Support works best when it is specific. Below are seven concrete things that measurably help a former foster youth or under-resourced student arrive prepared, and stay enrolled.
Students aging out of foster care often arrive with a duffel bag. A complete kit, bedding, bath, storage, hygiene, school supplies, and a brand-new laptop, removes the first and largest barrier of move-in week. Sponsoring one student costs $2,500.
If a full sponsorship isn't the right fit, single items still complete kits. Twin XL sheets, towels, shower caddies, desk lamps, and backpacks are all in constant demand.
Kits are assembled by hand before each semester. A few hours of sorting, packing, and labeling directly translates into rooms ready on day one.
The hardest stretch is the first two semesters. Consistent, low-pressure check-ins, a text before finals, help reading a financial aid letter, keep students enrolled.
Former foster youth qualify for independent student status on the FAFSA, state tuition waivers in many states, and the federal Education and Training Voucher. Pointing a student to these is free and can be worth thousands.
Many companies match employee gifts to 501(c)(3) nonprofits dollar for dollar, quietly doubling a sponsorship.
Only 3 to 4% of former foster youth earn a four-year degree. Most people have never heard that number. Sharing it, with dignity, not pity, is how support grows.
Start here
Sponsor a student, $2,500 furnishes one room.
More ways to give: sponsorship levels, the in-kind wishlist, or our story.