junior or senior in good standing with a GPA of 2.0 or above. Is on track for graduation: Minimum 90 credits for a junior, Minimum 145 credits for a senior Has the ability to thrive in an alternative environment Desires to complete high school and begin college courses Demonstrates the maturity to cope with the challenges and relative freedom of a college environment May show a discrepancy between standardized test scores and actual grades, indicating that she/he is not working up to potential Eligible for English 836 or above per Cañada's placement test There middle colleges at all three of San Mateo County’s Community Colleges, Cañada, College of San Mateo, and Skyline, which are available to students enrolled in Sequoia Union HSD, San Mateo Union HSD and Cabrillo USD, and South San Francisco USD, respectively. Cañada Middle College: http://canadacollege.edu/middlecollege San Mateo Middle College: http://collegeofsanmateo.edu/middlecollege/ Skyline Middle College: http://www.skylinecollege.edu/middlecollege/ Local Private or Charter High Schools Eastside College Preparatory School: Located in East Palo Alto, Eastside Prep has a competitive admissions process with applicants from all over the Bay Area. Youth can commute or live in the dorms on campus. Tuition, room, and board will be free for the youth we work with. http://www.eastside.org/ Everest Public High School and Summit Prep High School: Everest and Summit Prep are public charter schools primarily for students in the Sequoia Union High School District. Once the application is submitted, admission is based on a lottery. http://www.everestphs.org; http://www.summitprep.net East Palo Alto Academy: EPAA’s mission is to prepare students for college and for the 21st century world and workplace by enabling them to graduate with the full array of knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed for success in a complex world, and with the ability to learn independently throughout their lives: http://www.epaahs.org/ 5 Continuation and Alternative High Schools Both types of high schools have shorter school days and often require little to no homework from the students. Students accumulate credits every couple of weeks for satisfactorily completing class work and achieving on tests, as opposed to receiving grades and credits after a full semester or trimester worth of work. Continuation high schools are for students who are sixteen years of age or older, behind in credits and at-risk of not graduating: http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/eo/ce/