Disconnected Youth Require Gifted Education Services Too

Disconnected Youth Require Gifted Education Services Too

From the Desk of  Octavia Fugerson, M.Ed, Ph.D Applied Cognition and Development

      This month Governor Bryan Kemp proclaimed January as Gifted Education Month in Georgia. Gifted Education is a group of special practices, procedures and theories used in the education of children who have been identified as gifted or talented. According to Georgia’s Department of Education, “in Georgia, a gifted education student is defined as one who demonstrates a high degree of intellectual and/or creative ability(ies), exhibits an exceptionally high degree of motivation, and/or excels in specific academic fields, and who needs special instruction and/or special ancillary services to achieve at levels commensurate with his or her ability(ies)”. In recognition of the need for - and goodness of - gifted education, I want to discuss the difference in access to effective gifted education and talent development programs for those with backgrounds of limited resources. Specifically, I bring attention to the limited resources associated with disconnected youth.
     The term “disconnected” describes the distance in experience from the social norm of youth with adequate resources. “Disconnected” describes the lack of sufficient resources for a comfortable quality of living , including land, family and employment. Disconnected youth include, but not limited to, youth in foster care, homeless youth, juvenile delinquents or youth incarcerated, and migrant youth like youth who are displaced from their home state.
     While discussing disconnected youth and gifted education, it is important to highlight historical context. A separation between one group and another was intended very early, as the elite demanded space of their own and left others with what was left. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), the infamous “separate, but equal” ruling which the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation, provided a basis for the underrepresentation of disconnected youth in gifted education program. Under this ruling, it was believed that as long as public facilities were equal in quality, separate public accommodations based on race were accepted. Though the decision was overturned with Brown v. Board of Education (1954) which decided that separate was inherently unequal, students still fight for their constitutional right to a quality equitable education. Reasons for the relative absence of disconnected youth in gifted programs include , inadequate training of teachers to recognize giftedness from diverse cultural backgrounds which leads to cultural bias in identification practices, as well as a lack of parental involvement in educational placement decision making. Currently, disconnected youth are more likely to be placed in special education programs where remediation, not development, is the priority.
     Attention to the current context of the experience of disconnected youth and gifted education is necessary. Youth who have experienced foster care, homelessness, incarceration or migration have traits, aptitudes and behaviors aligned with giftedness. These youth have strengths, competencies, values, supports, and resources that the normalized gifted education program overlooks. In order to develop these skills, strengths, gifts, and talents of disconnected youth, their context must be acknowledged from their perspective. When a more accurate portrayal of the experience of disconnected youth is taken into consideration, a more empowering narrative can arise from the youth.
     Through authentic youth engagement educator’s, child welfare providers and other adults can begin to inquire and identify interests, strengths, and other elements of giftedness among disconnected youth. Authentic youth engagement encourages the reflection of disconnected youth’s developmental capital. Authentic youth engagement occurs through youth-adult partnerships, where the adults respect young people as having significant contributions to offer. In authentic youth engagements, young adults have the opportunity to have responsibility for making meaningful decisions and working as equal partners with adults. The partnership will provide a means for the demonstration of the youth’s developmental capital. Developmental capital is the essential skills these youth utilize to survive and develop their best selves, which is most easily expressed within safe, stimulating resourced spaces. Developmental capital is a composite of one’s strengths, values, competencies, resources and support.

In this last hour of Georgia’s Gifted Education Month, I want to celebrate by recognizing

the developmental capital of disconnected youth which reveal high potentiality and traits, aptitudes and behaviors of giftedness. Disconnected youth offer substantial untapped sources of talent and they too require gifted education and talent development services. 

Happy Gifted Education Month

Octavia Fugerson is an educational psychologist with a focus on the cognitive processes and social/emotional support of gifted and creative disconnected youth. She received her Masters of Education in Gifted and Creative Education and her Doctorate of Philosophy in Applied Cognition and Development at the University of Georgia. She is currently seeking opportunities to speak, collaborate and consult. She can be contacted at OFDevelopmentalServices@gmail.com.

