New bill would help foster care youth pay for college campus housing

WASHINGTON — Eugenia Wallace was just 16 years old when she started college. It’s an incredible accomplishment for any teen, and especially for Eugenia, who was in foster care.

“Just getting there as a foster youth I endured many challenges,” Wallace told our Washington News Bureau. “I didn’t at the time have parents that could lead me through that situation.”

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Wallace went on to complete a four-year degree and later a master’s degree – beating the odds by becoming part of less than 1% of former foster care youth to complete graduate school.

But Wallace faced a lot of hurdles along the way because like so many who come out of the foster care system, she did not have a financial safety net.

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“I worked three jobs to pay for books, necessities and to pay for a place to stay,” Wallace said.

Now, there’s a bill in Congress meant to help kids in foster care or who were formerly in foster care pay for college housing.

The “Campus Housing Affordability Act” would allow foster care youth to use the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Housing Choice Voice Program to pay for college campus housing. Currently, this voucher program cannot be used by college students.

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The bill has bipartisan support.

“It will not cost taxpayers anything additional but will make an enormous difference in people’s lives,” Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH), the bill’s sponsor, said.

“We want them to succeed and have a piece of the American dream,” Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE), another sponsor of the bill, said.

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Wallace said she’s hoping the proposal will pass into law to help more foster kids go on to higher education by eliminating some of the financial burdens.

“It’s going to take care of a major need. The simple necessity of having a place to lay their head,” Wallace said.

Landsman said while they do not have an exact number, he estimates the measure would help tens of thousands of foster kids around the country each year.

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