• Studies show that any person who has experienced even 1 Adverse Childhood Experience (pretty much any form of stressful or traumatic event as a child) is more likely to have a shorter lifespan while experiencing mental illness and substance abuse (Burke Harris, 2014). Any youth in foster care has at least 1 Adverse Childhood Experience by definition of being placed in foster care.

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• Youth who have been survivors of trauma or foster care are placed at a severe disadvantage in the job market due to inadequate skills, knowledge, stress management, and confidence to compete.  

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• Foster youth suffer in the areas of confidence, computer literacy, job readiness, time management, burnout, depression, and personal development, to name a few.

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• Foster Youth are 400 times more likely to become homeless, dependent on welfare or incarcerated rather than graduate high school.

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• Less than 3% of former foster youth graduate college (compared to the national average of 20%) which places them into lower paying jobs and more likely to battle poverty and homelessness and/or become dependant on social services.

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• These undereducated, low-income current and former youth need to learn specific skills to live independent lives outside of the social welfare system.