The Alex Smith Foundation SDSU Guardian Scholars Program

Why does our society spend billions of dollars on foster children, only to abandon these kids when they’re on the verge of becoming adults? It seems like we’re dropping the ball at the goal line.  In San Diego County approximately 6,500 youth are part of the foster care system.  Each year, some 300 of them leave the system.  After age 18 their future prospects are grim: 50% will end up unemployed 33% will require public assistance 25% will become incarcerated less than 10% will attend college Only 3% will actually graduate college

Emancipated Foster Youth have many special needs because of their challenging life experiences and their lack of a supportive family structure. These life challenges are often insurmountable without adult mentoring, educational opportunities, financial support and caring role models. Yet, we are at a point today where a college degree is often a key factor in achieving long-term success. 

In order to address these grim statistics, The Alex Smith Foundation, San Diego State University and the Consensus Organizing Center have partnered up to create The Alex Smith Foundation San Diego State University Guardian Scholars Program. This is a comprehensive program that will provide a five-year scholarship, year round housing and extensive individual guidance and support for 10 San Diego State University students that were former foster youth. 

So How Does the Program Work?

Each year staff from the Alex Smith Foundation and the Consensus Organizing Center interview and select 10 former foster youth that are or will be San Diego State University students for the upcoming fall semester. Initially, starting with 10 scholars, our goal each fall is to admit 10 new students into the Guardian Scholars program with an ultimate goal of reaching 50 scholars in the program at one time. Aside from providing full academic scholarships and year round housing, the Alex Smith Guardian scholars will also receive individual and group support with personal, academic and financial issues. Program Scholars will meet on a bi-weekly basis to learn and share with one another as they complete their journey through higher education at San Diego State University.

What about those Foster Youth not yet in college?

The Alex Smith Guardian Scholars Program at San Diego State University is unique to other existing Guardian Scholars programs. It incorporates the highly successful high school work that the Consensus Organizing Center has been operating at Helix Charter High School for the past four years. The high school component of the Alex Smith Guardian Scholars Program provides foster youth, during their sophomore or junior year of high school, with the opportunity to experience post-secondary education at San Diego State University with the hopes that these students can begin to rectify the evident schism between the numbers of foster youth capable of achieving a post-secondary education.

Students enrolled in the high school component of the Alex Smith Guardian Scholars Program register in Social Work 120: Introduction to Social Work course at the San Diego State University campus, for which students receive 3.0 general elective college course credits along with high school credits. The curriculum material for this course covers a range of social issues, such as, access to health care, public education, governmental aid programs, cycle of poverty, unemployment and others. Students also participate in 40 hours of community service that incorporates the premise of community-based learning. Students commit to working every week at a medical clinic or a non-profit organization. This provides them with the opportunity to link their work in the community with what they learned in the classroom.


Email Jessica Robinson jrobinson@projects.sdsu.edu for more information