More than 20,000 teenagers age out of the foster care system each year, and within four years, about 5,000 of them experience homeless. After a group of former foster youth met with Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Ben Carson, to advocate for themselves and share their stories, Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) Initiative was created.
Through this initiative foster youth 18 – 24 will be given access to support services centered around life skills, job preparation, educational and career counseling, and most importantly, rent assistance. With the youth having to contribute only 30% of their income to rent. FYI will cover the remaining balance, and help “keep young people off the streets and prevents them from becoming homeless and gives them the tools they need for a new beginning.”
Watch this exclusive interview with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development as he further speaks on the new initiative and the impact it’s already making.
