The central mission of Living Advantage, Inc., a local non-profit, is to address the problems facing youth who are aging out from the foster care system. Living Advantage provides life skills workshops and links youth to resources and services in the community that will help them stay in school and graduate on time. In addition, Living Advantage sponsors the Virtual Assistant Living and Educational (VALE) network, a safe, secure website that allows foster youth to store electronic copies of vital life documents, such as birth certificates and social security cards, which are often lost during the many transitions experienced by foster youth. The program, endorsed by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, California Assembly Member Mike Davis, and Congresswoman Karen Bass, will give foster youth the resources they need to reclaim their personal histories while charting a course for future success.
Living Advantage, in partnership with the USC Joint Educational Project, faculty in the USC Department of Psychology, and Foshay Learning Center, seeks UNO funding to provide targeted support to foster youth at Foshay that will prepare them for independent living, higher education and employment. With UNO support, the Supporting Foster Youth in the Transition to Adulthood (SFYTA) program will do the following: 2. Provide mentors and tutors via JEP to work with foster youth in need of additional academic support 3. Offer life skills workshops to the foster youth 4. Provide case management services to link foster youth with other community resources 5. Offer enrollment in the VALE program to interested foster youth 6. Evaluate the effectiveness of the program Three primary goals and expected outcomes of the SFYTA program for foster youth include the following: 1) increased utilization of community resources, including the VALE program; 2) positive changes in students' attitudes and beliefs, particularly with regard to feelings of self-efficacy; and 3) positive changes in students behavior and academic outcomes, including improvements in school attendance and grades, as well as decreases in behavioral problems.
1. Conduct a needs assessment at Foshay Learning Center to identify foster youth at the school and assess their needs
