As children around the country were headed back to school, John Burton Advocates for Youth (JBAY) was featured in the national publication, the Chronicle of Philanthropy, for its work to increase college success among foster youth in California.
The feature-length article tells the 20-year story of how JBAY has worked to make higher education within reach for foster youth, and draws on experts from around the country to sing JBAY’s praises for its consistent results.
According to Professor Mark Courtney, “I don’t know that there’s ever been a legislative session where there wasn’t some legislation targeting improving services for transitioning youth in California,” he says. “I don’t think that’s the case anywhere else.”
Thanks to this dedication, the number of foster youth enrolled in community college in California has increased 42% in the last decade, reaching just under 19,000 students in the fall of 2023. The article highlights JBAY’s important partnerships that have made this possible, including the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, the Walter S. Johnson Foundation, the Pritzker Foster Care Initiative and the Stuart Foundation.
JBAY College and Career Director Jessica Petrass was pleased with the article, “I hope that other states can see what is possible. We know foster youth want to pursue higher education. Our experience in California shows that when we provide them with the right assistance, they can do it.”
The article highlights the next challenge that JBAY faces: preparing more youth to be college-ready. While high school graduation rates among foster youth have improved in the last decade, they remain 10 percentage points below the general student population in California.
According to Petrass, this ongoing disparity is a high priority for JBAY and will be the focus of a future policy initiative. Outgoing Executive Director Amy Lemley explained that JBAY will start small, learn along the way, and help implement policy reform over time. According to Lemley, “That’s what we did on the post-secondary education side,” she says, “and in under 10 years we’ve fundamentally transformed it.”