CORE | Coalition for Residential Education

Singing and performing in front of his peers and the public has always come easy for Milton Hershey School (MHS) Senior James Stankunas. An MHS student since his enrollment as a kindergartener, James’ passion has landed him in numerous musical performances and school drama productions, as well as a role in the motion picture, The Night Listener-all while maintaining a 4.0 GPA.

A high point of James’ singing career took place on Sunday, April 3, in Baltimore, when he performed for an audience of thousands as a member of the highly prestigious 2011 MENC (Music Educators’ National Conference) All-Eastern Chorus. By virtue of his performance in the 2010 Pennsylvania All-State Chorus and his second-place ranking, James was chosen to sing in this select group of the most musically talented high school students from the eastern region of the United States.

“Being selected for All-Eastern Chorus is an honor that not many choral students are able to experience. I did not expect to get chosen for the Chorus; I didn’t even think I would make it past the District level. …The fact that I made it to the highest level possible and made MHS history is mind-blowing, to say the least,” said James.

For the April performance, students prepared challenging music that they performed under the leadership of prominent conductors in this biennial event, consisting of a concert band, symphony orchestra, mixed chorus, and jazz ensemble; all organized by members of MENC.

James plans to continue his education at Berklee College of Music, MA, with a double major in Music Business and Vocal Performance.

May 4, 2011 marked the third annual National Residential Education Day – a day to celebrate the many opportunities residential education programs provide for children while increasing understanding of residential education at national and local levels. Students, alumnae, staff, and supporters introduced, reminded, and served as “voices” of residential education to media, referral sources, donors, policymakers, and child welfare professionals through a variety of activities across the country.

CORE member programs tailored events to fit their individual programs. Some programs celebrated the day internally, while others reached out to local media using common language – CORE’s “branding” language that defines and distinguishes residential education.

A sampling of events include:

Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children celebrated their third annual Advocacy Day by heading to their local State Capitol, where youth success stories were delivered to each state representative. See examples:
1. Henriatta’s story (pdf)
2. Reighna’s story (pdf)

Crossnore School in North Carolina organized an open house event for the local community where prayers were written for the future and attached to balloons to be released into the sky, and a prayer circle was held.

They also held an assembly where determination, overcoming hardships, and achieving success with the help of Crossnore’s support and relationships, was celebrated.

More CORE member stories from these celebrations will be shared in the near future!

Today is the third-annual national public awareness event in the residential education field with events occurring across the country. We are celebrating and increasing understanding of residential education as one “tool in the toolbox” for at-risk youth, using unified language to further define and distinguish what residential education provides youth, and how.

Many programs across the country are hosting on-campus events, activities with youth and alumnae, and conducting media outreach and advocacy efforts with local legislative bodies to increase visibility and showcase the life-changing benefits of residential education for children.

In addition to creating external awareness for decision-makers, today is also a day to celebrate YOUR work – the daily successes, challenges, and inspirations “in the trenches” that allow you to continue providing crucial services to children, families, and our communities.

Take today to share your achievements! And don’t forget to take photos, share stories, and let us know the feedback you receive!

HAPPY NATIONAL RESIDENTIAL EDUCATION DAY!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Celebrating Alternative Education Settings Serving At-Risk Youth

Washington, DC – Approximately 40 boarding schools and children’s homes for over 10,000 socially and economically disadvantaged youth across the United States will celebrate next Wednesday the third-ever National Residential Education Day. The celebration is part of a national effort to increase public awareness of “residential education” as a crucial option for at-risk youth.

Residential education (RE) programs are community-like settings where children severely challenged by homelessness, abuse, neglect, the child welfare system, and low-income, high-crime neighborhoods live and learn together, outside of their homes, within stable, supportive environments. The majority of children live on a campus, in single-family homes with a married couple and seven to ten other boys or girls. Other children, mostly in urban areas, live in boarding school-style dormitories with trained adult mentors. Whether called a preparatory program, children’s home, boarding or residential charter program, RE is a viable and important option for thousands of children nationwide, particularly teenagers who are often difficult to place in stable and nurturing foster care settings. In 2010, 79% of CORE-member residential education program graduates went on to attend two- and four-year colleges.

With an average length of stay of two years and funded privately or through a public-private partnership, residential education is a growing trend that transforms the lives of children on the margins.

Positioned within National Foster Care Month, National Residential Education Day seeks to increase recognition and understanding of the approximately 150 programs across the country that provide at-risk youth chances to live safe, productive, and meaningful lives. September 2006 federal foster care legislation was passed adding residential education as a valid placement option for children in the child welfare system, and as a viable alternative to traditional foster care homes.

“Kids need physical and emotional safety, and they need a quality education. They need the feeling of belonging to a nurturing community, a belief in self, and a structure to grow in,” says Heidi Goldsmith, executive director of Washington, DC-based CORE: the Coalition for Residential Education, the organization spearheading National Residential Education Day. “Ideally, that structure is a good family. But if that is not possible, kids need not what looks like a family, but what behaves like a healthy family.”

