Abby Sexton, independent living and emancipation coordinator for Children Services, told the Journal-News that when she arrived at the agency in 2002 not a single foster child graduated.
“This group of graduates are amazing, like they all are each year,” Sexton said. “When I started planning in August, we only had eight, which is fairly typical for the number of youth we have in care. As the year went on, we just kept gaining graduates. I think this speaks volumes to the determination of the youth to cross the finish line for this part of their education and earn their high school diplomas.”
Serenity Sullivan was one of Sexton’s charges before she emancipated three days after her 18th birthday a year ago, she now has a diploma from Talawanda High School. Sexton said Sullivan is stubborn in a good way, she was “adamant” about graduating and “was able to push through her own obstacles and achieve that.”
“She’s a tough cookie,” Sexton said. “She’s been through a lot, she’s experienced a lot and while her stubbornness kind of threw me for a loop sometimes it definitely has helped her to get where she is today.”
Sullivan told the Journal-News after her mom was arrested she went to live with her dad, then her grandmother, an aunt for a couple years, multiple stays in residential treatment after two suicide attempts, and was then placed in group and foster homes.
“I actually didn’t think I was going to graduate, but I did. That makes me really happy and I feel like I can do anything now,” she said adding “I was like hurt and angry, that’s why I didn’t really stay in these places. Every time I moved they would put me in a new school and I can’t tell you how frustrating that was.”
Her ultimate goal is to go to college — she has job feelers out and is exploring a nursing assistant program— and have a career in the health field, possibly as a forensic psychologist or behavioral health specialist, “being somewhat of a behavioral person I have some experience and I could be able to help.”
She said without support from Sexton and her foster mom Leah Wasburn-Moses, she wouldn’t have made it this far. Wasburn-Moses, a professor of teacher education at Miami University, has been a foster parent for about seven years, caring or three children — and a friend of one of her foster daughters for a while. She said she is proud “beyond belief” of Sullivan and “it’s really a joy to me to see how proud she is of this accomplishment.”
“I think she’s had a lot of challenges with self-worth because of her background,” she said. “She hasn’t had a lot of consistency in her life, like a lot of us have been fortunate to have, that has helped us be successful. It means more to her than it does to a lot of us, because it’s something that she was able to complete herself and something that will have a lasting impact on her life.”
Sexton said a dozen of the graduates are still in foster care and three like Sullivan emancipated when they turned 18 but finished high school. She said several are going on to two-year degree programs and the rest are working. Throughout the 20 years BCCS has been celebrating graduates, 206 students have gotten diplomas.
She said over the years, 15 of the students — possibly as many as 25 — received college degrees. Sexton said she has made a total of 11 referrals to the state-sponsored Bridges program, that extended the foster care emancipation age to 21 in 2017 and provides housing and support to kids who would otherwise be on their own at age 18.
The agency puts up colorful decorations, it has a potluck lunch and cake and social workers tell stories about their charges. The teens also get a huge laundry basket of things they will need going forward on their own, such as dishes, pots and pans, utensils, tool kits, towels, vacuums and more: “I just keep dumping stuff into it,” Sexton said.
“This annual event celebrates both the incredible accomplishments of the graduates and the collaborative efforts of our caseworkers, staff, community partners, the youth, and all those who support them, BCCS Director Shannon Glendon said. “Its an incredible celebration of success.”
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