Ending chronic homelessness

Confronting sight loss

Nurturing Catholic schools

Supporting children affected by HIV/AIDS

Overcoming multiple sclerosis

Responding to disasters

Supporting Catholic Sisters

Preventing substance abuse

Providing safe water

Transition-age youth in foster care

According to the federal Child Welfare Information Gateway, the U.S. foster care system includes more than 500,000 young people. These youth are among the most vulnerable in our society.

The odds are stacked against youth transitioning out of foster care:

25 percent are incarcerated within two years

65 percent leave foster care without a place to live, and 27 percent of the homeless population spent time in foster care

58 percent earn a high school degree by age 19, compared to 87 percent of a national comparison group of non-foster care youth

Female youth in foster care have a 50 percent chance of becoming pregnant by age 19

hispanic girl smiling The Hilton Foundation's focus on youth in foster care is relatively new. As we continue our strategic planning process, these grantee programs and projects have informed our perspective:

Dennis P. Culhane of the University of Pennsylania School of Social Policy and Practice led a two-year research study on the outcomes of young adults who have aged out of foster care and/or the juvenile justice system in Los Angeles County. The study informs policies and programs that improve transitions for foster youth exiting the system.
First Place for Youth operates a 24-month housing support program, My First Place, for 18 to 24-year-old former foster youth in Los Angeles.
San Diego State University's Guardian Scholars Program provides scholarships, programming, and assistance to youth who have been in the foster care system.