UC Riverside has received a $1.2 million Foster Youth Outreach Program grant from the University of California Office of the President to improve college accessibility and services for foster care youth.
The gift will support UCR’s Office of Foster Youth Support Services and fund two initiatives aimed at helping students with experience in the foster care system pursue opportunities in higher education.
The Office of Foster Youth Support Services helps students transition from the foster care system to adulthood by providing resources such as housing and financial aid.
“This transformative grant helps us close gaps for foster youth, making higher education a clear, accessible path with a comprehensive program that starts in high school and follows students through college graduation,” said Brian Haynes, UCR’s vice chancellor for student affairs.
The first initiative partners with First Star, an organization that provides specialized resources for foster youth. By establishing a First Star Academy program at UCR, an estimated 40 high school students will have the opportunity to participate in a multi-year college preparation program. The program will include a two-week summer academy and monthly Saturday sessions throughout the academic year.
Students will receive guidance on high school graduation requirements, the college admission process, and financial aid assistance. The initiative will also provide transportation assistance and support for food, housing, mental health, and other basic needs.
Building upon UCR’s existing partnership with the Riverside Community College District (RCCD), the second initiative will help develop a foster youth pipeline for community college students interested in transferring to UCR. The process will include identifying and recruiting students through RCCD’s NextUp and EOPS programs, Chafee Grant population, foster youth support programs, and other campus outreach efforts.
The transfer program plans to support approximately 30 current and former foster youth attending Riverside City College, Moreno Valley College, or Norco College. It also builds upon UCR and RCCD’s Residential Scholars partnership, which allows participating RCCD students to live in UCR’s North District residential community while completing their community college education.
Students who participate in the transfer pipeline initiative will receive individualized transfer planning, academic progress reviews, and support with UC applications and financial aid.
Both initiatives will be developed during the 2026-2027 academic year, with the first residential First Star Academy expected to take place in summer 2027 after formalizing partnerships, recruiting students, and designing the curriculum.
As the sole recipient of this grant across the UC system, this funding represents UCR’s continued commitment to educational access and student success.
“The true measure of this investment will not simply be how many students enter college, but how many begin to see a future larger than the circumstances they inherited,” said Stephen Morales, director of the Office of Foster Youth Support Services.
Morales said a college education not only transforms an individual's life, but also impacts families, communities, and generations that follow.
“At UCR, that is both the promise at the heart of this work and the responsibility we carry: to create the conditions that make transformation possible by creating pathways where barriers once existed, cultivating belonging where uncertainty once lived, and giving young people the opportunity to break cycles and build legacies entirely their own,” he said.
