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Committee hears testimony on fix to foster-care school pilot; bill would shift grants to districts
Summary
A bill to modify a 2024 foster-care pilot would change grant recipients from named individual schools to school districts, extend the pilot timeline and (in earlier version) included DHS; supporters said the change is technical but necessary to ensure money reaches students.
The House Education Committee on March 19 opened a public hearing on House Bill 3,449, a bill that sponsors described as a technical fix to a foster-care support pilot enacted in 2024.
Representative Paul McLean (Representative McLean presented the bill) and Elise Brown of Anthony's Circle testified that House Bill 3,449 would change grant recipients from specific named schools to the school districts that operate them, limit the pilot to middle and high schools, extend the pilot timeline to Jan. 2, 2028, and require the State Board of Education to review any rules the State Board adopted for the pilot with the Department of Human Services. The staff summary noted a dash-1 amendment that removed the Department of Human Services from the measure.
Why it matters: The pilot was created to improve graduation rates for students in foster care by providing education navigators and wraparound supports. Supporters said the pilot is intended to raise graduation rates for students who have historically had low graduation rates (cited figures: 34–42%). Proponents said the technical change is necessary because the original statute named specific schools and the districts could not get the funds to students under that language.
What supporters said: Elise Brown, appearing for Anthony’s Circle, said the pilot was established after testimony from Anthony Preston and others with lived experience in foster care and that the program surrounds students with an "education navigator" and supports intended to raise graduation rates toward a 75 percent goal. Representative McLean said the change would enable the three current pilot locations (described in testimony as Portland, Albany and Medford) to receive and spend the money at the district level rather than restricting funds to a single named school.
Process notes: The committee took public testimony, asked no formal questions that required amendments at the hearing, and closed the hearing later in the session. No formal committee vote on this bill was recorded in the transcript excerpt; the hearing was informational and focused on explaining the technical change and the pilot's goals.
Provenance: Testimony and staff summary for House Bill 3,449 appear in the March 19, 2025 House Education Committee transcript, beginning with a staff measure summary and testimony by Representative McLean and Elise Brown.
Ending: Supporters urged passage so that districts can receive and distribute funds as intended; the bill sponsor said the change is intended to be a "fix-it" to allow already-authorized dollars to reach the students and schools enrolled in the pilot.
