“They mostly gave out packages”: Navigating the educational experiences of crossover youth in California

Abstract

In the United States current research on systems of care demonstrates how more individuals than ever before are caught in both the juvenile justice and foster care systems. These dual involved “crossover youth” face multiple unique barriers when trying to attend school. However, missing from this discourse is the understanding of crossover youth negotiate their ties to schools and the juvenile justice system. This paper addresses this current gap in research by examining the experiences of 13 crossover youth. Our work explores their experiences navigating both the foster care system and the criminal justice system and the way that these systems impacted their educational experiences. Our findings suggest that crossover youth are pushed out of mainstream schools. Once this takes place they are pushed into alternative schools where they experience additional challenges and inadequate self-guided instruction.