Spark College Success Kits
Going to college is exciting but it can also be stressful and chaotic. All college students have dreams about their future. For former foster youth, these dreams can sometimes feel far away after unforeseeable crises – dealing with loss, moves, or trauma. These scholars often struggle to connect on campus and find a home. College transition will go more smoothly with a plan and support. Spark recognizes the struggles that come with navigating a new campus and new responsibilities and wants to help students get started on the right foot and stay on track!
College Success Kits from Spark allow our students to kick off their year meeting new people, digging into study sessions and navigating campus without worrying about having their essentials in hand. It’s natural that a lot of students will be worried about how to get everything they need to bring the first day – from schools supplies to setting up their dorm room there is a lot to consider. A dorm room isn’t like the room the student had at in their last placement. For some it will be the first time having real freedom in their own living space – to decorate and make it their own. In addition to basic school supply needs their home on campus will also require tools for daily living. They need for towels, bedding, household items, toiletries, and laundry supplies and more – which as you can imagine represents a significant additional expense for youth that don’t have money to spare.
Please consider purchasing items for our youth in need! You can help our students fill their needs by visiting the Spark Target College Registry at http://tgt.gifts/spark17. We will also accept donations to shop for last minute needs and buy additional toiletry household items for our students. Checks can be made payable to Texas Institute for Child and Family Wellbeing and should be received no later than Friday, August 11, 2017.
Donations can be mailed to:
TXICFW
Attention Shannon Mann/Spark
3001 Lake Austin Blvd, Ste 1.204A
Austin, TX 78703
For more information about Spark or getting involved please contact Shannon.Mann@austin.utexas.edu