By Arelys Morales Conty/campus editor
South campus is the only campus to have a program geared towards students who have been in foster care.
“We identify students who have had any experience in the foster program or has been adopted,” said Kamille Coleman, lead adviser at the Foster Care Alumni Transition program.
They’re not necessarily academic alumni, but they’re alumni of the foster care system, Coleman said.
The program hopes to guide students through their first time in college and eventually help them graduate.
The research shows a lot of students in foster care want to go to college, but they just don’t have the resources to be successful once they get in, Coleman said.
“The stats say between 2 to 11 percent will graduate within six years, and we want to help students increase that rate,” she said.
Coleman emphasizes that they will not turn away anyone no matter their situation.
“We will still help anyone who has had a day, a month, a year, 10 years or more in the system, whether it’s within Texas or outside of Texas,” she said.
FCAT also provides traditional academic advising for degree planning, one-on-one counseling for students, monthly luncheons and workshops.
“In the past, we had a former TCC student come and talk about his story in the system and what he overcame,” Coleman said.
South student Eryn Huitt was part of the first focus group for FCAT and is currently a part of the program.
“They really wanted to know what we wanted to see from it, and that we were comfortable with it ‘cause it is a very touchy subject,” Huitt said. “It’s not talked about often.”
Huitt was adopted along with eight of her siblings, and even having a large family, the support from FCAT has been invaluable, she said.
“Having a community of people who know what you’ve gone through, there’s no judgment,” she said. “There’s no discrimination.”
Being introduced to a community of people who were similar was very encouraging, Huitt said.
“I want these programs to really help encourage that group of people,” she said. “I want the statistics to go up. I want people to see that they can do whatever they want.”
