Advocating for the Educational Needs of Students in Foster Care: Lessons from Lancaster County (Virtual)

TIME:
CLE: 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

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Event Description

Children in foster care face significant barriers to educational success. This CLE will focus on the important role that GALs, agency attorneys, and parent attorneys each play in supporting the educational needs of students in foster care and promoting family engagement- both in and out of courtroom. This program will highlight lessons learned and resources developed through Lancaster County’s Education Barriers to Permanency Project—a collaborative initiative facilitated by the American Bar Association that brings together the Lancaster County Children & Youth Agency, legal professionals and advocates, schools, and families to improve educational outcomes for children in care.

CREDIT(S):

1.0 SUBSTANTIVE CREDIT

SPEAKERS:

Emily Peeler, Esquire
Senior Attorney, American Bar Association Legal Center for Foster Care and Education

Emily Peeler is a Senior Attorney at the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law. Emily works on a variety of projects at the ABA including: the Legal Center for Foster Care and Education, Pennsylvania Education Barriers, the Capacity Building Center for Courts, kinship care, and parent representation. Prior to working at the ABA Emily managed a legal diversity pipeline program with law firms and high schools across the country and worked as a youth advocacy coordinator at CASA for Children of DC. Emily received her J.D. from the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law and her M.S.W. from Boston University.

Carolyn Lipp, Esquire
Staff Attorney II, American Bar Association Legal Center for Foster Care and Education

Carolyn Lipp joined the ABA Center on Children and the Law in June 2024 as a Staff Attorney with the Legal Center for Foster Care and Education. Carolyn began her legal career as a family defense attorney at Brooklyn Defender Services, advocating for parents and caregivers in child welfare proceedings. She then worked as an education attorney, where she advocated for court-involved families experiencing educational challenges—including specialized advocacy and support for parents of children in the foster system. Her experiences working with parents fighting to stay involved in their children’s lives during family separation reinforced her belief that parents are experts in their children’s lives, and that involving and empowering parents is key to improving educational outcomes for children in the foster system. Carolyn graduated from Wesleyan University with a B.A. in History and received her J.D. from Yale Law School.

QUESTIONS?

Email Lexi Driendl (lexi@lancasterbar.org), Education & Member Engagement Coordinator