Does GetSET work?

YAKIMA, Wash. -- The goal of Get Summer Employment and Training is to prepare teenagers in foster care to lead independent lives.

But whether programs like this work is up for debate.

"It could make a big difference for young people, but we just don't know," said Mark Courtney, a University of Washington professor who's studied foster care issues. "If nothing else, it ... will be one arrow in our quiver to prepare people to be on their own."

To Traci DeOchoa, who administers the GetSET program, the benefits are obvious. More often than not, she said teens placed in foster homes or with relatives -- called kinship care -- aren't learning how to budget, apply for student loans or balance checkbooks. That's where GetSET fills the gap.

"It's wonderful to think those things are happening, but they aren't always happening in biological families," she said. "Depending on the kid we have sitting there with us, it will resonate."

Courtney is the director of Partners for Our Children, a public-private collaboration promoting child-welfare reform at the UW. He's conducted two studies on aging out of the foster care system.

The first, published in 2005, followed 732 youths through their 17th, 18th and 21st birthdays. It found that young people in states like Illinois -- which extends care until age 21 -- have lower rates of incarceration, homelessness and unemployment.

In his latest study, released in March, Courtney showed that youths kept in the system until age 21 are more likely to continue their education and earn more money. By investing $37,948 for extended care over the three years, he concluded youths will make an additional $92,000 during their working lives.

What helps teens succeed is receiving job experience and an education, Courtney said. He said the work component of the GetSET program sounds promising, but he wonders if the other training is premature -- especially since most of the teens are years away from finding housing or getting their own health insurance.

"You tend to cross those bridges when you get to them," he said. "Trying to teach that stuff before you need it, it's not clear if it has any enduring benefit."

DeOchoa agrees some of the information doesn't stick with the students, which is why they're allowed to take GetSET 1 and the more advanced GetSET 2. In some cases, they're allowed to repeat the second course to better familiarize themselves with the curriculum.

About 20 people apply for each of six summer sessions, but 12 are typically accepted based on their interviews and their exhibited desire to participate.

Most come to value the program, as evidenced by a study completed last year. Completed by 81 students, most surveyed found the curriculum useful. They also scored higher in their daily living, housing and money management skills when tested at the end of the session.

DeOchoa concedes the data she has is anecdotal. In the future, she'd like to compare the graduation rates of GetSET students with those who did not complete the program.

What DeOchoa and Courtney don't dispute is the need for extended care for foster kids, which includes Medicaid, vocational training and educational funding.

"You don't have to be a genius to know a class in and of itself won't make it for those people. They'll need additional support," Courtney said. "Now we cut them off at age 18 and say, at best, 'Here are some life skills. Now you are ready to be on your own. Good luck.'

"Most people would view parents with that attitude with very little respect. You'd think that person isn't much of a parent, so why are we behaving that way?"

* Erin Snelgrove can be reached at 509-577-7684 or esnelgrove@yakimaherald.com.