The New York Times and U.S. News & World Report are just two of the many media outlets throughout the country that syndicated a recent Associated Press article, “In Hollywood, Foster Care Students Try to Finish High School,” that illuminates the obstacles foster children face to complete high school.

WestEd’s BethAnn Berliner, a Senior Researcher at WestEd who has studied foster care students for years, was interviewed for the article. Her research, together with that of Senior Research Associate Vanessa Barrat, shows a trend that children in foster care, compared with students not in the system, are much more likely to be placed in alternative schools. Berliner and Barrat’s research also shows that students in foster care are more likely to be placed in low-performing schools.

For more on Berliner and Barrat’s research on the education outcomes of students in foster care, download the report, The Invisible Achievement Gap: Education Outcomes of Students in Foster Care in California’s Public Schools and this R&D Alert article, Shared Data Reveal the Invisible Achievement Gap of Students in Foster Care.