Does The History of American Descendants of Slavery Contribute to the Status of Disconnected Youth

Does The History of American Descendants of Slavery
Contribute to the Status of Disconnected Youth

From the Desk of Octavia Fugerson, M.Ed, Ph.D Applied Cognition and Development February 2020

     
     This Black History Month, I wanted to do something special, as I am amidst stirring attention and interest to the developmental capital of disconnected youth. The term “disconnected” describes the distance in experience from the social norm of youth with adequate resources. “Disconnected” describes the lack of sufficient resources for a comfortable quality of living, including access to land, family and employment. Disconnected youth include, but is not limited to, youth in foster care, homeless youth, juvenile delinquents or youth incarcerated, and migrant youth like youth who are displaced from their home state. Briefly stated, developmental capital is a composited of strengths, competencies, values, supports and resources. It is the essential skills used to develop one's best self. As an educational psychologist, this month my mind wondered to the experience of disconnected youth, rooted in the context of the socio-cultural & historical matters associated with American Descendants of Slavery. 
     Studying high potential or gifted disconnected youth, and parsing out the experience of those who are of the American Descendants of Slavery, highlight a harsh past associated with navigating separation from parents, access to low resources, and trauma associated with institutionalization in pursuit of well being. In 2019, I sat in a presentation provided by The Haywood Burns Institute that provided a historical review of the American child welfare system. In response to that experience, an awareness was raised to some elements of the history of American Descendant of Slavery and possible interplay to the current state of disconnected youth, within the child welfare system, education system and juvenile justice system. I wondered, "How have the history of American Descendants of Slavery affected the current status of disconnected youth?" Through a review of current outcome differences between ethnic groups, a racial and ethnic equity lens emerged when regarding conditions associated with economics, housing stability, mass incarceration, teen pregnancy and education.

Economics 

       Youth whom have a lineage shared with American Descendants of Slavery, have a history of limited access to resources and limited opportunities for social mobility. This is partly as a result of being perceived as commodities or tools for others to make money, and being caste to the bottom of the economic system, through slavery and other systematic efforts. The lack of resources and opportunities to be unbothered by those of higher political power may have resulted in conditions that led individual American Descendants of Slavery into having their children placed in the custody of the state. Examples of such conditions include death of parent, neglect or inability to take care of basic needs, such as providing food, clean living or medical care; or illness, not excluding drug abuse.
     Currently measures of economic security for disconnected youth are tied to one’s connection to work or educational credentials obtained. There are efforts to increase the financial capability of disconnected youth, such as youth who have experienced foster care, homelessness, incarceration or migration/displacement. Efforts are made through connecting young people to work opportunities, supporting their educational pursuits, and developing their abilities to manage budgets, yet the struggle persists for disconnected youth to achieve economic security.
     For example, data reveals for disconnected youth, economic hardships are faced at higher rates than their peers, without foster care experience (Jim Casey Youth Opportunity Initiative Housing Stability Infrographic YLI (2019). Even though these youth may work, it is reported that they are likely to experience at least one economic hardship, illustrated through they're inability to pay rent, utility bills or phone services. Data also shows that disconnected youth, including those with a lineage of American Descendants of Slavery, require relationships, resources and opportunities to ensure well being and success. I’ve come to question if the persistent bottom casting of American Descendants of Slavery, through limited access to land, employment, education, and family connections, influences the current status of disconnected youth.

Housing 

     For example, the history of American Descendants of Slavery and their access to land and stable housing is not a beautiful one, where many were blessed abundantly. Jim Crow laws, Black Codes and Red-Lining, point to policies that were put in place to keep American Descendants of Slavery from having such resources, as the group were considered property and bottom casted within the economy. Data shows that the lack of stable housing or homelessness is an issue that is more likely experienced by disconnected youth, such as the one's involved with the foster care system. Homelessness increases the risk for sexual victimization, substance abuse, incarceration, and physical and mental health concerns (Jim Casey Youth Opportunity Initiative Housing Stability Infrographic YLI (2019). Currently black youth are deemed to face homelessness or couch surfing higher than other racial ethnic groups. Data on the black racial group has not been desegregated for American Descendants of Slavery. What percentage of American Descendants of Slavery are apart of the black ethnic group? I don't know, but I assume more, than less.

Mass Incarceration 

     During times when the homeless or those without land, could not find a home, it seems jail or prison served as the societal-chosen alternative solution for the troubled. Historically, the racial, economic, and social disadvantages for American Descendants of Slavery have created a disproportionate representation in the American penal system. Currently, a significant number of disconnected youth face incarceration or adjudication, more than their peers not in foster care. Does the history of incarceration and American Descendants of Slavery speak to the pattern that exist among disconnected, incarcerated youth now? I have more questions than answers. However, I do know that for African-American men, being in prison or jails is more common than being employed, especially if the black individual is without a high school diploma.

