Housing & Transportation

Extended Foster Care & Supervised Independent Living

  • CPS offers Extended Foster Care and Supervised Independent Living (SIL) to help you become independent. Depending on your goals you can stay or return to foster care up until your 21st birthday—or your 22nd if you're working on a high school diploma or GED.

    Participation is strictly voluntary. You will be required to sign an agreement to participate in one or more of the following activities:

    • Attend high school or working on a GED.

    • Attend college for at least 6 hours per semester.

    • Work at least 80 hours per month.

    • Participate in a job or skills training program.

    • Have a documented medical reason for an inability to complete any of the above.

  • The DFPS PAL program assists older youth in foster care prepare for their departure and transition from DFPS care and support. Supportive services and benefits are provided by PAL Staff or PAL Contract Providers to eligible young adults up to age 21 to become self-sufficient and productive.

    the PAL program includes:

    • Life skills assessments

    • Life skills training (age 16 to 18)

    • Educational/vocational services

    • Supportive services (based on need and funding availability)

    • A transitional living allowance of up to $1,000 - distributed in increments of up to $500 per month, for young adults up to age 21 who participated in PAL training, to help with initial start-up costs in adult living

    • Aftercare room and board assistance (ages 18-21) is based on need of up to $500 per month for rent, utilities, utility deposits, food, etc. (not to exceed $3,000 of accumulated payments per young adult).

    • Case management to help young adults with self-sufficiency planning and resource coordination.

    Contact the regional PAL staff HERE

    For more information about PAL click HERE

    • PAL PEAKS Camp -Two, four-day camps held annually for youth aimed at building self-esteem, improving communication, problem-solving, and having fun. The Texas Network of Youth Services (TNOYS) offers the PEAKS Camp through a partnership with DFPS

    • PAL Statewide Teen Conference-Yearly three-day conference held on a college campus offering workshops for youth that lead to self-sufficiency and independence.

    • PAL College Conference-Texas A&M University-Commerce hosts a two-day (weekend) conference, once a year, for youth to learn about and prepare for higher education opportunities.

  • What is SIL?

    Supervised Independent Living (SIL) is a type of voluntary Extended Foster Care placement where young adults can live on their own, while still getting casework and support services to help them become independent and self-sufficient.

    The DFPS SIL program allows young adults to live independently under a supervised living arrangement provided by a DFPS contracted provider. A young adult in SIL is not supervised 24-hours a day by an adult and has increased responsibilities.

    Through SIL a young adult has:

    • Increased responsibilities

      • Manage their own finances

      • Buying groceries/personal items

      • Working with a Landlord

    • Help transitioning to independent living

      • Achieving identified education and employment goals

      • Accessing community resources

      • Engaging in needed life skills training

      • Establishing important relationships

    For more information about the SIL program click HERE!

  • Extended Foster Care is a voluntary program that offers young adults turning 18 in DFPS care opportunities to continue foster care placement and facilitate the transition to independence with DFPS supervision, if there is an available placement.

    For more information click HERE

  • Transitional services are multipurpose and available to youth ages 14 up to 23. Transitional living services include, Circles of Support, Preparation for Adult Living (PAL), Education and Training Vouchers (ETV), College tuition and fee waivers, Extended Foster Care, and other related services and support of young people 16 to 21 or up to 22 years of age who are currently or formerly in foster care, or transitioning out of care.

    Services include:

    • Experiential Life Skills Training for Youth Ages 14 and Older

    • Children's Bill of Rights

    • Foster Youth Transition Centers

    • Preparation for Adult Living (PAL) programs

    • Youth leadership and development activities including regional and statewide teen conferences and regional and statewide youth leadership councils

    • Texas Workforce Centers

    • Circles of Support (COS) / Transition Plan Meetings

    • Personal documents at ages 16 and 18, Youth Transition Portfolios, Medical Power of Attorney, and Requesting Case Records

    • Medical Coverage

    For more information click HERE

  • A transitional living program is different from transitional living services in that it involves an environment set aside for transitional living and programmatic services that are generally designed for a group of older youth.

    Transitional living programs are residential services specifically designed to serve youth 14 years old or older for whom transitional living services or treatment goals include basic life skills training towards independent living.

    Life skills training offered:

    • Health and general safety.

    • Money management, budget planning, and knowledge of available financial resources.

    • Use of local transportation resources.

    • Accessing local community resources.

    • Child health and safety, child development, and parenting skills, if the youth is a parent of a child living with them.

    For more information click HERE

  • Transition Centers provide a central clearinghouse of one-stop services to serve the diverse needs of older foster youth, homeless youth, or other at-risk youth ages 15 ½ to 25.

    Transition Centers are designed to serve as locations for services such as Preparation of Adult Living (PAL), job readiness/job search assistance, career exploration, higher education enrollment assistance, housing assistance and mentoring.

