When WSIPP studied Skookum House

Way back in 2018, we asked the WA state legislature to fund a third party evaluation of Skookum House and other similar emergency shelters. From the beginning our thesis has included three beliefs. First, we believed that these emergency shelters would buy critical working time for social workers to locate the ideal family for each child thereby reducing the total number of moves that each child in foster care is forced to endure. We also believed that an always-ready emergency shelter would help keep large sibling groups together. And finally, we believed that giving foster parents a little more notice and time to consider new placements might make them feel more respected and help keep more of the best foster homes participating for longer.

It is almost always destabilizing when children in foster care change homes. The more children move around in foster care, the worse they perform in almost every measurable way. So a good way to help children have a better experience in foster care is to do things that make it so they move around less often. The correct number of foster care placements for each child is usually zero. But, if we must use a foster care setting to ensure safety for a child, we still want to keep that number as low as possible.

The only thing scarier for a child in foster care than a change in placement is a change in placement without your siblings. For many of the kids we care for, their siblings are the closest and most consistent relationships in their lives. These bonds are strong and nobody likes splitting up sibling sets. But, especially when pressed for time, there can sometimes be no other way to ensure children are kept safe. But, emergency shelters like Skookum House are setup specifically to care for large sibling groups. That means with little information and less notice, we can say yes when every other home in the area says no and keep large sets of siblings together.

“With little information and less notice, we can say yes when every other home in the area says no and keep large sets of siblings together.”

Finally, almost all foster parents feel badly when they have to turn down a placement. But if you're going to stay sane in this business, you have to pick your opportunities carefully. Late night placements are almost always in a hurry. Foster parents are forced to make this difficult choices under intense time pressure and with very little information about each child. But, if children first spend a little time at Skookum House or a similar facility, we can buy time for foster families to make an unhurried decision.

At least, that's what we thought. Earlier this month the Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP) published the results of its study on the outcomes created by Skookum House and its partners. And what did they find? We went 2 for 3.

No effect on the number of placements children experience on average. This was the the disappointing note in the report. Children who stayed at Skookum House did not have a statistically significant difference in the total number of placement changes throughout their time in foster care.

Huge improvement in the likelihood sibling groups are placed together. Great news. This was the most conclusive result in the whole report. Kids who stay at Skookum House are much more likely to be placed with siblings. And that improvement caries on beyond their time at Skookum House. Evidently the working time we're able to provide does make a difference.

Some improvement to the retention of foster parents. It wasn't by a lot, but the report does find a small improvement to the rate at which foster families renew their license when they care for children who come to them from Skookum House. Thought it is a marginal improvement, the effect on the lives of children who benefit from more experienced and skilled foster care may be enormous.

You can read the whole report yourself at wsipp.wa.gov. If you'd like to help keep sibling groups together, visit skookumkids.org/volunteer.