Module 5B: Aging Out

     Like many other adolescents my age, I needed support during the transition from adolescence to adulthood. On the contrary to the stories that were shared by the young adults from the video, I had a supportive family and community to guide me through this transitional time. 

      My family raised me in South Windsor, CT and I attended South Windsor Public Schools for my entire primary and secondary schooling. When senior year came around, I was guided by my mother and school system as I applied to colleges and universities. I had never lived in another town or city, and I was uneasy, but excited, about a transition to college. My mother drove with me and attended several different campus tours in various parts of the eastern United States. She was patient and helpful during these trips as she helped by asking questions and bringing up concerns about which I had no idea of like meningitis in college, and financial aid. Ultimately, I went to the University of Connecticut, only forty minutes from my childhood home. My mother bought me everything that I would need and even helped move me into my dorm. She only left after she properly made my bed and made sure that I had my meal card.

      This is a completely different experience to the stories shared in the videos that told of the hardships that children face as they move from home to home, hoping to be adopted and aging out of the system at the tender age of 18 to fend for themselves. The process of “aging out” must be examined and bettered in order to make sure that these children, who are innocent of any transgressions that put them into the system in the first place, are able to make a meaningful transition into the real world and act as contributing members to society. The State has a responsibility to these foster care children to help them by setting up transitional programs that would teach job training, resume writing, interview skills, basic financial skills, cooking, cleaning, etc. These are the lessons that they would have received as a natural growing and learning process had they been taken care by a family for their entire childhood. We as Americans, owe it to the children of our country to help them become productive members of society so that they can reach their full potential. 

      I find it interesting that many criminal systems often have a transitional program to help criminals rejoin society, even offer half-way houses and assign parole officers in order to make sure that they are doing what is right, yet we simply tell our children that their state protection is done and they have to sink or swim in society. I see this as an egregious example of human rights violations. Article #25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate health and well-being… other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.” (UDHR, 1948) When children are unable to provide for themselves because of they are ill-equipped from their childhood, it is our responsibility as a nation to provide support for them in order to help them become productive members of our society.

Reference:

United Nations. (1948). Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Paris; United Nations.