Having grown up in the foster care system, I am not surprised that foster youths generally don't do as well as their peers in school. But a new report from the California Child Welfare Co-Investment Partnership could be the wake-up call our state needs to begin to close the gap.

New data systems linking education and foster care system data make it possible to track foster youths' performance in school, and the results are sobering. In elementary school, three in four foster youths perform below grade level. By third grade, an overwhelming 80 percent have had to repeat a year of school. Only one in 20 foster youths is proficient in math by the 11th grade, and only one in five in English.

As a former foster youth, I know that behind those statistics are nearly 60,000 young people currently in the system. We share a set of experiences that often deals setbacks to our education, beginning with the neglect or abuse that put us in the child welfare system in the first place.

I entered foster care at age 15 and was fortunate to be placed with my maternal grandmother. This "kinship" arrangement gave me the stability I needed to finish school and to make peace with my past so that I could take control of my future.

Having completed my master's degree in social work, I know I'm fortunate to have beaten the odds – this new research shows 35 percent of foster youths who attend community college plan to earn an associate degree but only one in 10 graduate.

The good news revealed by the new report, "Understanding Foster Youth Educational Outcomes," is that when foster youths receive the attention and support they need, they can and do succeed. For example, when foster youths have educational champions – people who mentor, tutor and advocate for them – their graduation rates soar.

Data also show that school attendance, test scores and grade-point averages for foster youths improve when foster care agencies, schools and other systems work together to share information and coordinate services. In Sacramento County, for example, foster youths raised their GPAs with help from the county Office of Education's instructional case managers, who bring together foster parents, social workers and teachers to identify students' needs and match them with the resources they need to succeed.

The campus-based support I received at CSU Sacramento helped me get my degree while I juggled work and a new baby. That kind of support can make all the difference for foster youths, according to the partnership's report. Today, 79 college campuses across California combine financial, academic, emotional and logistical support such as housing to help former foster youths stay in school and graduate. When foster youths participate in these programs, 71 percent graduate from college, compared to 56 percent of students generally.

This support matters, and that's why I work with a local organization supporting foster youth – the Foster Youth Education Fund, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year – to raise money to help former foster youths stay in school and obtain their degrees.

It is also the reason I continue to work with foster youths to push for the policy changes we need to open opportunities for more young people, including prioritizing educational programs and supports for foster youths, and enabling the sharing of information across systems to allow deeper understanding of their educational needs.

Now that we know how big the problem is and how to fix it, let's get to work!

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Janay Swain is a staff member for California Youth Connection, a foster care advocacy group. The partnership's report can be found at www.co-invest.org. For more information about the Foster Youth Education Fund, visit www.FYEF.org.

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