Treehouse’s 2019 Legislative Agenda
Creating Our 2019 Legislative Agenda
Our 2019 Washington State legislative session will be incredibly important for Treehouse and the youth we serve. With increased state funding requests for our Graduation Success and Driver’s Assistance programs and policy proposals that will profoundly impact our children and youth, we need your voice if we are to be successful.
When developing our legislative agenda, we focus on priorities that align with our mission—those that will improve educational outcomes, improve transition to adulthood outcomes and improve equitable access to everyday activities and material needs for our youth.
With the support of staff, community members, and coalition partners, we are pleased to share our priorities for the 2019 state legislative session:
Expand Treehouse Programs
Graduation Success Program
Expand access to education coaching, monitoring, advocacy and support to ensure youth in foster care graduate from high school at the same rate as their peers to an additional 834 foster youth across Washington State. ($4 million/biennium)
Driver's Assistance Program
Expand funding for youth in foster care to get their driver’s license and car insurance to ensure they can get to work and school. ($600,000/biennium)
Lead Priorities
Prepare Youth in Foster Care For Adulthood
Establish dedicated transition leads at the Department of Children, Youth and Families to support proactive, ongoing, youth-centered planning for adulthood starting at age 14.
*Issue identified by youth through The Mockingbird Society
End Youth Detention for Skipping School and Running Away
End the practice of jailing youth for non-criminal offenses like truancy and running away to get youth back into the classroom. Replace with trauma-informed processes that address root causes and expand alternatives to detention.
*Issue identified by youth through The Mockingbird Society
Support Foster Care Caseworkers and Reduce Caseload Size
Reduce DCYF caseworker caseload size and turnover to increase capacity to address the educational needs of children and youth in foster care. Mandate educational stability training for all caseworkers in order to ensure school of origin is prioritized when making placement decisions.
*Issue identified by Department of Children, Youth and Families
Improve Foster Parent Recruitment and Retention
Improve foster parent and kinship caregiver recruitment and retention.
- Reestablish the Parent Mentoring Program to provide a skilled foster parent mentor to parents whose children are in foster care.
- Create an online portal to expedite foster parent license applications and renewals.
- Fund a three-year pilot for skilled foster parents and parent allies who have successfully navigated the child welfare system to work with Department of Children, Youth and Families on foster parent recruitment and retention.
- Expand the Mockingbird Hub Home model to Kent and other high needs communities.
*Issue identified by Department of Children, Youth and Families
Creating Washington State Office of Equity
Establish the Washington State Office of Equity to promote equitable access to opportunities and resources that reduce disparities across all state agencies. Identify and coordinate effective strategies that focus on eliminating systemic barriers based on race, ethnicity and gender.
Support Priorities
Passport to Careers Program
Fully fund access to higher education and apprenticeships for students experiencing foster care and unaccompanied homelessness through the Passport to Careers program.
*Issue identified by College Success Foundation and Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC).
Expand Access to Special Education Services
Provide additional funding for special education services through a tiered multiplier model.
*Issue identified by Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI).
Expand Access to ECEAP & ECLIPSE Programs
Expand access to therapeutic early learning programs for children in foster care to improve kindergarten readiness outcomes, including Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) and Early Childhood Intervention and Prevention Services (ECLIPSE).
*Issue identified by Department of Children, Youth and Families.
Expand Young Adult Representation On State Boards and Committees
Expand young adult representation on state boards and committees by adding a designated youth seat to Department of Children, Youth, and Families oversight board and 2 youth seats to the Office of Homeless Youth advisory committee.
*Issue identified through The Mockingbird Society.