Programs in Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Texas, Oklahoma and beyond are hosting open house events and on-campus parades and celebrations, instituting Advocacy Days to bring youth and alumni to speak with state policymakers, implementing letter-writing campaigns to state legislators, planning lecture series that further educate participants about residential education, reaching out to local media, and making “A Day in the Life of…” films to spread awareness of this valuable education alternative.

Milton Hershey School student, Arman Asemani says he made many mistakes as a 13-year old, but “then I got a second chance.” Hershey School was the first place where his classmates didn’t know how “messed up my parents were.” For the first time the parents of his classmates were not urging their children to avoid him. “I got a chance to reinvent myself,” said Asemani, a confident, bespectacled honor student. While he has detailed the burdens of his unstable life before he arrived at Milton Hershey School, Asemani says that they were nothing compared to what they would be “if residential education had not saved me from self-destruction.” Residential education is a great equalizer and when young people are in a group situation where “everyone is disadvantaged, suddenly no one has an excuse” to fail.

For more information on residential education and specific events occurring around the country, contact Aviva Braun at CORE: the Coalition for Residential Education, 301-656-6101 or visit www.residentialeducation.org.

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On April 1, 2011, 7 alumni of CORE member programs, Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actress Sela Ward, and CORE’s Founder/ Executive Director Heidi Goldsmith, urged policymakers at the House of Representatives and the Senate to “Ensure Options for At-risk Youth: Preserving the “Residential Education as one ‘Tool in the Toolbox’ for youth in foster care, and other.

The message clear, and succinct, and almost anyone hearing the alumni’s superb and varied testimonies would agree with our premise: Youth need more, not fewer, options, as different solutions work for different youth. As the very gracious and beautiful Actress Sela Ward, the final panelist at our event at the US House of Representatives, said, “Why are we even having to ASK for permission to serve youth in this way? Of COURSE more options, including residential education programs, are needed!”

Presenters included 7 alumni ranging in age from 18 – 34, Sela Ward (and spontaneously her venture capital husband, “Pay now or pay even more later!” Howard), and Heidi Goldsmith. Two Congressmen showed up in person (we are told this rarely happens), and we are told that most of the staff on the relevant House subcommittee of Ways and Means came, despite it being very busy on the Hill that day, especially with budget negotiations.

Before and after the House panel, the delegation met with Senate staff.

Youth in the foster care system have few quality options available to them. One of these few options, ‘residential education,’ is facing increasingly severe challenges to being able to continue serving youth in this system. While there is no data to support this view, these programs are denigrated by some powerful child advocates as being harmful to youth. Some federal policymakers are considering legislation to further limit the ability of youth to attend these programs, and in many states the barriers to being able to serve youth in these settings are becoming insurmountable.

Seven alumni of residential education programs will share their personal stories, including their experiences in foster care and in these programs. Heidi Goldsmith, our Founder and Executive Director, and Actress Sela Ward, Founder of Hope Village, will speak about why keeping these residential education programs available to children is so important. The event will take place in the Rayburn House of Representatives Building, Room B-318, from 1 – 2 PM. If you can come, we would love for you to join us at this important event.

As the field of residential education continues to develop, it is critical that we define what ‘residential education’ is, its tenets, and its key elements. This concise document does just that. The goal is to use a common language across the diverse models of residential education programs, as we work to strengthen individual residential education programs and advocate for residential education serving as a ‘tool in the toolbox’ for at-risk children, their families, and our communities. Please read our updated branding document.

Youth in the foster care system have few quality options available to them. One of these few options, ‘residential education,’ is facing increasingly severe challenges to being able to continue serving youth in this system. While there is no data to support this view, these programs are denigrated by some powerful child advocates as being harmful to youth. Some federal policymakers are considering legislation to further limit the ability of youth to attend these programs, and in many states the barriers to being able to serve youth in these settings are becoming insurmountable.

Seven alumni of residential education programs will share their personal stories, including their experiences in foster care and in these programs. Heidi Goldsmith, our Founder and Executive Director, and Actress Sela Ward, Founder of Hope Village, will speak about why keeping these residential education programs available to children is so important. The event will take place in the Rayburn House of Representatives Building, Room B-318, from 1 – 2 PM.

Hillcrest Family Services celebrated its 115th anniversary this past Friday, Feb. 25. Congratulations Hillcrest for all of the amazing work that you do!

To learn more about Hillcrest Family Services in Dubuque, IA, please click here!

CORE is delighted to welcome New Mexico Boys and Girls Ranches to the CORE community! Established in 1944, the Ranches have evolved into five divisions that promote opportunity and meaningful help for struggling children and their families. Their multi-denominational Christian programs offer young people a safe place to live, a personalized plan to address their needs and goals, and individualized education and counseling. They also offer families help through services such as crisis management, family counseling and parent skills training. They look forward to hosting a future CORE meeting so we can learn more about them! In the meantime, we look forward to meeting a few of their leaders at the upcoming CORE National Conference.

To learn more about The Ranches in New Mexico, please click here!