Our program is driven by student voices and grounded in research, designed to empower foster youth as they pursue their academic and professional goals. Specifically tailored for those receiving the Education and Training Voucher, we provide a comprehensive range of resources to support their journey through higher education.
Through our program, foster youth gain access to diverse opportunities that foster academic achievement, build strong social networks, and cultivate professional connections. We believe in more than just academic success, we aim to create a thriving community where students feel supported, engaged, and connected.
Vision
Continuing to advance holistic outcomes for foster youth by leveraging existing systems to ensure successful credit completion and maximize ETV voucher usage. We remain committed to transforming child welfare systems to expand access to educational pathways and support long-term success.
Through our Foster Postsecondary Success Program, Youthprise helps administer the Minnesota Education and Training Voucher (ETV) Program, funded by the Department Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF). The program serves foster youth up to age 26, who are aging out of foster care and fit specific criteria related to age, legal and physical custody, parental rights, adoption status, state or tribal guardianship.
In Youthprise’s first year of administering the program, outcomes improved markedly as compared to when it was being administered by another entity. Voucher usage increased from 53% in the prior year to 92%. The huge boost in numbers is a direct result of the program receiving additional funding ($369,563) from the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF), which was able to apply for unused federal dollars from other states. The reallocated funding award was merit-based related to our program’s stellar performance the previous year.
During 2025, we surpassed our initial program goal of providing 50 ETV awards by 30. In total, 80 deserving students were awarded ETV funds. Over 130 foster youth are now receiving Minnesota Education and Training Vouchers (ETV), which represents an increase of 68 college and technical school students. Fifty-six (56) students are enrolled in schools across the seven-county Twin Cities metro area. Gaining access to and using the ETV is predictive of postsecondary success. Research shows that when foster youth are awarded and use their ETV, they are more likely to persist in postsecondary school and are more likely to graduate than students who do not receive ETVs.
Get Involved
Advisory Board
Our Advisory Board is made up of foster youth who bring a wealth of experience, fresh perspectives, and valuable insights to guide the success of the Foster Postsecondary Success program. With their diverse expertise, they help us make well-informed decisions that keep the program on track and impactful. From offering advice to shaping key decisions, the board plays a vital role in ensuring the program’s growth and success, making sure we stay connected to the real needs and aspirations of foster youth.
Fostering Hope
Fostering Hope is an initiative designed to spread joy during the holiday season by providing thoughtful gifts to foster youth in our program. This effort aims to bring joy, especially during winter break when they may be facing challenges and feeling disconnected. For many, receiving a gift during this time can make a difference, offering a sense of warmth and support when it’s needed most. Through this initiative, we not only brighten their holidays but also show our commitment to supporting foster youth as they overcome barriers and pursue higher education.
We’ve gathered a wide range of resources to support foster youth. You can find local to statewide resources. Whether you need academic support, financial assistance, or housing support.
TheMinnesota Education and Training Voucher (ETV) program provides up to $5,000 a year to help students under the age of 26 who have aged out of foster care pay for college tuition and fees, room and board, books, supplies and living expenses.
Youth who are awarded an Education and Training Voucher from Department of Child, Youth, and Families receive navigation and support to get to the postsecondary degree. We provide fiscal management of ETV grants, disperse funds for eligible expenses, and ensure young people are making progress towards their degree.
Policy and System Transformation Officer ("Primary overseer of Foster Postsecondary Success")
Kristy Snyder
Kristy Snyder is working with young people and other stakeholders to build out a network aligned for meaningful impact, narrative shift, policy and legislative changes that prioritize “opportunity youth.” She has over 20 years of experience in as a middle school teacher in Baltimore City, a faculty member and interim dean at Minneapolis College and director at a local nonprofit. In her spare time, she will be outside hiking or chasing down cheap airline tickets.
Guiding Quote: “Dominator culture has tried to keep us all afraid, to make us choose safety instead of risk, sameness instead of diversity. Moving through that fear, finding out what connects us, reveling in our differences; this is the process that brings us closer, that gives us a world of shared values, of meaningful community.” – Bell Hooks, Teaching Community: A Pedagogy of Hope, 2003
Foster Postsecondary Success Associate
Amelia Didier
Amelia is a human rights advocate whose work has centered on understanding and dismantling the systems that make people vulnerable to exploitation. Her career has taken her from global research on forced labor and human trafficking to direct, trauma-informed support for survivors and their children. This work in the anti-trafficking field has shown her how profoundly stability, belonging, and opportunity shape a young person’s trajectory. That understanding fuels her commitment to walking alongside foster youth as they navigate postsecondary pathways.
