The Massachusetts Department of Children & Families (DCF) offers a variety of support to help foster youth finance their post-secondary education. If you are current and/or have been in foster care you may be eligible for scholarship and grant programs that are available to foster youth.
For more information on each of these programs, students, social workers and college administrators can contact:
- Laurie Hernandez, DCF Education & Training Social Worker via email: laurie.hernandez@mass.gov.
For more information on DCF Adolescent & Young Adult Services, please review Massachusetts Health and Human Services' Adolescent Services Website.
If you are a current/former foster young adult, please visit the Massachusetts Network of Foster Care Alumni page. MassNFCA is an organization geared towards providing access to resources (housing, educational, and community) to young adult with foster care experience.
Helpful points of contact for DCF affiliated Foster Youth at UMass Lowell are:
- Rich Doria, Assistant Director of Family & Student Support Resources, email: Richard_Doria@uml.edu.
- Ann Ciaraldi, Associate Dean of Student Affairs for Violence Prevention & Compliance, email: Ann_Ciaraldi@uml.edu, phone at 978-934-2100