A simple but effective program at Elk Grove Unified is helping to restore a sense of normalcy and stability to the lives of foster students, allowing them to connect to their school and community.
The brainchild of district resource teacher Mike Jones, the program brings together all the foster youth at a high school for a weekly “advocacy” class where the students can support each other and develop a feeling of family and a desire to succeed.
Jones started the program at Laguna Creek High School five years ago. Now in five of Elk Grove’s nine comprehensive high schools, the advocacy class gives foster students a chance to build friendships and discuss issues that are unique to them. A teacher or administrator who acts as the school’s foster youth adviser leads the class and also makes sure students have what they need to fully participate in high school: Do students have formal clothes for the prom, for instance, or student activity cards for high school athletic events, which foster children are often unable to afford.
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