The state will close the West Virginia Children鈥檚 Home, a residential facility in Elkins for foster children, by the end of the year. The decision to close the 25-bed facility comes as the state on group homes to house foster kids and doesn鈥檛 have enough available beds.

The 25-bed , which serves youth ages 12 to 18 years old from any county, is operated by the Department of Human Services. The youth aren鈥檛 able to be served in a traditional foster home due to behavioral issues.

The West Virginia Department of Education operates a school on its premises.

鈥淭here have been six to 10 students there for the last 12 to 18 months,鈥� said Jacob Green, superintendent of聽 West Virginia Schools of Diversion and Transition, adding that three children currently reside at the facility. 鈥淭here is a new program in Parsons run by Genesis [Foster Care and Adoption Services], and we will be moving resources there.鈥�

Green added that the decision was made after talk of closing the facility for more than two years.

DoHS did not respond to questions for this story about why they will close the facility. Department Secretary Cynthia Persily last year that the West Virginia Children鈥檚 Home, built in 1909, had numerous safety concerns involving windows and doors that needed to be addressed.

Hundreds of West Virginia鈥檚 6,135 foster kids are in group homes, according to . There is a , particularly for older children.

Lawmakers and advocates have said kids are continuing to be housed in hotels due to a lack of foster families and available beds in group homes.

Shanna Gray, is the executive director for West Virginia Court Appointed Special Advocates, or CASA.

鈥淭oo many children who come into foster care in West Virginia are currently residing in residential facilities, away from family connections,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t is our hope that the closing of this and other already identified unsafe environments for West Virginia children will force our systems to acknowledge other ways in addressing and curbing the unprecedented influx of children entering [the] foster care system, including building capacity of community support.鈥�

When lawmakers last year discussed possibly closing the facility, Persily cited a that requires West Virginia to operate an 鈥渙rphanage.鈥�

DoHS did not answer a question about if a different facility would not meet the code鈥檚 requirement to house foster children.

An , filed in 2019, alleged the mistreatment of thousands of聽 foster children in DoHS care; the suit said that a disproportionate number of children were sent to institutions. DoHS in the suit in July, vowing they鈥檇 made improvements to the system that included recruiting more foster families. Attorneys suing the state said the problems persist and are planning for a trial in March 2025.

Correction: This story was updated to say that hundreds of West Virginia鈥檚 foster children live in group homes.聽

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. West Virginia Watch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Leann Ray for questions: info@westvirginiawatch.com. Follow West Virginia Watch on and .

This is what inspired the creation of Mott Haven Charter School Academy over 14 years ago. The school’s founders and their partners at The New York Foundling, one of New York鈥檚 oldest and largest social services providers, asked some essential questions: What can we achieve together for students in the child welfare system? What kind of outcomes could a school specifically designed for students in foster care, and those experiencing poverty, produce?

Those outcomes are pretty incredible.

By design, Haven Academy serves a highly vulnerable student population. Roughly half are in the child welfare system or receive services preventing entry into foster care. The other half come from a local school district that is in one of the poorest congressional districts in the country. One key aspect of the school’s model is that students are considered part of the child welfare group if they have ever been involved with that system. This speaks to the school鈥檚 belief that the trauma and disruptions to a child鈥檚 life induced by the child welfare system are long-lasting and should be treated as such. 

Disruption is an important variable for these students. Many face housing insecurity and homelessness. They repeatedly move homes, move schools, change counselors and have to start over, falling further and further behind. As a result, very few students who have been in foster care are able to enroll in college, and of those who do, less than 5% graduate. 

Haven Academy addresses these challenges through three core tactics: enforcing a strong school culture, maintaining robust staffing and providing social services in partnership with The Foundling, such as family counseling, health care and dedicated caseworkers alongside the academic programming. In short, educators and caregivers at Haven prioritize social-emotional well-being alongside academic success. To serve this very unique student population, you cannot have one without the other. 

Haven Academy’s school culture creates an environment that balances predictability and structure with enough flexibility to cater to each student鈥檚 needs. When a child鈥檚 entire life outside of school feels unpredictable and out of control, that student needs a sense of stability at school. All of Haven鈥檚 teachers maintain the same set of expectations for students, which are regularly repeated verbally to students in each classroom. In every area of the school, common expectations are posted on the walls and taught by the teachers. When a child acts out, the response to that behavior reflects the previously communicated expectations. These expectations never change. This creates the most predictable environment many students have in their lives.聽

For example, a child facing a behavioral challenge is never removed from the classroom or the school. Instead of suspension or expulsion, students are immediately offered solutions to help them manage their emotions. This might mean a comfortable chair as opposed to a traditional desk chair; sitting at a separate desk rather than at a table with other students; or a cozy corner with books, art supplies and other activities that can help de-escalate big emotions. School must be a place where students are always welcome, no matter what happens inside the classroom or out. 

Haven Academy’s staffing model requires two teachers in every general-education classroom. This increases the investment per classroom and strikes a critical balance between structure and flexibility. If a child needs individualized attention, one teacher can provide it while the other continues with the lesson plan. This creates a sense of consistency and minimizes distractions for the rest of the class. All Haven teachers are also trained to create individualized plans for students as needed. This allows all educators to teach to the student, not the state standards. 

Haven also provides wraparound services, in partnership with The New York Foundling. While the average student to social worker ratio in District 7, where Haven is located, is 371:1, at Haven, it鈥檚 24:1. Haven students also have access to a robust tutoring program that provides academic and life skills support outside the classroom. 

The positive outcomes that have resulted from this unique model are undeniable. On state English and math tests, Haven students outperform their peers in the school district, city and state. This is true for both students who are involved in the child welfare system and those who are not. For example, 51% of students at Haven were ranked proficient in math, based on state test scores for the 2018-19 school year. This is compared with 46% of students in New York City, 47% statewide and just 26% of students in District 7.

Chronic absenteeism is 16 percentage points lower than the citywide average for kids in foster care. During the 2018-19 school year, 28% of Haven prevention students and 20% of students in foster care were chronically absent. This represented a marked improvement from earlier years for children in prevention services, who have historically struggled most with attendance among Haven students. In the same comparison year, 36.9% of elementary and middle school students in foster care citywide were chronically absent. The long-term impact of this last piece is unquantifiable, but it stretches far beyond the classroom, and beyond the Haven campus. 

There are tens of thousands of children in New York City and many hundreds of thousands nationally who have been involved with the child welfare system. Homelessness and other factors that have historically made it difficult for children to learn are becoming more acute. Every family has been affected by the pandemic even three years on, experiencing isolation, disruption and economic impacts. There is an urgent need to support vulnerable student populations like the students at Haven Academy, and Haven’s model is one worth sharing.