Junior League advocate urges reinstatement of Foster-to-College scholarship in state budget

Julia Marino, a postdoctoral scholar at The Ohio State University and a member of the Junior League of Columbus, asked the House Finance Committee to reconsider including the Foster to College Scholarship in the state budget and urged lawmakers to advance the legislation outside the budget if necessary.

Marino told the committee that the Junior League and other advocates have long supported the proposal and warned that omitting the funding would disappoint students who testified earlier, including a fourth-grader named Priya who said she wants to become a nurse. “When we tell her that this funding was omitted, she’ll be really disappointed,” Marino said.

Marino described the program as “last-dollar” tuition support for foster youth after federal grants and other aid and said it has bipartisan backing; she said roughly 85 House members voted for similar language previously. She also recounted testimony from people who aged out of foster care and faced homelessness, and told lawmakers that supporting foster youth to attain postsecondary credentials can reduce long-term homelessness and reliance on public systems.

Asked whether the scholarship would help break cycles of poverty, Marino said it would and cited the importance of wraparound mentoring and advising along with money for tuition. She also told the committee that many other states — she said roughly 35 states — have similar programs.

Committee members encouraged continued advocacy if the funding could not be included in the current budget. Marino said local volunteers and the Junior League would continue work to support foster youth and asked the committee to consider the bill’s long-term benefits to both students and the state’s fiscal health.