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Jordan’a Jordan wants to make a difference in people’s lives, so she is completing her prerequisites on a path to earn a nursing degree.

“I know what it’s like to face challenges, and that understanding strengthens my commitment to a career where I can support and advocate for those in need,” Jordan said. “My experiences drive me to make a difference in others’ lives through nursing.”

Jordan is one of 100-160 students who come to Collin College each year after involvement with the foster care system in Texas. While the state of Texas offers tuition waivers to adopted and foster youths who have aged out of the foster care system, these students often come to college without a strong support network.

That support can be vital for college students navigating a new system, so the college’s Fostering Success program works to fill that void. Volunteer committee members provide assistance with registration and financial aid, general guidance, and direction on seeking other support services. A small group of Fostering Success committee members positioned at multiple Collin College campuses reach out to the students regularly so that they know someone cares about their educational goals.

培育成功所提供的支持可以采取多种形式。

Fostering Success committee member Tanya Schildknecht, an advisor with disability services, said that the students can face financial instability, mental health challenges, lack family support, and may have difficulty tracking down education records.

席尔德克内克特说：“我们很多人都认为挑战是理所当然的。 “Something as simple as navigating the application process can be challenging without support.”

Susan Karlsen, the college’s foster care liaison and a financial aid advisor, noted that the students she works with have often missed a considerable amount of time in school because of state-mandated meetings with case workers, advocates, doctors, family members, and others.

“They are disadvantaged in that way because they get pulled out of school constantly, and it’s nothing that they can help,” Karlsen said.

Karlsen works with local high schools to identify students who might come to Collin College and to educate high school counselors about the tuition waiver benefits available to students aging out of foster care.

然而，减免学费只是这些学生成功的一个组成部分。 Only about 3% of students nationwide who use tuition waivers similar to Texas’ complete their degree.

Transportation, housing, utilities, educational materials, and other necessities can place additional burdens on these students who
have little support from family to help defray the expenses.

So, Fostering Success works with partners such as International Student 基金会 and Foster Love, nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping students meet needs that the tuition waiver does not cover, allowing them to focus on earning their educations.

The Fostering Success Excellence Fund, offered through the Collin College 基金会, can also help cover non-tuition costs when students meet specific requirements. Supported by community donors, the fund helps pick up where the waivers leave off.

No matter how it happens, Fostering Success committee members like Karlsen want to see more students with these special circumstances reach their dreams of a college education.

当乔丹从皇冠体育平台毕业后，她计划把她的成功传递出去。

“The Fostering Success program has been such a wonderful support for me in so many ways,” Jordan said. “The program has given me the confidence and resources I need to keep moving forward with a sense of hope and purpose.”

Learn more about the Fostering Success program at www.85500171.com/financialaid/fostercareresources.html.

Learn more about the Fostering Success Excellence Fund by contacting the Collin College 基金会 at 972.599.3145.

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