Education 

      As you could imagine, if individuals are presumed property, they are not thought to need property. That belief may extend to the idea that there is only need for individuals- presumed as property to pursue anything beyond the function desired of those in power. Such a belief may trickle down in policy and practices that support ideas that American Descendants of slavery only need basic education, indicative of the overturning decision of Brown v. Board of Education (1954). If we look to our disconnected youth, such as those who have experienced foster care, we can see a lack of equitable, quality educational experiences still exist. For example, black youth are disproportionately underrepresented in gifted education programs and there is little to no data describing disconnected youth participation in gifted education or talent development services. An example of the successful efforts yet to be made in achieving quality education for American Descendants of Slavery, or disconnected youth, is reflected in data that points to an overrepresentation of black children - involved with the child welfare system, in special education programs; or with a higher number of experiences with harsh punitive practices such as significantly higher rates of suspension. Generally, young people in the general populations receive high school diplomas and/or post-secondary credentials at a higher rate than young people transitioning out of foster care. Is the desire for disconnected youth to be educated valued, any different than policymakers and professional's past value of education for American Descendants of Slavery? Without quality educational experience what were American Descendants of Slavery left to do? What are disconnected youth doing without developmentally appropriate education?

Teen Pregnancy 

     It is only natural for youth to pursue their own interests. Natural biological maturation leads to puberty, ability to procreate, and interest in sex. With limited developmentally appropriate, stimulating activities, youth may find themselves having sex and being with child. Young people who age out of foster care are more likely to have early or unintended pregnancies (Pregnancy Prevention and Parenting Support Infographic YLI, 2019). The reproductive worth of American Descendants of Slavery were essential to the young country’s expansion for labor. History of American Descendants of Slavery includes separation of families, as property and tools were divided amongst the elite, resourced, or those not bottom caste to fill labor shortings. 

      These days, disconnected youth, such as young expectant and parenting youth in foster care, are less likely to be employed and when they are employed, earn less than their childless peers. The past intervention into the private lives of American Descendants of Slavery was harsh. Those not black did receive a different experience than the systemic breeding associated with the interference in normal sexual patterns to increase fertility of American Descendants of Slavery. Historically, those of the general population received encouragement of making large families, through a combination of rewards, improved living and working conditions for fertile women and their children, and improved policy. Do the past systemic engagements with American Descendants of Slavery, regarding fertility, show similarities to the experience of expectant and parenting youth of today?

Conclusion 

     How do the current conditions of disconnected youth connect to historical matters of America? While reparations are not enthusiastically offered as a solution to the negative outcomes of American Descendants of Slavery, there can be value in recognizing the efforts to promote the wellbeing and success of disconnected youth. For example, to meet the needs of young people transitioning from foster care to adulthood, a system-change effort is made at the local, state and national level to advance policy and practice. For young people, who have spent at least one day in foster care, between the ages of 14 to 26 years old, as they transition into adulthood, efforts are made to provide equitable access to the resources, relationships and opportunities needed to achieve positive well-being and success. While I wonder if the black representation of disconnected youth have a large representation of the lineage of American Descendants of Slavery, the whole population of disconnected youth are vulnerable and valueable. Disconnected youth offer substantial untapped sources of talent and require the context of their personal lives to be fully acknowledged in efforts to promote their wellbeing and developmental capital. 

       Instead of looking at American Descendants of Slavery as capital and figuring what they can do for other individuals, or institutions - for little or no benefit to them, the educational psychologist in me ask we intentionally shift our perspective to their developmental capital and their humanity, which requires the same quality of public services as their peers who are not bottom casted. Racial and ethnic backgrounds should be acknowledged in order to provide equitable access to pillars of positive well-being like: stable housing, educational success, and economic security. Giving attention to the socio-cultural historical context of the nuanced groups, within the disconnected youth population, provides perspective that sheds light on the implication of history. As the voices of individuals with lived experiences are amplified and listened to, we stir innovative methods to promote equitable practices, positively affect communities, and begin to increase well-being and quality of living for another group of humans.

Happy Black History Month.

Octavia Fugerson is an educational psychologist with a focus on the cognitive processes and social/emotional support of gifted and creative disconnected youth. She received her Masters of Education in Gifted and Creative Education and her Doctorate of Philosophy in Applied Cognition and Development at the University of Georgia. She is currently seeking opportunities to speak, collaborate and consult. She can be contacted at OFDevelopmentalServices@gmail.com.