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Maryland Public Policy Institute Scholar to Testify on Educational Opportunities for Foster Care Children

Published on June 18th, 2007
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GERMANTOWN, MD - June 18, 2007—Maryland Public Policy Institute Visiting Senior Fellow Dan Lips will testify before the Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support of the Committee on Ways and Means on Tuesday, June 19, 2007, at 1:00 p.m. in room B-318 Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, DC.

The Subcommittee is holding hearings on disconnected and disadvantaged youth, and the Maryland Public Policy Institute has been a leading advocate in promoting educational opportunities for foster care children.

Last year, the Maryland Public Policy Institute launched its Education Initiative for Foster Care Children after release of its report “School Choice for Maryland’s Foster Care Children: Fostering Stability, Satisfaction, and Achievement.” Subsequently, the Institute released a focus group study backing up its findings entitled, “Foster Care Families, Children, and Education.”

There are an estimated 523,000 foster care children in the United States, 11,500 in Maryland alone. The Maryland Public Policy Institute has proposed offering these children opportunity scholarships to attend high-quality schools of choice regardless of change in the children’s residence.

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