Scott, J., Faulkner, M., Berger Cardoso & Burstain, J. (2014). Kinship care and undocumented Latino children in the Texas foster care system: Navigating the child welfare- immigration crossroads. Child Welfare, 93 (4), 53-69.
Growing national concern has focused on the circumstances of undocumented youth in foster care as a result of parental deportation. Despite this growing interest in undocumented children and their families, few studies explore the extent of their interaction with the child welfare system or discuss the impact of immigration status on their outcomes once they become involved with that system. The presence of undocumented children in foster care raises a number of questions— not only about their reason for entry into the system, but also about their access to services and family resources while in care.
This exploratory study extends the literature on undocumented children in the child welfare system by focusing on Latino children and exploring the relationship between the child’s immigration status and placement outcomes, specifically the likelihood of placement with kin caregivers. We use 2009 Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (TXDFPS) administrative data to examine the numbers, characteristics, and placement outcomes of undocumented youth in foster care, meaning all forms of substitute care: foster homes, group homes, shelters, or any other living arrangement where TXDFPS has conservatorship of a child.
Specifically, we explore three questions:
- What is the prevalence of undocumented status among Latino youth in TXDFPS custody?
- What are their demographic characteristics?
- Which factors are associated with their placement in kinship versus non-relative foster care?
Scott, J., Faulkner, M., Berger Cardoso & Burstain, J. (2014). Kinship care and undocumented Latino children in the Texas foster care system: Navigating the child welfare- immigration crossroads. Child Welfare, 93 (4), 53-69.