By David LaNore, Member Services Manager, and Simone Pringle, Member Services Coordinator
Reading time: Two minutes
This blog post is the second of a two-part series written in recognition of Foster Care Awareness Month. Check out the first part here.
Foster care students in college are often flying without a safety net. Assisting them requires a little more preparation than with other students. In following the realities identified in our Foster Care Awareness month blog, here are seven tips for ensuring foster care students have a successful start to college:
Understand that the caseworker is your ally and copilot in getting your student across the finish line. Effective communication between the two of you is critical for keeping the student on time and on track to successfully matriculate.
The caseworker can often be your link to various hidden resources, like finding your students dorm necessities or a laptop.
Make sure your students access any relevant tuition waivers and specialized funding set aside for them as early as possible; many times, students discover eligibility for these financing opportunities too late in the game. Be sure
to note the various requirements and deadlines of each process. Always verify the status of these applications with their caseworker.
Help your student set up a budget (the Office of Federal Student Aid has a few great tools to help students
get started!). Foster care youth in college are responsible for more expenses than the average student, so keeping their finances organized is crucial.
Have your students apply for campus jobs. Foster care students often need to work at least part time to afford living expenses. Campus employment not only provides income, but also further immerses students in the campus culture and
cultivates relationships with institution staff. Working on campus can provide stability and structure to students’ lives, while also providing the much-needed flexibility to work and simultaneously attend school full time.
On-campus housing may not be sufficient for this demographic of students. If they are required to live on-campus, have them inquire with the residence life office about waiving that requirement or if they provide housing options for
foster care students. If not, investigate attaining apartment housing.
Plan for the logistics of necessary transportation. If your student lives or works off-campus, they will need to consider flexible, cost-effective solutions for traveling to work and class.
Set up your student’s social foundations. Encourage them to join identity affirming student groups. Introduce them to institutional staff in the various student support offices as an added layer. Being a listening ear and a personal
resource is pivotal to getting your student to school, but to get through school, they’re going to need a village.
While these seven tips don’t cover all a foster care students' needs or the situations they may encounter, they provide a solid foundation on which a student will not just survive but thrive.
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