As Covid-19 began spreading throughout the United States, many colleges closed their doors and moved exclusively to remote learning. These changes left many students who had previously lived in on-campus housing out of a place to stay and left many students who had previously worked on-campus out of a source of income.

Together We Rise is providing services for these former foster youth College students during the COVID-19 pandemic. These services include grocery assistance, utility stipends and housing information.

Submitting information to get support is simple and is done entirely online through a support form. Formerly foster youth students can apply for any of these services.

First, students go to this web page. The web page has donation plans and more information at the top, along with a video towards the middle with more information.

The place where students will submit their information can be found at the bottom of the page. The page requires students to submit information such as their name, email address, college, etc.

“These services are especially important right now, as much former foster youth rely on on-campus jobs for income,” said Josephine Hernandez, CSUF student and Together We Rise associate.

Together We Rise is also seeking donations and housing from our local area in order to better properly assist these formerly foster youth students during these times. In the same place where formerly foster youth students can submit their information, there is a section where people with available housing or businesses can submit their information.

“Together We Rise’s staff will continue to operate remotely during the “Stay at Home” closures to ensure foster youth and former foster youth can receive the services they need,” said Hernandez.

For donations, Together We Rise has different donation plans of varying amounts. The website allows for one-time donations, monthly donations and yearly donations where donors can donate an amount that they are able to determine.

Donations that are not monetary are welcome as well. Together We Rise is seeking groceries, utilities, and housing in order to support their community. Donations of this kind can be done on the same web page, underneath the video.