BILL NUMBER: S8090A

SPONSOR: BAILEY
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act authorizing and directing the commissioner of
education to conduct a study on the number of children who are caregiv-
ers and how being a caregiver impacts their education

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To study how many children are caregivers in their households and how
this affects their education.

 
SUMMARY OF MAIN PROVISIONS:

Section 1 directs the commissioner of education to conduct a study on
the number of children who are caregivers and how being a caregiver
impacts their education and give recommendations based on the study's
findings.

Section 2 establishes that the commissioner of education shall submit a
report of his or her findings, conclusions and recommendation to the
              

governor, the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the
assembly, and the chairs of the senate and assembly committees on educa-
tion.

Section 3 is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

According to the American Psychological Association, approximately
1.3-1.4 million kids across the country serve as caregivers. Many of
these children living in our state have sick, disabled, or elderly rela-
tives that they take care of which adds a burden to their education.
Understanding families and the totality of the circumstances adds value
to the educational experience, allowing us to fully understand the whole
child. Organizations such as Presbyterian Senior Services (PSS) and
Caregivers Outreach Ministry Empowerment (COME) have conducted informal
surveys by using a local sample size in order to bring awareness to this
issue and the results were significant.

In 2006, a Gates Foundation survey found that approximately 22% of high
school dropouts were related to providing care for a sick family member.
This survey gave us insight on how impactful overall caregiving is on
the performance of the student. Although this data provided us with
useful information, it is over a decade old. In 2013, PSS conducted a
survey at P.S. 212 in the South Bronx and found that 47% of middle
school children in the sample size identified themselves as caregivers.
This is close to half of the middle school students surveyed, and this
number is expected to be similar across the city of New York.

Students are subjected to being caregivers as early as 8 years old and
the responsibility can last a lifetime. Children are taking on adult
problems without proper psychological, physical, and academic support.
The burden can become overwhelming, and could significantly harm their
future development.

The education of our youth is being jeopardized because of a lack of
resources that we are providing to our youth caregivers. This bill seeks

to address this by assessing how many students in our state are caregiv-
ers so that the proper resources can be deployed in their aid.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.