The power of connectedness: Associations between caring non-parental adult relationships, school attendance, and discipline among foster-involved youth

Abstract

Relationships with caring adults are protective for adolescents. However, little is known about the impacts of caring adults for youth who have experienced disruptions in caregiving due to involvement in the foster care system, especially with regard to their school outcomes. We analyzed cross-sectional data from foster-involved youth (5th, 8th, 9th, & 11th graders, N = 4,629) who responded to the 2019 Minnesota Student Survey. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and multivariate logistic regression models were used to evaluate whether perceptions of caring in relationships with non-parental adult relatives, teachers/school staff, and adults in the community were associated with students’ absences and instances of being sent out of class for disciplinary reasons in the last 30 days. Significant, protective bivariate associations were noted between students’ perceptions of how much non-parental adult relatives in their lives care about them and their instances of school absences and exclusionary discipline (p <.05). Chi-square tests also revealed that high perceptions of caring in relationships with teachers and school staff were associated with fewer absences. Relationships with other adults in the community were not significantly associated with absences or discipline. In multivariate logistic regression analyses (controlling for sex, race and ethnicity, and grade), only associations between non-parental adult relative caring and absences (p =.01) and between non-parental adult relative caring and exclusionary discipline (p <.001) remained significant. Relationships with caring non-parental adults are important for youth involved in foster care and support school attendance and behavior. Families, schools, and foster care systems should prioritize youths’ connections with relatives and school staff to support their educational experiences.