FOSTER CARE FACTS
Office of the Cook County Public Guardian
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services
In June 2003 nearly half of foster kids in Chicago Public Schools attending third grade through eighth grade, scored in the bottom quarter of the Iowa Basic Skills Test.
Children in foster care are disproportionately likely to change schools, particularly at the time of entering foster care and also when they experience a change in placement.
Adults who were in foster care as children have lower educational accomplishments and higher rates of unemployment, and are consistently overrepresented in studies of the homeless. Adults raised as foster children have poorer mental health.
523,000 children were in the U.S. foster care system on September 30, 2003. Most children are placed temporarily in foster care due to parental abuse or neglect.
Average Age of Children in Foster Care: 10.2 years
5% = 0-1 years old
24% = 1-5 years old
22% = 6-10 years old
30% = 11-15 years old
17% = 16-18 years old
2% = > 19 years old
Gender: Male: 53% Female: 47%
Race and Ethnicity: As a percentage, there are more children of color in the foster care system than in the general U.S. population. However, child abuse and neglect occur at about the same rate in all racial/ethnic groups.