There are currently over 10,000 children placed within the foster care system and over 2,000 awaiting adoptive homes, and who is to say that the adoptive home will or will not be permanent. At Ck, teachers may not be aware they are teaching a student in foster care. “I am only aware of two students this year and the only time I am aware is if the students disclose this information to me personally because we are not notified of this,” said history teacher Katherine Devnich.

“It wasn’t exactly a happy go lucky time before I entered, and actually when I first entered, I have to admit I was a bit scared and worried that it would end up being like the musical Annie but worse, but it wasn’t it was just the opposite,” said a foster child who prefers to remain anonymous. Sometimes students prefer to be anonymous because they find  being in the system a bit embarrassing.  This student’s experiences in the foster care system have also given her some interesting, some might even say philosophical, insights into life in general. “It [the foster care system] made me realize that there are some seriously bad things that happen to great children and some stories worse than my own and yet they still manage to persevere,” she said.

Depression and anxiety are common problems for foster children. When asked if she ever felt depressed or hopeless, she responded, “I did at first, but then my eldest foster sister truly made it a point for me to not feel that way as much as I used to.” I had the pleasure of sitting down with one of the 4 councilors here at Central Kitsap, Randy Templeton “My experience with foster care students is that they have overcome a tremendous amount of adversity to remain successful.  Maybe because they have faced a lot of adversity in their lives, they tend to be really caring and compassionate people.”

CK High has a few foster students in attendance, and the faculty and staff are doing their best to accommodate them and make them feel welcome. Devnich is doing her part for the foster children in her classes. She said some of the hardships students have to go through as part of the foster care system are, “Not having a good relationship with their social workers, having to have the invasion of the social worker in their day to day business, having the wrong placement, and students not having a voice.” She also added, “When you’re a teenager, I think you should have a lot more input in the system, rather than having to work with what you are given.”

She said she would change  the foster care system if she had the power to do so. “I feel as if there isn’t enough oversight, and the time it takes to get something accomplished in the system is unacceptable, because I don’t believe that it is adequately staffed. And I would like to see students be processed better and have a more permanent placing in good homes.”

Another student who prefers to be anonymous spoke of her life long journey in the foster system: “ I started foster care when I was 6,I’m 16. I was adopted at 11 then put back last May.” She described her first experience being in the foster system, “I wouldn’t necessarily say it was the best experience; some parents were more strict than others, and some just rude and inconsiderate. The problem that I faced was favoritism; some parents would prioritize their own kids over you.”  

She said her perspective has changed upon entering the foster system. “Yes, before my family was Catholic but we never went to church…I thought I would live the stereotypical Mexican life, have kids early, grow up, possibly not finish school, but now I’ve been taken away from what I once knew, I’ve definitely become stronger.”