Anthony & Jeanne Pritzker Family Foundation is building on a decade of support to create a pipeline from foster care to CSUN.
A recent $20,000 gift from the foundation enables the EOP Milt & Debbie Valera Resilient Scholars Program at CSUN to expand outreach, conduct campus tours, and provide application assistance to K-12 and community college foster youth students interested in higher education. The funds also include scholarships and emergency assistance to help students stay on track in school.
For 10 years, through its Pritzker Foster Care Initiative, the foundation has supported CSUN with more than $500,000 in gifts to provide education access for foster youth, who are among the most vulnerable individuals in California. Young people aging out of the foster care system at 21 face a number of challenges as they transition to adulthood, EOP leaders said. For Resilient Scholars, the program’s support in enrolling — and persisting — at the university can help them achieve their educational dreams.
As of fall 2023, more than 600 self-identified foster youth are enrolled at CSUN, making it one of the largest populations of foster youth in the CSU system. The EOP Milt & Debbie Valera Resilient Scholars Program provides an important support system and community for these students.
The community outreach and assistance supported by Pritzker Foster Care Initiative also helps increase awareness, spreading the word about college pathways to hundreds of students in local K-12 schools and community colleges. That the power of higher education is open to all.
If you would like to support the EOP Milt & Debbie Valera Resilient Scholars program, or create a fund of your own, please contact the CSUN Office of Development at (818) 677-7586 or development@csun.edu.
