Children's Bureau Website - Illinois - Assisted Guardianship

Illinois

Demonstration Type:	Assisted Guardianship – Phase II¹
Approved:	January 1, 2004²
Implemented:	June 30, 2005
Expected Completion:	December 31, 2008
Interim Evaluation Report Expected:	December 31, 2007
Final Evaluation Report Expected:	June 30, 2009

Background

Illinois’ original five-year assisted guardianship demonstration was approved September 22, 1996. In January 2004, the Children’s Bureau granted Illinois a five-year extension of the project through December 31, 2008.

Under its Phase II demonstration, Illinois continues to implement its “standard” assisted guardianship program and has added an “enhanced program” component that provides independent living and transitional services to older wards (youth ages 14 or older) who achieve permanency through adoption or guardianship. This enhanced program makes available to former wards the same services that are available to youth who “age out” of foster care without achieving permanency.

Target Population

To participate in either the standard or enhanced program components, children must have been in the legal custody of the State for at least one year and have resided with a prospective guardian for a minimum of 12 consecutive months. Children may participate in either program component without regard to title IV-E eligibility. Although the demonstration focuses on children living with relatives, children living in licensed non-relative foster homes may also enroll in the demonstration.

To participate in the standard guardianship program, children living in the home of an unrelated foster parent must be at least 12 years of age; there is no age requirement for children living in kinship foster homes.

The enhanced guardianship program component focuses on a subset of children eligible for the State’s standard program. Specifically, the enhanced program targets (1) youth in the experimental group of the standard guardianship program who have attained, or will attain, the age of 14 but have not been adopted or entered into guardianship; and (2) other youth currently in foster care, or who enter foster care during the demonstration period, who are 14 years of age or older and meet all other eligibility requirements of the standard subsidized guardianship option.

Jurisdiction

Illinois continues to implement the standard guardianship component statewide. The enhanced program was originally implemented in Cook County (Chicago), East St. Louis, and Peoria. In February 2006, Illinois received approval from the Children’s Bureau to expand the enhanced program to include all eligible children statewide. Statewide expansion of this program component began in April 2006.

Intervention

Standard Guardianship Program

Under its standard guardianship program, Illinois offers relative caretakers and licensed, non-relative foster parents the option of assuming legal guardianship of eligible children in their care. Specific services offered under the standard guardianship program are highlighted below.

Pre-Guardianship Services

Services available in preparation for guardianship include home studies, preliminary screenings, and counseling on guardianship. During the process of completing the guardianship, the State provides up to $500 as a one-time, non-recurring payment to cover expenses related to the establishment of the guardianship subsidy agreement and the transfer of guardianship to the relative or non-relative caregiver.

Post-Guardianship Services

After the establishment of the guardianship subsidy agreement, the guardian receives on behalf of the child a monthly subsidy that does not exceed the State’s foster care board rate. Services that may be part of the guardianship agreement include a Medicaid card; counseling or other services not payable through other sources that are related to a child’s pre-existing physical, emotional, or mental health condition; therapeutic daycare; and employment-related daycare for children under the age of three. Additional services that are available and do not need to be documented in the guardianship subsidy agreement include adoption preservation services and respite care.

Enhanced Permanency Program

Under the Enhanced Permanency Program component, eligible youth in the experimental group who enter guardianship or who are adopted at age 14 or older are offered the same services available to youth who “age out” of foster care without achieving permanency. Specific services available to eligible youth include the following:

Education and Training Vouchers provide up to $5,000 each fiscal year to cover tuition payments for post-secondary educational or vocational programs.

Employment Incentive Program provides a monthly subsidy for a maximum of 12 months and a Medicaid card. Limited, one-time funding is also available for work-related items associated with the start of new employment.

Housing Cash Assistance covers the cost of housing security deposits, provides rent when the youth cannot make the payment, and offers a partial housing subsidy for up to one year following a youth’s emancipation.

Life Skills Training consists of group or individual instruction designed to teach independent living skills.

