A new report highlights Indiana foster children’s struggles in school. But is the problem even worse?

A new national report shows teenagers and young adults transitioning out of foster care are falling behind in graduating from high school, pursuing college, and finding jobs.

It’s a trend that holds true in Indiana, too: Young adults who have been in foster care graduate at slightly lower rates than their peers, are employed at lower rates, and rarely receive financial help to pay for educational expenses, according to the report released Tuesday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

But one Indiana advocate says he believes the outcomes are even more bleak — and upcoming state data could show children in foster care struggle a lot more in school.

The numbers from the foundation’s report are based on a self-reported survey of young adults still connected to foster care supports. Brent Kent, CEO of Indiana Connected By 25, a nonprofit that supports young adults in the transition out of foster care, worries those results don’t represent the broader experiences of all children in foster care.

“They only survey the kids they can reach,” Kent said. “Those who are homeless, transient, or in shelters — they don’t get surveyed.”

Kent cited research showing more dramatic gaps, and said the report underscores the need for better state tracking of educational outcomes for children in foster care. The state is expected to release a report in the spring that for the first time breaks out data on students in foster care, including examining their test scores, discipline rates, and graduation rates.

The instability and disruptions of foster care — separating children from their families and placing them in temporary living situations — can cause children to fall behind in school and struggle to catch up. Children who have been in foster care are also more at risk of becoming homeless or being unemployed as adults.

Indiana serves about 32,000 children in foster care, according to federal data — a number that has been recently rising in part because of the opioid crisis.

The state’s education agencies and Department of Child Services will also work on plans next year to better support children in foster care in schools.