The Countywide Foster Youth Services Program (FYS) is designed to provide individual and small group tutorial educational assistance to foster youth living in group homes in Oxnard, Camarillo and Ventura.  FYS staff and tutors serve as advocates on behalf of the foster children and youth that they serve.  FYS also provides enrollment assistance to foster group home youth.

With the passing of California Assembly Bill 490, foster children and youth have many of the same protections as homeless students, including:

•  Support of an identified Educational Liaison within each school district
•  Ability to remain in the school of origin for the remainder of the year despite moving out of the attendance area, and
• Acceptance of credit for full or partial coursework satisfactorily completed by the student.

FYS also provides technical assistance about state legislation regarding foster children to the County's twenty school districts.  Beginning in November 2003, VCOE organized a Homeless/Foster Educational Liaison Council with a representative from each of the school districts.  The purpose of the Liaison Council is to advocate for and to meet the educational needs of children and youth living in foster care as well as to eliminate the educational barriers faced by foster students. We must ensure that foster children and youth have an opportunity to meet the same challenging state academic performance standards to which all students are held. 

The Foster Youth Services Program is funded through a grant by the California Department of Education.  For further information about the state program go to http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/pf/fy/