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Proposal Narrative for YSPN Membership <br />Please answer each question as concisely as possible <br />1. About the Program <br />A. Executive Summary <br />1. Which WIA population will the program recruit and serve? <br />This project is intended to serve 24 foster/emancipated youth with an emphasis on older, <br />out-of-school youth; specifically, 20 older, out-of-school foster/emancipated youth and 4 <br />older in-school foster/emancipated youth. Services for in-school youth will be offered <br />after regular school hours. Foster/emancipated youth are considered a population with <br />"special consideration" as stated in this Request for Proposal (RFP). The Orangewood <br />Children's Foundation's goal in a partnership with the Santa Ana WEB/Youth Council is <br />to extend WIA's reach into the community to positively impact important target <br />populations, such as foster/emancipated youth. <br />2. Indicate how many participants to be served. <br />Through support and partnership with the Santa Ana W113/Youth Council, the <br />Orangewood Children's Foundation will provide 4 .45 FTE Peer Mentors (case <br />managers) who will serve 20 older, out-of-school foster/emancipated youth and 4 older, <br />in-school foster/emancipated youth. <br />3. Describe how this program fits in with programs currently being offered by your agency. <br />The Orangewood Children's Foundation is among the leading agencies in Orange County <br />serving the adolescent and young adult foster youth population. We provide a minimum <br />of 50 Independent Living Program (ILP) workshops per year for foster/emancipated <br />youth ages 16-21. Approximately 630 unduplicated youth participate in ILP each year. <br />Additionally, we annually provide scholarships in support of higher education attainment <br />for young adults with a foster care history in Orange County. In 2008/09 we provided <br />approximately $917,000 to 322 youth per year for college tuition and living expenses. <br />Our transitional housing program provides for approximately 40 emancipated youth per <br />year and the Orangewood Resource Center (ORC) receives about 580 unduplicated foster <br />youth visits per year. <br />We currently employ approximately 28 Peer Mentors who work with our foster youth <br />clients through the ILP program, the ORC and other key programs. The Peer Mentors <br />are currently enrolled in college level studies and are all young adults who have <br />successfully emancipated from the foster care system. Consequently, Peer Mentors are <br />well known and highly regarded by our foster youth clientele. The Foster Youth Liaison <br />Project is a tremendous compliment to our current programs. <br />4. Indicate which of the 10 WIA elements the program will offer. <br />The goals of the Santa Ana WIB/Youth Council and Orangewood Children's Foundation <br />are similar as we both want our youth most in need, especially foster/emancipated youth <br />to succeed in their education/training and employment experiences. Our efforts are <br />intended to lead young people to a successful transition from adolescence to adulthood. <br />In that endeavor, our organization will focus on the following YSPN Elements: <br />• Tutoring, study skills training, and instruction, leading to completion of secondary <br />school, including dropout prevention strategies <br />EXHIBIT A <br />OCF/Foster Youth Liaison Project