CGS trains NYC youth in foster care to help realize academic abilities

Catholic Guardian Services, New York, has announced a plan to train New York youth in foster care system by helping them realize their academic abilities.

This was disclosed in a statement on Monday June 13, 2022.

According to the statement, the New York-based human services organization is dedicated to supporting children and families through holistic, trauma-informed services.

The Journey Program, launched by Catholic Guardian in 2020 is aimed at providing support services to adolescents and young adults in care, and strives to ensure that young people have a successful future.

The program also provides essential resources to guide them on their journey, including equipping students with long-term coaching, emotional support, opportunities for career development, relational skill-building, and more to prepare them for college and beyond.

“Twenty percent of people who come out of foster care end up homeless on day one,” explains Wiky Toussaint, a Catholic Guardian college specialist working in The Journey Program.

Currently, Catholic Guardian has one of the highest percentages of young adults in the college of any foster care agency.

As The Journey Program’s college specialist, Toussaint works with approximately 40 youth to help them navigate their academic paths, but The Journey also includes middle school specialists, employment specialists, and coaches.

Students receive mentoring and coaching from age 11 to 21, learning important study habits, how to navigate the college application process, the transition from middle school to high school to college, and how to balance their academic and social lives.

Toussaint also connects students to grants and scholarships, removing any financial barriers to education. Stipends are provided by Catholic Guardian (with assistance from the Administration for Children’s Services) every month to help students meet room and board costs.

Youth are also linked with a housing specialist so they can secure housing after they graduate college.

Toussaint, a product of the SUNY system, who knows the importance of receiving a college education, said, “It can open doors, especially for young people in foster care who might not have the support that others may have. In my role, I want to be the catalyst that helps young people succeed.”

For young participants in Catholic Guardian’s foster care programs, The Journey Program is particularly meaningful. Toussaint explains, “Many youth experienced trauma in their lives. Being able to attend college is a huge step. I help calm their nerves and let them know that it is possible to start a new chapter. There is light at the end of what can be a dark tunnel for youth in care.”

Toussaint is hoping the light will shine even brighter if New York City extends funding for the Fair Futures Program through 2026. Doing so would help the program expand its reach in the foster care community and support young adults who age out of care until they are 26.

“Currently, only twenty-one per cent of people who have aged out of care have a high school diploma or equivalency,” says Craig Longley, Executive Director, Catholic Guardian.

“Operating under the umbrella of the Fair Futures Program, Catholic Guardian’s Journey Program and our outstanding staff epitomize the Catholic Guardian mission to provide hope and guidance to people who seek better lives. Catholic Guardian salutes our extraordinary youth, and we thank them for allowing us to lead them on their life-changing journey.”
Since 1887, Catholic Guardian Services has been improving the lives of at-risk children and families in New York’s underserved communities through holistic, trauma-informed care.

Together, Catholic Guardian’s compassionate team of clinicians, social workers, and other human services professionals work to provide help, create hope, and preserve dignity through supportive interventions that enable individuals to thrive.

Catholic Guardian’s array of comprehensive services includes family support services, foster care and child welfare services, developmental disability services, a Parenting Resource Center, and the CGS Family Counseling and Wellness Center.