By Tracie Mauriello: For Complete Post, Click Here…
Only 40 percent of Michigan foster children graduate from high school in four years, compared to 80 percent of the general population.
Christian Randle expected to spend his senior year in a dual enrollment program that allows Michigan students to receive college credit while still in high school.
Instead, the Farmington 17-year-old is working toward just a high school equivalency certificate.
He told the State Board of Education on Tuesday that he’s frustrated and feels like he’s starting high school, because he’s been unable to get credit for schoolwork he did over the last five years while living in a series of foster homes and residential facilities.
Christian addressed the board at its December meeting along with several other teenagers and young adults who were removed from their homes because of abuse and neglect. They’re asking the board to help ensure that others like them can graduate on time and with a solid education.
More than 10,000 children are in foster care in Michigan, according to the Children’s Defense Fund. About 40 percent of them graduate high school in four years, compared with 80 percent of all students in Michigan.