Families Getting Started Social Workers Calendar Youth About Us Contact Us Resource Library  
Families
Getting Started
Social Workers
Calendar
Youth
About Us
Contact Us
Resource Library
Welcome to Foster Care and Adoption Resource Center Welcome to Foster Care and Adoption Resource Center
Click here to Login
 
Site Search


Youth

Read the Governor's Message



LIBRARY RENTAL

LIBRARY MAINTENANCE


  » Home  »  Youth  »  Resources

Resources

Scholarships and Financial Aid for Youth Who Were or Are in Care
Other Scholarship and Financial Aid Opportunities
Other Higher Education Information
Organizations With an Emphasis Specifically on Youth in Care

Other Children and Youth Websites


Scholarships and Financial Aid for Youth Who Were or Are in Care

Capital One Fostering a Future Scholarship
The Fostering Adoption to Further Student Achievement Act
The National Foster Parents Association (NFPA) Scholarship
Orphan Foundation of America
Wisconsin DCF Scholarship Application for Youth in Out of Home Care

Capital One Fostering a Future Scholarship is a scholarship is open to children adopted from foster care to provide increased opportunities for advanced education. The Children’s Action Network and the Dave Thomas
Foundation for Adoption are administrators of the scholarship program.
Application: http://www.wifostercareandadoption.org/library/702/can2009scholarship.pdf

The Fostering Adoption to Further Student Achievement Act became law as an amendment to the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (Public Law 110-84). This law includes a revised definition of an “independent student.” Currently, youth who were still in foster care as of their 18th birthday are considered to be independent students, meaning that they do not need to count parental income for determining their eligibility for college financial aid. The revised definition of independent student” will extend to youth who were in foster care on or after their 13th birthday, even if they have subsequently been adopted.
http://voice-for-adoption.org/downloads/FAFSA%20factsheet.pdf

National Foster Parent Association Scholarship
The NFPA offers scholarships for foster youth, adopted youth, or biological youth of currently licensed foster parents, who wish to further their education beyond high school, including college or university studies, vocational and job training, and correspondence courses, including the GED. Foster parents must also be members of NFPA.
http://www.nfpainc.org/content/?page=YOUTHSCHOLARSHIP

Orphan Foundation of America (OFA)
This program offers scholarships for academic or vocational training beyond high school for foster and former foster youths throughout the United States.
www.orphan.org.

Wisconsin DCFS Scholarship Application for Youth in Out of Home Care. The Department of Children and Family Services awards scholarships of up to $5000 (renewable from year to year) for youth who have been in out-of-home care and are entering into a degree, license, or certificate program. http://dhfs.wisconsin.gov/forms/DCFS/CFS2197.pdf


Other Scholarship and Financial Aid Opportunities

COMPASS Guide
Fastweb.com and Scholarships.com
Harvard Free Tuition
The Hispanice Scholarship Fund
Historically Black Colleges Scholarship
Mapping Your Future
Scholarship America
Smart Student Guide to Financial Aid
Talent Incentive Program
The Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund
United Negro College Fund
Wisconsin's Department of Children and Families website

COMPASS Guide is a nonprofit collaboration whose mission is to increase post-secondary access for Milwaukee youth, especially those who are low-income, students of color or the first in their families to attend college. COMPASS Guide is managed at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Center for Urban Initiatives and Research.
http://epic.cuir.uwm.edu/compass/

Fastweb.com and Scholarships.com help students of all ages and backgrounds find money for college.

Harvard Free Tuituion for Low Income Students
To find out more about Harvard offering free tuition for families
making less than $40,000 a year visit Harvard's financial aid website at:
http://www.fao.fas.harvard.edu/types_of_aid.htm

The Hispanic Scholarship Fund is the nation’s leading organization supporting Hispanic higher education. HSF was founded in 1975 with a vision to strengthen the country by advancing college education among Hispanic Americans – the largest minority segment of the U.S. population. http://www.hsf.net

Historically Black College Scholarship
This scholarship is open to minority candidates who are interested in attending one of the Historically Black Colleges or Universities (Florida A&M, Morehouse, Norfolk, Prairie View, Savannah State and Southern) on a Navy ROTC Scholarship. Contact the Naval ROTC Unit in Florida at 850-599-3980 or find more information on the Internet at www.famu.edu/nrotc/officers/co.html.

Mapping Your Future is a national, collaborative, public service project of the financial aid industry – bringing together the expertise of the industry to provide free college, career, financial aid, and financial literacy services for students, families, and schools. http://www.mapping-your-future.org/

Scholarship America has awarded more than one billion dollars to more than one million students. http://www.scholarshipamerica.org/

Smart Student Guide to Financial Aid
www.finaid.org

Talent Incentive Program Provides assistance to needy students attending colleges and universities in Wisconsin. For more information, contact the Department of Public Instruction at 608-261-1057 or on the Internet at
www.dpi.state.wi.us/dpi/dlsis/weop/tipgrt.html.

The Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund was established in 1987 to carry on Justice Marshall’s legacy of equal access to higher education by supporting exceptional merit scholars attending America’s Public Historically Black Colleges and Universities. http://www.thurgoodmarshallfund.org/

United Negro College Fund
Since 1985, the UNCF Scholarships and Grants Administration office has awarded in scholarship assistance over $105 million to over 28,000 students enrolled in its 39 member colleges and universities and other HBCUs and majority institutions as well. We provide support in numerous ways to a variety of constituencies
http://www.uncf.org

Wisconsin Department of Children and Families' Education and Scholarship website
http://dcf.wisconsin.gov/children/IndLiving/addinfo/edscholarship.htm


Other Higher Education Information

ACT
FAFSA
Foster Youth: Tips for Completing the FAFSA

ACT is an independent, not-for-profit organization that provides more than a hundred assessment, research, information, and program management services in the broad areas of education and work force development. ACT helps people achieve education and workplace success. http://www.act.org/

FAFSA
Federal Student Aid, an office of the U.S. Department of Education, ensures that all eligible individuals can benefit from federally funded or federally guaranteed financial assistance for education beyond high school. We consistently champion the promise of postsecondary education to all Americans—and its value to our society.
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/

(Note: fafsa.com is a commercial website and not the official government fasfa site. fasfa.com charges a free but the official FAFSA site is free.)

Foster Youth: Tips for Completing the FAFSA
Questions on the 2008-09 FAFSA which may cause difficulty for wards of the court or foster youth are listed below. Question numbers refer to the paper FAFSA. Sections refer to the FAFSA on the Web (FOTW) Worksheet.
http://www.collegegoalsundayusa.org/support/FosterYouthFAFSATipSheet.PDF


Organizations With an Emphasis Specifically on Youth in Care

Foster Club
The Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative
fyi3.com
Foster Care Alumni of America
The Mocking Bird Society
The National Foster Care Coalition
The National Youth Advisory Council
The Orphan Foundation of America

Foster Club’s mission is to provide encouragement, motivation, information, education, and benefits for foster youth.
http://www.fosterclub.com/index.cfm

The Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative is a national foundation whose mission is to help youth in foster care make successful transitions to adulthood. Formed by two of the leading foundations focused exclusively on child and youth well-being – The Annie E. Casey Foundation and Casey Family Programs – the Initiative brings together the people and resources needed to help youth make the connections they need to education, employment, health care, housing, and supportive personal and community relationships. http://www.jimcaseyyouth.org

fyi3.com is a partnership web project between FosterClub.com and the Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative. FYi3.com provides foster youth between ages 14 and 23 opportunities to become involved, informed and independent in their transition journey towards adulthood.
http://fyi3.com

Foster Care Alumni of America is a new, national, non-profit organization transforming the lives of children, youth and adults who share the foster care experience by connecting us into a well-supported and organized community and ensuring we become a powerful, collective voice of change for both individuals and the whole foster care system. http://www.fostercarealumni.org/

The Mocking Bird Society is committed to advocacy, public education and system reform on behalf of the thousands of children and adolescents involved in the Child Welfare System. The Mocking Bird Society strives toward the vision of a world in which the intrinsic value of our most marginalized children will be both recognized and celebrated. http://mockingbirdsociety.org/

The National Foster Care Coalition is dedicated to raising public awareness, coordinating advocacy efforts and building diverse alliances that strengthen foster care and community supports to ensure children, youth and families reach their full potential. http://www.natl-fostercare.org

The National Youth Advisory Council is a diverse national group comprised of current and former foster youth providing a voice and making a difference in the lives of youth that are currently in care. http://www.nfyac.com

The Orphan Foundation of America has served thousands of foster teens all across the United States. OFA is a vocal champion of foster teens. http://www.orphan.org/

Other Children and Youth Websites

The Alliance for Youth: America’s Promise
The Alliance High School of Milwaukee
Casey Life Skills
Children for Children
Connect for Kids
The Child Welfare League of America
Girls Incorporated
Junior Achievement
Kindering Center
National Network for Youth
The National Youth Leadership Council
Project Q
Youth Communication
Youth Volunteer Corps of America
The United Indians of All Tribes Foundation
Voices for America's Children
YouthBuild

The Alliance for Youth: America’s Promise is the nation’s leading voice for young people. Through partnerships with government, nonprofits, business and communities, America’s Promise works together to ensure that all children have five essential resources: caring adults, safe places, a healthy start, effective education and support to help others. http://www.americaspromise.org/

The Alliance High School of Milwaukee's mission is to provide a safe, student-centered, and academically challenging environment to meet the needs of all students. http://allianceschool.org

Casey Life Skills provides free and easy to use tools to help young people prepare for adulthood. http://www.caseylifeskills.org/index.htm

Children for Children is a not-for-profit promoting hand-on youth volunteering and giving programs which teach the value of community involvement at a young age, and provides resources to underserved schools. http://www.childrenforchildren.org/