    View a list of transition centers HERE

    Region 1 - Lubbock & Amarillo

    • Buckner FYI Transition Center

      • 125 Chicago Ave. Lubbock, Texas 79416

      • (806) 795-7151

      • Website: www.buckner.org/lubbock

      • Contact: Bekah Coggins via email at bcoggins@buckner.org

    • Buckner FYI Transition Center

      • 4000 Mays, P.O. Box 20080 Amarillo, Texas 79114

      • (806) 503-3818

      • Website: www.buckner.org/amarillo

      • Contact: Bekah Coggins via email at bcoggins@buckner.org

    Region 2 - Abilene

    Region 3 - Dallas & Fort Worth

    Region 4 - Tyler/Longview

    Region 5 - Beaumont

    • FYI Center

      • 675 East Virginia St. Beaumont, TX 77705

      • Contact Sheena Fowler (409) 673-8140 or via email at sfowler@buckner.org

      • Wesbite: Buckner FYi Center

    Region 6 - Houston

    • Houston Alumni and Youth (HAY) Center

      • 8915 Knight Road Houston, Texas 77054

      • (832) 927-7001

      • Contact: Mary Green via email at Mary.Green@cps.hctx.net

      • Website: www.haycenter.org

    Region 7 – Belton/Killeen

    • Project Futures Center - Central Texas Youth Services

      • 204 North East Street Belton, Texas 76513

      • (254) 217-1982 - Belton

      • (254) 634-0117 - Killeen

      • Contact: Kami Diaz (254- 217-1982) or via email at Kami.Diaz@centraltexasyouthservices.com

      • Website: Central Texas Youth Services

    Region 7 - Austin

    • LifeWorks Youth Resource Center

      • 835 N. Pleasant Valley Road Austin, Texas 78702

      • (512) 735-2425

      • (800) 414-5457

      • Contact: Julie Baker via email at julie.baker@lifeworksaustin.org

      • Website: www.lifeworksaustin.orgExternal Link

      • Hours: drop-in Monday through Thursday from 10:00 am till 4:00 pm, but please call ahead to make sure our schedule has not changed. Other hours by appointment.

    Region 8 - Kerrville

    • BCFS Health and Human Services Kerrville Transition Center

    Region 8 – San Antonio

    • BCFS Health and Human Services Transition Center

    Region 9 – San Angelo

    • Concho Valley Transition Center/Concho Valley Home for Girls

    Region 10 – El Paso

    • PRIDE Center

      • El Paso Human Services, Inc.

      • 820 Montana El Paso, Texas 79902

      • (915) 533-4200; (915) 533-4233

      • Contact: Santiago Gonzalez via email at santiagonzalez1953@gmail.com

      • Website: www.elpasohumanservices.org/pride-center

    Region 11 – Corpus Christi

    • BCFS-Health and Human Services

      • Corpus Christi Transition Center

      • 4455 South Padre Island Dr. Suite 116A Corpus Christi, Texas 78411

      • (361) 334-2876

      • Contact: Victoria Perez via email at vp0215@bcfs.net

      • Website: www.discoverbcfs.net/corpuschristi

    Region 11 - Harlingen

    • Harlingen Transition Center BCFS-HHS

      • 1702 E. Tyler Harlingen, Texas 78550

      • (956) 230-3849; (956) 367-4295

      • Contact: Jeff Wolpers via email at JW1014@bcfs.net

      • Website: www.discoverbcfs.net/harlingen

    Region 11 – McAllen

  • Preparation for Adult Living (PAL) coordinators may have a list of youth friendly apartment complexes and landlords in their areas: List of PAL staff

    Another great tool is Apartments.com as well as using google to find apartments near you

  • Know your rights as a tenet, click HERE

    You have the right to:

    • A rental agreement

    • Peace and quiet

      • Your landlord cannot evict you without cause or otherwise disturb your right to live in peace and quiet.

    • Health and Safety

      • You have a right to demand that the landlord repair any condition that materially affects your physical health or safety.

    • Security Devices

      • At the landlords expense, a dwelling must be equipped with security devices such as window latches, keyed dead bolts on exterior doors, sliding door pin locks and sliding door handle latches or sliding door security bars, and door viewers.

  • These sites below are all great resources to get help with rent

  • The Housing Program provides information to help youth transitioning from foster care to successful adulthood, including housing and rental assistance options. For eligible young adults (18 years of age up to 24), housing rental assistance programs should be a top priority.

    Please click HERE for more information about rental assistance, housing readiness, locations and development of a housing plan

Renters Resources

  • Distracted driving

    • visual - taking eyes off the road

    • manual - taking your hands off the wheel

    • cognitive - taking your mind off driving

    In the United States, over 3,100 people were killed and about 424,000 were injured in crashes involving a distracted driver in 2019

    About 1 in 5 of the people who died in crashes involving a distracted driver in 2019 were not in vehicles―they were walking, riding their bikes, or otherwise outside a vehicle.

    Stay alert and be aware! For more information, click HERE

    For teens: check out Teen Driving to find lots of great info, including tips for getting your license, buying a car, finding an online driving course, parallel parking, and more!

  • To apply for a Texas Driver License or a State Identification card visit the Texas Department of Public Safety website at: Texas Department of Public Safety

    Check out the driver license general information for youth in foster care fact sheet

    Some important information from the fact sheet:

    • A Texas driver license (DL) is free to the following persons if funding is available in the Identification Fee Exemption Account:

      • Youth younger than 18 years of age in the managing conservatorship of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS)

      • Young adults 18 to 21 years of age residing in a paid DFPS foster care placement

    Paying for driver education and license exam fee:

    • SOON there will be money available to cover costs for people who are:

      • Current and aged foster youth up to age 26

      • Youth and young adults experiencing homelessness who are McKinney-Vento certified

    A youth or young adult must meet the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) standard requirements for all driver license applicants prior to applying for a Texas driver license.

    Once an eligible youth/young adult meets the DPS driver license requirements, DFPS will verify conservatorship or placement status and issue the waiver letter to the youths caregiver or the young adult which they will take to the local DPS office at the time they apply for a driver license.

  • How homeless and unaccompanied youth can get their Texas birth certificate and Texas ID card and Texas driver license: Click HERE for directions provided by TX Foster Youth Justice Project

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