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Getting Started: Making College Happen

By: Victoria Jimenez, REACH Marketing Intern

Background Image: Steven Harris

How many times have you read or heard someone say the following: Youth in foster care are 44% less likely to graduate from high school and after emancipation, 40 to 50 percent never complete high school. Or only two percent of youth in foster care in the United States obtained a Bachelor’s degree or higher? (Source: Foster Care Alumni of America)

I know, I am tired of constantly reading those statistics. I understand that statistic serve an educational purpose and a tool to prove that certain services are needed, but at the same time, theses statistics can unconsciously create negative expectations about youth in foster care, stigmatizes them, and could often discourage them to pursue higher education. I know this is not meant to be an intentional strike against them, so instead of letting theses statistics get to us, lets grab them by the horns and stop letting them define youth in foster care.

With the help of REACH, I have made a list of ways youth could begin thinking about pursuing higher education. To start, we must use theses statistics as a motivation to break the cycle of this behavior. Society can try to anticipate your success or failure based on numbers, but you have the power to change your life. With guidance anything is possible! Also, realizing that you are worthwhile valuable individual, is the a good place to begin to take control of your life. Despite what others have said in the past, you deserve and owe it to yourself to let best you shine. Here are some key points you can think about for motivation.

“Knowledge is Power!”

Aim high, go to college. Even though it may seem overwhelming and challenging to go to college, keep in mind that this experience will help you get more job opportunities, make more money, gain more knowledge, and secure your future. For foster youth, I realize that even if you have all the desire to go to college, life puts big hurdles in the way of that. You have to remember not to give up on your dreams. Going to college will help you make better educated decision about things that affect your life and give you the power to fight for your rights. If you feel stuck ask for help. At REACH, we are here to offer as much help as you need to get you on the road to a better life. Send us an email, join our program. Visit Realizing Every Action Creates Hope's Website for more information.

Consider What You Want To Do

Now that you’ve decided to not give up on your dreams. Decide what you want to do. Don’t know what that is yet? That is completely okay! To get a better idea of what you want to do, make a list of your favorite classes in school. Which classes do you enjoy the most? Which do you excel at? Consider your personality too. Are you outgoing or reserved? Are you more creatively driven? Are you good at art? Music? Writing? Math?Science? Do you like working independently or on a team? Do you enjoy helping other solve problems? Do you like to train people? Theses are just a few of the many questions you should ask yourself to help you decide what major or career is best for you. Take a self assessment test to help you find out what you want to study in college to prep you for your future career. Here is one of many test you can take to find your passion: Career Test.

Prepare in Advance

Everyone is at different levels and places in their life. Some may be on the way to high school, not finished high school, getting their GED, not too sure how to pursue getting the GED. The spectrum is wide as you can imagine, but I want to focus on courses you’ll need to take in high school.

Image by: California Education Round Table

As easy as that sounds..... there are some more requirements you should take note of. The famous SAT’s and ACT’s tests! I know those tests are not the most exciting part of high school, but it is very important that this gets done. The good news is that you don’t have to take both. You could either take the SAT’s or the ACT. For more information on how to prepare for theses tests check out reachforyou.org/college-prep. Also it’s worth checking out what requirements each university ask for. The chart below from the California Education Round Table should give you a better idea of what to expect. If you plan on going to school out of CA, visit the university website you are interested in and find out what their requirements are.

Image by: California Education Round Table

Applying for College

Applying for college can be daunting, but don’t let that discourage you. Stay positive. The most important tip to absorb is turn in your application early. The essay, recommendation letters, and transcripts should all be in at least two weeks earlier than the deadline. Some parts of the application require that you send things over snail mail, so you should factor in the time it takes to mail things. Another important part about this process is stay organized! Keep a calendar of all the college related deadlines like SAT test dates and registration dates, early admission date (this is typically in November of your senior year), Financial Aid application date, etc. Documents you need to apply are: your social security number, high school code, high school transcripts, and your SAT/ACT scores.

Cash Money$ for College

Good news! Youth in foster care are eligible for different types of financial aid including federal aid, scholarships, fee waivers and grants. So why not go to college, right? The first place to start is by filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, FASFA. This is the universal application that the state, federal government, and colleges use to determine how much aid you will receive. The easiest way to fill it out is by visiting www.fasfa.gov. If you need help filling this application talk to your guidance counselor at school or attend a REACH financial aid workshop! There is a financial aid web worksheet you could work on too that is helpful. This worksheet will help you gather all the information you need ahead of time, that way when January 1st comes along and it is time to fill out the FASFA, you will have all the information in front of you. Click this link for FASFA Worksheet!

More College Resources

Were you a Foster Child? For the over half a million foster children in the United States*, paying for college might seem an insurmountable challenge. Fortunately, there are a number of scholarships available to help underwrite the education of young people who are or have been in the American foster care system. (* Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children & Families, 2006)

REACH Scholarship

http://www.reachforyou.org/scholarship.shtml

Foster Youth Alliance Scholarship

http://fosteryouthalliance.org/?p=7405

Guardian Program at San Francisco State

http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2012/spring/38.html

Chafee Grant for Foster Youth

http://www.csac.ca.gov/doc.asp?id=936

Casey Family Scholars Program Since 2000, Foster Care to Success has administered nearly $1M in scholarship funding annually for Seattle-based Casey Family Programs. Close to 500 Casey Family Scholars have graduated and entered the workforce or gone on to postgraduate studies since 2001. Click here for eligibility requirements and to apply.

Dorothy and Robert DeBolt Scholarship

Application Deadlines: June 09, Annually. AASK (Adopt A Special Kid) will award its annual scholarship in recognition of the value of independence and learning held by AASK’s founders, Dorothy and Robert DeBolt. The DeBolt Scholarship will be awarded to a youth who has been adopted after being in foster care in California. The applicant must be a California resident at the time of application and must have been accepted for admission to [...] More

The Darko Rapotez Memorial College Scholarship Fund for Aged Out Foster Youth offers between $5,000 and $10,000 in college and tuition fee assistance to children who have “aged out” of the foster care system. However, the price of books, housing, transportation, and other higher-education-related costs are not covered. Recipients can be between the ages of 18 and 24 and may come from anywhere in the United States as long as their high school GPA has been 3.0 or higher.

Horatio Alger Scholarship If you’re a high school senior in foster care, you can apply in the autumn yearly.This program awards between $2,500 and $10,000 per student; monies can be used to pursue a bachelor’s degree at any accredited American college or university.

The Orphan Foundation of America (OFA) Scholarship annually gives amounts between $500 and $5000 to current or former foster youths who are planning on furthering their education via academic or vocational training. Any unmarried U.S. foster children with a cumulative high school GPA of at least 2.0 and who are under the age of 25 may apply.

The National Scholarship Fund for foster children awards between $1,500 and $10,000 to foster youth, former foster youth under 25, and orphans to be used in any state for training after high school. Click here for more information.

Foster Child Tuition Waiver Program: Massachusetts

This state also offers a Foster Child Tuition Waiver Program, entitling free tuition to any of the 29 Massachusetts state/community colleges and universities to foster children who receive approval. Applicants must be between the ages of 17-24, must have been in foster care for at least one year (in response to a Care and Protection petition), and must agree to contribute to their higher education expenses via a work-study program. Click here for more information

#FosterYouth #HigherEducation #College Planning #CollegeResources

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