Ashely Dickerson currently serves as a Senior Program Manager at the National Center for Youth Law with the FosterEd Arizona Compassionate Systems initiative. Improving educational outcomes is at the core of her efforts and she is passionate about creating an equitable and just education system in the great state of Arizona. Ashely is a proud Arizonan hailing from Glendale, and her deep commitment to her community, students, and families guides her everyday work.
Understanding the Landscape of Supports for Students Experiencing Foster Care:
This workshop is for district and school staff to better understand and assess the effectiveness of their supports and programs that assist students experiencing foster care. When students in foster care experience frequent school changes, they lose the critical connections and relational support needed to thrive in adolescence and adulthood. The data substantiating these lived experiences is stark, revealing consistent enrollment in substandard learning environments, a staggering achievement gap, poor attendance, alarming school instability, and low graduation rates. Students tell us, and data shows, when education is approached with an equity lens and students receive the tailored support the law has carved out for them, success is not only possible, it is inevitable. Participants will leave with concrete strategies they can lead through their school district, as well as receiving materials to use as reference points for developing their own efforts.