Ris4thursday is developing a new mentorship program to help local foster youths earn scholarships and gain admittance to college.
Ris4thursday is a statewide network that supports and promotes former foster youths in or going into college.
The organization partners with the Oklahoma Independent Living Program of the Oklahoma Department of Human Resources, which works to ensure young people transition from state custody to self-sufficiency. Ris4thursday is able to contact foster youths in high school through this nonprofit organization’s program.
The mentor program focuses on teaching skills needed to get into college, with the idea that after graduation, the former foster youths will be awarded the Clara Luper Scholarship, said David Hall, instrumental music education and sociology sophomore and cofounder of OCU’s chapter of Ris4thursday. The Clara Luper Scholarship funds the remaining tuition, standard housing and meal plan D for students of diverse cultural backgrounds in need of financial aid.
The new mentor program is currently working to develop the academic repertoire of one female sophomore in high school. The student organization plans to expand the program in the coming years as resources permit.
The mentorship includes time spent with the student to help complete applications for universities, scholarships and grants. Scholarships are available for students who face adversity, but the organization is pushing for more criteria that favor former foster youth applicants.
“We see this as a way to promote going to college,” Hall said.
OCU enrolled only four former foster youth students last year. Ris4thursday wants to keep two former foster youths at the university at a time. The mentorship is one way it is helping increase former foster youth attendance at OCU, Hall said.
Ris4thursday is in its second year at OCU and has grown from eight student members to 16. They meet at 8 p.m. every Monday in the Dulaney-Browne Library. Each month, they organize life skills sessions designed to teach former foster youths professional and domestic skills.
These sessions teach domestic skills such as job applications, laundry and cooking, skills many former foster youths are not taught during their out-of-home living.
The next Life Skills session is Nov. 10 at the Kramer School of Nursing (East).
The organization is welcoming volunteers who want to join the group. Their main goal is to raise awareness about the foster care program, a prevalent issue in Oklahoma City.
“Students don’t have to give much time, but just be aware of the challenges foster youth face,” said Joe Wathika, business sophomore and Ris4thursday treasurer.
Anyone interested in joining the group may email Liz Willner, associate professor of education and faculty adviser for the group, at lwillner@okcu.edu.
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