There is so much to be grateful for this year. Our Academy Directors, staff, university partners, community stakeholders, and our entire extended First Star family came together to continue to offer unending support and hope to our students and alumni.
We celebrated our graduating seniors for their unrelenting pursuit of academic attainment and post-secondary enrollment. Despite the challenges of a remote academic year, 86% of our scholars graduated from high school in June 2021 compared to 50% of foster youth nationwide. Of those scholars, 80% are pursuing higher education compared to 10% of foster youth nationwide and of those, 48% are enrolled in four-year colleges! Read more about the amazing accomplishments of our 2021 graduates here:
2021 First Star Graduating Class Report ([link removed])
And now we are looking ahead with abundant gratitude. It is at moments like this that we take inventory of our lives, our work, and our communities. We are resilient, formidable, and we are stronger than ever.
First Star Alumni Featured in Documentary
Possible Selves, a documentary featuring two First Star Alumni, will debut at the Human Rights Watch Film Festival ([link removed]) next week! The film is the first major documentary to focus on the lived experience of foster kids themselves rather than on the foster care system. The film intimately shares Alex and Mia’s journeys as they strive to attain a goal that only 3% of adults who grow up in foster care reach: graduating from college.
Get a $6 ticket to watch by entering code JUSTICE2022 at checkout! ([link removed])
Sign up for a Live Q & A on February 4th ([link removed]) with filmmakers, journalists, human rights advocates, researchers, and two First Star alumni after the film.
Watch the 'Possible Selves' Trailer!
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First Star is Hiring!
Become a part of the First Star National Team! Head over to our website for more information ([link removed]) on all of our open positions or to apply!
Thank You for your Support in 2021!
Because you answered the call during #GivingTuesday and #GiveEveryTuesday, we were able to raise 15% more this year than last!
Your unbelievable generosity meant that we could continue to bring the necessary resources to our scholars and alumni as they brave this ever-changing world.
In the News
California
When a child transitions into adulthood, making sure they have a safe place to live is a priority. However, reports say as many as a third of young adults aging out of California’s foster care system experience homelessness. A new law is hoping to improve those statistics. ([link removed]) The Children’s Advocacy Institute co-sponsored AB-546, new legislation that will require counties to report a foster youth’s housing plan to a judge before they exit the system. The bill was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom unopposed.
Indiana
An Indiana Senate committee approved a bill aimed at providing a court-appointed attorney in certain types of juvenile cases. ([link removed]) Sen. Jon Ford, R-Terre Haute, authored the bill, which will require juvenile courts to appoint an attorney prior to the first hearing to represent the child in certain cases involving foster care. One supporter, Joshua Oswald, said “Children really need a team and a complete team that ensures that their legal rights are protected and a team that can help them get what they need to be safe and healthy.”
New York
Sacramento Kings’ Maurice “Moe” Harkless ([link removed]) inspires many from his hometown Queens, New York who need help transitioning out of the foster care system. Since 2020 the forward has given $50,000 to the Last Resort Emergency Response Fund, organized by New Yorkers For Children and New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services created in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. His donations have reportedly helped at least 100 individuals and families facing housing instability, food insecurity, and other financial strains worsened by the pandemic.
Start 2022 with a Gift to First Star!
Your support helps us continue to work to uplift communities and create change by building strong pathways for hundreds of high-school-age foster youth to post-secondary education and successful adult lives.
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