Connect for Kids makes the best use of communications technologies, specifically the Internet, to give adults-parents, grandparents, guardians, educators, advocates, policy makers, elected officials and others – the tools and information they need to improve the lives of youth and families. The Connect for Kids online publication covers more than 30 topics, ranging from arts to youth development, foster care to adoption, and welfare reform. http://www.connectforkids.org/

The Child Welfare League of America is the nation’s oldest and largest membership-based child welfare organization. The Child Welfare League is committed to engaging people everywhere in promoting the well-being of children, youth and their families, and protecting every child from harm. http://www.cwla.org

Girls Incorporated is a national nonprofit youth organization dedicated to inspiring all girls to be strong, smart, and bold. With roots dating back to 1864, Girls Inc. has provided vital educational programs to millions of American girls, particularly those in high-risk, underserved areas. Today, innovative program help girls confront subtle societal messages about their value and potential, and prepare to lead successful, independent, and fulfilling lives. http://www.girlsinc.org/

Junior Achievement is a movement that seeks to educate and inspire young people to valued free enterprise, business, and economics to improve the quality of their lives. http://www.ja.org/

Kindering Center is committed to creating and providing superior, individualized, family centered services for children who are disabled, medically fragile, or vulnerable because of abuse or neglect, to develop maximum potential, hope and community understanding. http://www.kindering.org/

National Network for Youth champions the needs of runaway, homeless, and other disconnected youth through advocacy, innovation and services – one community at a time. http://www.nn4youth.org/site/PageServer

The National Youth Leadership Council increases the capacity of schools and communities to engage young people in learning and service. http://www.nylc.org

Project Q is the Youth Program of the Milwaukee LGBT Community Center. Project Q provides a safe space for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth and their straight allies ages 24 and under. http://projectq.org

Strategic Sharing Booklet from Casey.org is a great guide for those involved in foster care.You may have opportunities to share your life story with others in order to educate and influence them. Whether you are a person in or from foster care, a care provider, a professional or interested community member, you’ve lived a story of your own.
http://www.casey.org/NR/rdonlyres/1072DDF2-1DE0-4A87-8848-93EEDF58C8F2/790/StrategicSharingBooklet1.pdf

Youth Communication helps teenagers develop their skills in reading, writing, thinking, and reflection, so they can acquire the information they need to make thoughtful choices about their lives. http://www.youthcomm.org/

The mission of the Youth Volunteer Corps of America is to create and increase volunteer opportunities to enrich America’s youth, address community needs and develop a lifetime commitment to service. http://www.yvca.org/main/

The United Indians of all Tribes Foundation is a public, non-profit community-based organization founded in 1970. This foundation creates opportunities for Native children, youth and families to build a positive and healthy future. http://www.unitedindians.com/fondprograms.html

The mission of Voices for America’s Children is to improve the lives of children in the United States by advocating for effective public policies. Voices for America’s Children is a nonpartisan, national organization committed to speaking out for the well-being of children at the federal, state and local levels of government. http://voicesforamericaschildren.org/

Since 1990, YouthBuild USA has guided the development of an expanding national network of more than 225 local YouthBuild programs. http://www.youthbuild.org/

What Family Means to Me
WCCF College Scholarship Contest

The Wisconsin Council on Children and Family will award up to three $1,000 scholarships that can be used at a two- or four-year college of the recipient’s choice.

The contest is open to teens 15 to 17 years old who are:

  • Wisconsin residents
  • In good standing in high school (enrolled and with a C average or above)
  • Planning to attend a two-year or four-year post-secondary institution.

Entries must be received no later than July 31, 2009.


Wisconsin Covenant

The Wisconsin Covenant is a program created to inspire young people to plan early for a successful high-school career that will lead to higher education. Eighth graders in Wisconsin are invited to sign the Wisconsin Covenant Pledge, a promise that they will:

  • Earn a high-school diploma.
  • Maintain at least a “B” average in high school.
  • Complete the classes they need to prepare them for higher education.
  • Demonstrate good citizenship and participate in their community.
  • Apply for state and federal financial aid in a timely manner.
  • Take the necessary steps to gain admission to a University of Wisconsin System institution, a Wisconsin Technical College, and/or a Wisconsin private college or university.

In return for meeting these goals and keeping the pledge, a Wisconsin Covenant Student will be recognized as a Wisconsin Covenant Scholar, earn a place within our partnered systems of higher education, and receive a financial aid package, based on their family’s financial need, to help make college affordable.

For more information, go to: http://www.wisconsincovenant.wi.gov/index.asp?locid=124

 

Families  ~  Getting Started  ~  Social Workers  ~  Calendar  ~  Youth  ~  About Us  ~  Contact Us  ~  Resource Library

Foster Care and Adoption Resource Center
6682 West Greenfield Suite 310
West Allis, WI 53214
800-947-8074 · Contact Us
414.475-1246 · FAX 414.475.7007

Terms and Conditions of Use  ·  Privacy Policy  ·  All Policies
Content ©2010 Foster Care and Adoption Resource Center  ·  Software ©1999 - 2010 Plexcor, Inc.
This site chose VeriSign SSL for secure e-commerce and confidential communications.
About SSL Certificates