When foster care youth age out of the system, they face significant challenges in higher education. According to the Foster Care Alumni of America, only two percent of these individuals overcome the roadblocks and earn a degree. Observing this hole in support, Paul and Amy Blavin decided to step up and initiate change.
This change took the form of the Blavin Scholars program, an initiative created by the Blavins which would provide the emotional and financial support that former foster care youth need to obtain a higher education.
“This is an area that is very deserving and in need of private support,” Paul Blavin says. “Foster care gets very little attention from philanthropists. That’s a mistake because the easy thing is to jump on the bandwagon for popular charitable causes, but those may not be the ones that really need support.”