Students who spent time in foster care can apply for an Education and Training Voucher, a federal program that each state's child welfare agency runs. This walks through who handles it where you live, what it can cover and how it fits with the rest of your aid.
How the voucher works
Education and Training Vouchers are part of the federal Chafee program for young people who have been in foster care. Each state child welfare agency runs its own version, sets the age limits and decides how much a student can receive in a year. Some states hand the work to a nonprofit or a university office, so the name on the application may differ from the agency's.
The voucher helps with the cost of attendance at a college, university or training program, which can include tuition, books, housing, food, transportation and a computer. Some states pay the school directly and others send part of the money to the student. Ask how your state pays and when, since the timing affects how you cover the first weeks of a term.
Finding your state's coordinator
Every state has a person or office in charge of the vouchers, often inside the independent living program for young people leaving care. A current caseworker or independent living worker can tell you who it is. If you left care years ago, call the state child welfare agency and ask for the Chafee or ETV coordinator by name.
On campus, the homeless and foster youth liaison or the financial aid office usually knows the coordinator and the forms. Some colleges run a support program for students from foster care that helps with the application each year. These programs go by many different names, so ask the aid office what exists at your school.
Every state has a person or office in charge of the vouchers, often inside the independent living program for young people leaving care.
Fitting the voucher into your aid
The voucher counts as aid, so the financial aid office has to know about it. Together with grants and scholarships, it has to stay within your cost of attendance, and the office may adjust loans or work-study to keep the total inside that limit. Tell the office as soon as the state confirms an award so the package can be settled early.
Most states expect you to file the FAFSA and keep making progress in your classes to renew the voucher. Students who were in foster care at any time since age 13 are independent on the FAFSA, so parent information drops out of the form. Reapply on time every year, because a missed renewal can leave a gap that is hard to fill halfway through the year.
Steps to take
- Ask your caseworker who runs the vouchers in your state
- Call the state ETV coordinator if you have left care
- File the FAFSA for the coming year
- Tell the aid office when a voucher is confirmed
Who decides
Your state's Chafee or ETV coordinator
Education and Training Vouchers come from your state child welfare agency, so the first step is finding the coordinator who runs them.