National Foster Care Month is an important time
to reflect on students impacted by foster care. Continuing to work in new ways
to promote school success, school stability and encourage students in foster
care is of the utmost importance. Preparing students to be career and college
ready and taking steps to encourage successful transitions to post-secondary
for students in DFPS managing conservatorship is not only encouraged, but is
required by state law (TEC § 25.007(7)). To that end, below are some up-coming
opportunities, reminders and announcements that you don’t want to miss:
Reminder
for Graduating Students:
May
is a good time to help ensure students in foster care have items such as caps
and gowns, senior pictures, yearbooks and are able to participate in all
school-related graduation activities!
Paying
for College:
- Remember,
Texas youth in foster care may be entitled to a LIFETIME college tuition
and fee waiver, as long as a student enrolls in at least one college
credit before the age of 25. Students do not need to wait until graduation
to access this benefit. Consider also how eligible students could use dual
credit opportunities to complete high school required classes and
transition successfully to a postsecondary institution. Check the qualifications to see which
students may benefit from a verification letter provided by the Department
of Family and Protective Services to the institution the student is
enrolled in for postsecondary courses.
- The
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Deadline is June 30.
Individual institutions may have different deadlines. Please contact
postsecondary institutions directly for more information. Below are some
resources to assist students in foster care when filing the FAFSA:
- Providing Effective Financial Aid Assistance to
Students from Foster Care and Unaccompanied Homeless Youth: A Key to
Higher Education Access and Success: www.californiacasa.org/Downloads/Providing_Effective_Financial_Aid.pdf
- The National Association for Student Financial Aid
Administrators compiled a handy guide to help students with unique circumstances
fill out the forms correctly.
- Looking
for more resources to help foster care students plan for college? Visit College for All Texans, Texas Youth Connection and the Texas GEAR UP portal for additional ideas!
Texas
Colleges with Support Programs for Students Who’ve Experienced Foster Care:
Foster
Care and Student Success Guide Spotlight:
This
is an excellent time to review chapter 13 of the Foster Care and Student Success Resource
Guide. “Transitioning Out of Foster Care & Post-Secondary
Education Opportunities” answers questions about documents students need for
life after foster care, financial opportunities available such as the Education & Training Voucher (ETV) Program
and describes resources to help students make a sustainable plan for their
future. If you have any questions about the information in this chapter, please
feel free to contact your local school district foster care liaison
or fostercareliasion@tea.texas.gov
and the Department of Family and Protective Services in
your region for more information.
Encouraging
Postsecondary – FREE Student Opportunity:
Prairie
View A&M University Summer ACCESS Program – Academy for Collegiate Excellence and Student Success (ACCESS) is
a seven week residential academic camp for graduating seniors and GED students
which prepares and assists students for higher education attendance. $300
student fee is waived for students from foster care. ACCESS
starts Sunday, June 14th. The application deadline was
originally May 1, but they are still taking applications and it is NOT too
late to register. Students DO NOT have to attend PVAMU in fall 2015 to attend
this program. ACCESS information: http://www.pvamu.edu/universitycollege/access/. You may also
contact Dr. Vivian Dorsett at, fostercare.can@gmail.com, for more information.
Future
Training Opportunities (see attached):
- FREE
- Trauma Informed Classrooms
hosted by Texas Christian University’s Institute of Child Development (for
educators in Travis County). August 4-5,
2015 in Austin, TX at the Holiday Inn Midtown, 8:30-3:30pm. Registration
deadline, July 20th: https://tcu.co1.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_3C5SKcEQUJogN0x
- SAVE
THE DATE - Texas is hosting the National Dropout Prevention Network Conference
October 25-28th, 2015 in San Antonio, TX. A special track
with professional development for Texas Foster Care Liaisons and ESC
Champions will be included during the regular conference schedule.
Call
for Submissions:
We
want to hear from YOU! Are you doing something innovative and outstanding in
service of youth in foster care? Send your stories to TEA at fostercareliaison@tea.texas.gov
so we can feature your hard work in the monthly listserv message!
