On Saturday, May 21st, we celebrated our middle and high school graduates throughout LA County. Each youth was showered with love and excitement for their hard work. Graduating is a huge accomplishment for foster youth that should always be acknowledged and celebrated. Each student received a UFC branded graduation sash, candy leis, a gift card …
Our amazing NextGen Board made time to put together 50 candy leis for our 2022 middle and high school graduates! This was a sweet donation from NextGen Co-Chair Lauren Fujiu-Berger, who provided the candy and materials. This allowed us to use all the generous donations from Molina Healthcare to give each graduate a gift card …
On April 21st, United Friends hosted their annual College and Career Day for scholars in the Education Program. The virtual event allowed young people to explore career interests and discover new potential passions. Volunteers, including partner organizations, NextGen board members, and UFC Alumni, joined the event as panelists to share their college journeys and stories about …
Recently our housing program held a “Banking 101” life skills workshop led by the Center for Financial Empowerment, a non-profit with a mission to improve young lives through financial education. Our housing youth learned about the differences between credit unions and traditional banks, how to open a bank account, and the importance of starting to …
In celebration of Black History Month, the Pathways team hosted a Trivia Night and watch party of Kevin Hart’s Guide to Black History Month. Pastries from a local black-owned coffee shop were provided to all attendees and a prize was given to the first-place winner of the Trivia game.
Also, during a recent life skills workshop …
This month, our education team began virtual group coaching sessions with our college-going foster youth. The purpose of these monthly meetings is to create community amongst this niche of students and cover important topics that will help build confidence and better equip them for college success. Over a dozen youth attended the first group coaching session, …
On December 17th, we held our annual (virtual) Holiday Party. Over 200 people attended, including staff, housing residents, education scholars and their families, and housing and education alumni. Everyone who joined the party was entered into a raffle for a chance to win various prizes given away by Mr. and Mrs. Claus, including Amazon gift …
This year our education team held virtual Friendsgiving holiday parties for all grade school and college youth. It was a fun, virtual social gathering, hosted in partnership with the Junior League of Los Angeles. In addition to playing games to foster cheer and a sense of community, prizes were also raffled off.
Our housing program staff …
Recently UFC alumni Carolina Wolf and our education staff teamed up to facilitate a workshop to equip our education foster students for the transition back to full-time, in-person learning. The time allowed for deep reflection on the past 17 months of remote and hybrid learning. Staff provided advice and tools to improve time management …
We are so excited to announce and celebrate our 2021 high school graduates! Foster youth face unique challenges in their educational journeys and as a result, many struggle to graduate high school. This has never been more true than during the 2020-2021 school year that fell in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s why …