Youth in College and Vocational Training Program supports young people pursuing higher education or vocational training through a monthly stipend and a Medicaid card. Benefits are available until the earlier of four years or the attainment of an AA or BA degree.

An additional service developed to support the long-term viability of guardianships is the Subsidized Guardianship Specialist (SGS) Program. SGSs are employees of the Children and Family Research Center at the University of Illinois who work with guardianship cases at risk of disruption or dissolution, including cases in which the guardian or the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) has filed a motion to vacate the guardianship.

Evaluation Design

The evaluation of the Phase II waiver demonstration focuses on the enhanced guardianship program component and includes process and outcome components, as well as a cost analysis. Using an experimental research design with random assignment at a 1:1 ratio, youth in the experimental group are offered enhanced permanency services while control group youth remain enrolled in or eligible for the standard guardianship program.

Random assignment for the enhanced program was originally limited to the sub-regions of Cook County (Chicago), East St. Louis, and Peoria. In conjunction with the statewide expansion of the enhanced program, the State has now implemented random assignment statewide. As of April 2007, 3,206 youth have been assigned to the demonstration’s enhanced program component, with 1,609 assigned to the experimental group and 1,597 assigned to the control group.

Outcome Evaluation

The key research hypotheses addressed by the State’s evaluation include the following:

The enhanced subsidized guardianship program will be accepted by a greater percentage of youth and caregivers who are offered this option than accept the standard subsidized guardianship program.

The demonstration will result in better long-term outcomes for youth in terms of educational status, employment and other measures of successful independent living as specified by the State in the evaluation plan.

The proportion of youth who are wait-listed for independent living and transition services will be the same in the experimental and control groups as well as in other youth 14 years of age or older who are in foster care.

The demonstration will result in fewer children remaining in long-term foster care with ongoing administrative oversight.

The demonstration will result in fewer disrupted placements.

The demonstration will not result in a higher rate of subsequent substantiated reports of abuse or neglect.

Data Collection

To address outcomes specific to the enhanced permanency component, the State’s evaluators are conducting interviews with 750 eligible youth and their caregivers. As of June 2006, the evaluation team had completed 358 caregiver interviews and 318 youth interviews.

Additional data on youth assigned to the enhanced program are being collected from the State’s Automated Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS) to address questions regarding permanency rates, the quantity and types of services received, subsequent maltreatment reports, and placement disruptions. DCFS is seeking approval from other government agencies, including the Illinois Department of Economic Security, the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, and the Chicago Department of Education, to access their respective administrative databases. Through these sources, the State hopes to address additional outcomes following discharge from State custody, including housing status, educational attainment, employment status, and receipt of public assistance.

Evaluation Findings

Process Evaluation

Illinois began training on the enhanced program for child welfare staff in Cook County in July 2005. By January 2006, 518 staff in the Cook County, East St. Louis, and Peoria Sub-regions had attended training on the enhanced program, less than half the anticipated number of participants. Additional trainings were held throughout March 2006 in Cook County, Peoria, and Springfield. The State has continued to develop strategies to increase participation in future trainings, including the development of a Web-based training curriculum and the appointment of regional “ambassadors” responsible for disseminating information and providing technical assistance regarding the enhanced permanency program.

Outcome Evaluation

More detailed outcome findings await further implementation of the demonstration.

Web Links

Evaluation reports associated with Illinois’ three demonstrations are available on the following Web page: http://cfrcwww.social.uiuc.edu/cfrcdescrip/AcitivitiesMainProjectsEVAL.htm

The Illinois Guardianship Demonstration Final Report (for the project’s first five years) is available at: http://cfrcwww.social.uiuc.edu/pubs/Pdf.files/sgfinalreport.pdf

¹This profile is based on information submitted by the State as of August 2006. This is one of two Illinois Child Welfare Demonstration Projects. Back

²Illinois completed Phase I of this demonstration on December 31, 2003. Back

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