School Choice for Foster Kids Act

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 789, honoring public child welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations and private entities providing services for foster children. I first would like to thank my distinguished colleague, Representative Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, for introducing this important legislation. This resolution acknowledges the importance of foster parents and other community partners who care for hurting children.

Children are placed in foster care because of society's concern for their well-being. Any time spent by a child in temporary care should be therapeutic but may be harmful to the child's growth, development, and well-being. Interruptions in the continuity of a child's caregiver are often detrimental. Repeated moves from home to home compound the adverse consequences that stress and inadequate parenting have on the child's development and ability to cope. Adults cope with impermanence by building on an accrued sense of self-reliance and by anticipating and planning for a time of greater constancy. Children, however, especially when young, have limited life experience on which to establish their sense of self. In addition, their sense of time focuses exclusively on the present and precludes meaningful understanding of ``temporary'' versus ``permanent'' or anticipation of the future. For young children, periods of weeks or months are not comprehensible. Disruption in either place or with a caregiver for even 1 day may be stressful. The younger the child and the more extended the period of uncertainty or separation, the more detrimental it will be to the child's well-being.

The observance brings sharply into focus the critical needs of foster children and the importance of our foster parents who respond so faithfully and selflessly to the children's needs. Some children are placed in foster care briefly while a family crisis is resolved. Others remain in care for longer periods of time, depending upon the circumstances that led to their removal from their family's home. Over 500,000 children in the United States are currently in foster care which is twice as many as 20 years ago. The majority of these children and youth have been removed from their homes because of abuse or neglect. Our foster parents deserve special praise because they open their homes and their hearts to foster children and love them unconditionally. They understand that a safe, secure home is very important to the healthy development of a child.

An increasing number of young children are being placed in foster care because of parental neglect. Neglect has very profound and long- lasting consequences on all aspects of child development--poor attachment formation, understimulation, development delay, poor physical development, and antisocial behavior. Being in an environment in which child-directed support and communication is limited makes it more difficult for a child to develop the brain connections that facilitate language and vocabulary development, and therefore may impair communication skills. Recent findings in infant mental health show how development can be facilitated, how treatment can enhance brain development and psychological health, and how prevention strategies can lessen the ill effects of neglect.

Adoption by foster families has the potential to benefit not only the child being adopted, but also the foster family and the child welfare agency. There are a number of reasons that a child's foster parents may be the best adoptive parents for that child. Foster parents have a greater knowledge of a child's experiences prior to placement and know what behaviors to expect from the child. If they have sufficient background information about what happened to a child before this placement, some knowledge of how children generally respond to such experiences, and extensive information about this child's specific behavior patterns, the foster family is better able to understand and respond to the child's needs in a positive and appropriate way. Foster parents usually have fewer fantasies and fears about the child's birth family, because they often have met and know them as real people with real problems. Foster parents have a better understanding of their role and relationship with the agency--and perhaps a relationship with their worker.

Foster children experience a number of unique challenges based on instability in their home and school environments. Just over half of all foster children complete high school, 40 percent continue to rely on public assistance into adulthood and 25 percent will experience homelessness at one point in their lives. Numerous public child welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations and private entities work tirelessly to recruit loving foster families and improve the lives of foster children. These groups strive to consider the best interest of each child and focus on keeping families together when possible. They provide invaluable resources to foster families as well as teachers, counselors, physicians, clergy, and others who work closely with children in the foster care system.

Mr. Speaker, I recognize and honor the contributions of all public child welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations and private entities dedicated to finding homes for foster children and assisting foster families in securing their future success.

Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield to the distinguished Congresswoman from Minnesota (Mrs. Bachmann) such time as she may consume. She is the sponsor of the resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I am also a strong believer in what we are doing here in honoring foster care with this month. This is an opportunity to give these children a sense of well-being, a home, a stability, nurturing adults.

We've seen it work time and again, as the gentlewoman from Minnesota has explained. There are currently over 500,000 children in foster care in the United States, and the majority of these children have been removed from their homes because of abuse or neglect. So those who welcome these children in, give them that opportunity, deserve our plaudits in terms of what they've done to help in our society.

Just over half of all foster children complete high school, 30 percent continue to rely on public assistance into adulthood, and 25 percent will experience homelessness at one point in their lives. So we're dealing with circumstances, in many instances, in which we have to try to intervene and to make a difference.

We should pay tribute to the public child welfare agencies, the nonprofits and the private entities that provide these services for these children because, indeed, they are reaching out and making a difference in the lives of many of these individuals.

The groups we honor today provide invaluable resources to foster families, teachers, counselors, physicians, clergy and others who work closely with the children in the foster care system. They sponsor research, develop best practices, and offer assistance to youth transitioning out of the system to ensure they receive adequate support as they reach adulthood. There are an estimated 12 million foster care alumni in the United States representing all walks of life.

We pay tribute to those individuals in this resolution, and I would hope

that all of our colleagues would be supportive of the resolution.

I thank the gentlewoman for her sponsorship and all those who brought it to the floor today.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 789, honoring public child welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations and private entities providing services for foster children.

