The FosterEd program pays for the total cost of attendance for qualifying students who attend public institutions of higher education within Colorado. This state-funding program pays for the remaining balance of the total cost of attendance after scholarships, grants, and other financial aid awards have been applied. To qualify for this program, students must have been in foster care or in non-certified kinship care in Colorado on or after their 13th birthday. If you believe you are eligible for this program, notify the financial aid office at your institution or contact one of our Foster Care Student Navigators.
- Eligibility Criteria
• Current Colorado resident;
• Was in foster care from age 13+ in Colorado or in non-certified kinship care from age 13+ in Colorado and was, at any time, adjudicated neglected or dependent pursuant to Article 3 of Title 19;
• Attending a state public institution of higher education, local district college, or area technical college;
• Currently enrolled in courses leading toward a certificate of completion, associate, bachelor’s, or postgraduate degree and in satisfactory academic standing as defined by the institution of attendance;
• Complete the FAFSA or CASFA;
• Complete the Education and Training Voucher (ETV) application, if eligible;
• Complete and submit a FERPA Consent Form to the institution the student is attending; and
• Self-identify with the FosterEd Liaison or financial aid office at the institution the student is attending.
** FosterEd will cover up to 132 semester credit hours or 198 quarter credit hours starting from the time you join this program. Credits earned prior to joining this program will not count towards the credit limit;
** Please note, there is no age limit on this program.
- Participating Institutions
4-Year Public Institutions
Adams State University
Colorado Mesa University
Colorado School of Mines
Colorado State University - Fort Collins
Colorado State University - Global
Colorado State University – Pueblo
Fort Lewis College
Metropolitan State University of Denver
University of Colorado - Boulder
University of Colorado – Colorado Springs
University of Colorado - Denver
University of Northern Colorado
Western Colorado University
Colorado Community College System
Arapahoe Community College
Colorado Northwestern Community College
Community College of Aurora
Community College of Denver
Front Range Community College
Lamar Community College
Morgan Community College
Northeastern Junior College
Otero College
Pikes Peak State College
Pueblo Community College
Red Rocks Community College
Trinidad State Colleges
Local District Colleges
Colorado Mountain College
Aims Community College
Area Technical Colleges
Emily Griffith Technical College
Technical College of the Rockies
Pickens Technical College
- Cost of Attendance
What costs does this program cover?
This program covers the full cost of attendance at eligible Colorado institutions. The full cost of attendance varies from institution to institution but will cover full tuition, fees, reasonable living expenses (on and off campus), books, and other expenses. Examples of costs covered may include supplies, housing, food, local transportation, limited personal expenses, childcare where relevant, a computer allowance and medical insurance. Please reach out to your institution’s financial aid office for more information.
- Resources
Foster Care Student Navigator Map
- To Apply
1. Obtain Confirmation of Foster Care Experience form*.
2. Complete either the FAFSA or CASFA for the appropriate school year.
3. Complete the ETV application, if eligible.
4. Complete and submit a FERPA Consent Form to the institution the student plans to attend**.
5. Contact the FosterEd Liaison or financial aid office at the institution the student plans to attend to self-identify as eligible for the program. The liaison will require proof of foster care experience, proof that the student successfully submitted their ETV application (if eligible), and a completed FERPA Consent Form.
* Students must provide proof of foster care eligibility on a court affidavit or the Confirmation of Foster Care Experience form from the child welfare database. If a student does not have one of those forms, they should contact the County in which they experienced foster care. This may include their caseworker, Chafee worker, or contacting the county’s Department of Human Services (DHS) to request this documentation.
Contact information for Colorado county’s DHS is linked here.
** To ensure that we remain in compliance with FERPA, students will be required to submit a FosterEd Consent Form beginning with the 2024-2025 school year. This consent form will be located online through this link: https://zfrmz.com/mZWV4If63x8jMxYCL4UZ. Once students submit their completed consent form, they will receive an email confirming that it was successfully submitted with an attached downloadable PDF version of their response. We are asking that students submit the PDF containing their consent to their school along with the other required documents for FosterEd. The consent forms only need to be submitted once, as there is no expiration for these forms unless the student retracts their consent in writing.
- Institution Designation Information
Under C.R.S. 23-3.3-140. Each institution is required to designate one employee as a liaison to serve as a direct point of contact with the institution for qualifying students and prospective qualifying students. The liaison may have other duties unrelated to work as the liaison. The liaison shall provide qualifying students and prospective qualifying students with information regarding application assistance, financial assistance, support services, and other resources and assistance available to qualifying students and prospective qualifying students.
Each institution will provide the foster care student navigators described in subsection of this section with the contact information for the liaison.
Institution Liaison Designation Form
- Questions
For questions:
- Students, please contact fcnavigator@dhe.state.co.us to get connected to your Foster Care Navigator.
- IHE financial aid directors, please contact fosterfinaid@dhe.state.co.us