May is National Foster Care Month. We take this time to bring awareness to the many sides of foster care. Children are placed in foster care when their parents are no longer able to ensure their essential well being. These children need stable, loving care until they can either safely reunite with their families or cultivate other lasting relationships with nurturing adults.

Foster care is essential to protecting abused and neglected children. There are currently over 500,000 children in foster care in the United States. The majority of these children have been removed from their homes because of abuse or neglect.

During this month we recognize the unique challenges foster children experience based on the instability in their home and school environments. Just over half of all foster children complete high school, 30 percent continue to rely on public assistance into adulthood, and 25 percent will experience homelessness at one point in their lives.

Today, we pay tribute to the public child welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations and private entities that provide services for foster children. These organizations work tirelessly to improve the lives of foster children by considering the best interest of each child, focusing on keeping families together when possible, and recruiting loving foster families.

The groups we honor today provide invaluable resources to foster families, teachers, counselors, physicians, clergy, and others who work closely with children in the foster care system. They sponsor research, develop best practices, and offer assistance to youth transitioning out of the system to ensure they receive adequate support as they reach adulthood. There are an estimated 12 million foster care alumni in the United States representing all walks of life.

Today, we honor the contributions of public child welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations and private entities dedicated to finding homes for foster children and assisting foster families in securing the future success of their foster children. These groups are committed to raising awareness related to the special needs of foster children.

That is why I stand in support of this resolution and I ask for my colleagues' support.

I yield back the balance of our time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 789) honoring public child welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations and private entities providing services for foster children, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert material relevant to H. Res. 789 into the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the public welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations, private entities and compassionate individuals that work tirelessly to support foster children.

Since May is National Foster Care Month, it is appropriate that today we salute the many individuals and organizations that provide foster care services to over 500,000 children currently in foster care nationwide.

National Foster Care Month originated in 1988 and has served to heighten awareness for the issue since that time. By increasing visibility of this important issue, organizations are better able to reach out to the community and recruit individuals to support children throughout the year. By connecting foster youth with caring adults we can ensure that children do not face life's challenges alone.

Child welfare issues are present in families of all races, ethnicities and cultures. However, children of color make up a disproportionate number of children in foster care. Without a stable home, these young people confront many challenges. Although some of these young people are able to overcome the challenges of abuse and neglect, others continue to deal with their effects long into adulthood.

Research finds that just 54 percent of foster care youth complete high school and 25 percent will face homelessness at some point in their lives. Additionally, research has shown that children in foster care are more likely than their peers to deal with poverty, unemployment, incarceration, poor health and other hardships.

We must do what we can to support these young Americans and help them cultivate the necessary skills to live successfully and independently. More than 20,000 young people age out of foster care each year, and today we recognize the many individuals, families, neighborhoods, communities and organizations that work collectively together to ensure that all children can grow up with the support they need to be healthy and safe.

So, Mr. Speaker, once again I express my support for H. Res. 789 and recognize the hard work so many put in on a daily basis to help children in foster care reunite with their parents, be cared for by relatives or to be adopted by loving families. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I would reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I just want to be associated with the comments of Mr. Castle, and I also want to commend Mrs. Bachmann and her family, her husband, for the outstanding role modeling which they display. I was taught that you can't lead where you don't go and you can't teach what you don't know, and they demonstrate the very best of what it means to be associated and involved with caring for children who are not necessarily your own. And so I certainly commend them for the outstanding service they provide.

I urge passage of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of our time.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, as this resolution's author, I rise to support H. Res. 789. It is vital that the organizations that are committed to improving the lives of foster care children be commended for their hard work and for their sacrifices.

Today, there are over 500,000 children, that's over a half million children, in foster care across the United States of America, many of whom come from troubled homes and many of whom have been moved from family to family several times. My husband and I have been privileged to have 23 foster children live in our home, and we know from experience that these wonderful organizations that work with our foster children played a critical role in ensuring that they were matched with loving families and they grew up to achieve successful lives. These organizations are to be commended, Mr. Speaker.

Dedicated to changing public policy and also to raising awareness related to the very special and individual needs of foster children, these groups sponsor research, they develop best practices, and they offer assistance to youth who are transitioning out of the system to ensure that they receive adequate support as they reach adulthood. They provide invaluable resources to foster families as well as to teachers, to counselors, physicians, clergy and other people who work closely with children who are being helped by the foster care system.

These men and women and agencies are striving to consider the best interests of every child, and they work to keep families together whenever possible. Today, more Americans are beginning to understand the very real and very special needs of foster care children due to their dedicated public awareness efforts, and I am proud to honor these organizations that have touched the lives of so many of America's children and improved their lives and put them steadily on a path to success.

To complement this resolution, it is my hope that the House will soon have the opportunity to consider H.R. 4311, the School Choice for Foster Kids Act, because this Act will allow foster children of all ages to stay at the school that they've grown comfortable with, even when they change foster homes, which all too frequently seems to happen in the lives of foster children. It will provide them with some stability in their own tumultuous lives.

Mr. Speaker, I hope that you and our fellow colleagues will join us in honoring the contributions of all public child welfare agencies, nonprofit organizations and private entities who are sincerely dedicated to finding homes for foster children and to assisting foster families in securing the success of our future children.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.