Forward Steps

Foster Care Awareness Month ends today. The work continues tomorrow. 💙

This is your last chance to help us reach $54k and unlock our match.

Double your impact. Donate today ➡️ https://www.coloradogives.org/story/26fostercaremonth

Congratulations to Rachel who graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Social Work from MSU Denver! “Guardian Scholars is an empowering community, offering me resources but more than that, this program has fostered a sense of belonging to people like me facing challenges.” - Rachel, a Guardian Scholar Graduate.

❤️ Double your impact. Help us reach $54k to unlock our match. Donate today: ➡️ https://coloradogivesday.org/story/26fostercaremonth

A safe place to live changes everything. ❤️

38% of former foster youth in Colorado experience homelessness by age 21. In 2025, Forward Steps distributed $18,000 in emergency micro-grants to help scholars stay housed and enrolled.

🏠 Stability comes from a place to live you can depend on.

Double your impact. Help us reach $54k to unlock our match.
Donate today ➡️ https://www.coloradogives.org/story/26fostercaremonth

Guardian Scholars Graduation Celebration: A hole in one for our scholars!

Join us as we celebrate our Guardian Scholars, our graduates, and the end of finals with simulated golf at One Shot Back.

Thursday, May 28 | 5:00–8:00 p.m.
2134 Curtis Street, Ste. 101, Denver

Light food and one cocktail included. We can’t wait to celebrate with you! 🎓⛳️ RSVP here: https://loom.ly/U0IluYk

🪻May is Foster Care Month!
Did you know that nationally, only 8–12% of young people with foster care experience earn a postsecondary degree?
But the odds don’t have to define the outcome—education can be a powerful turning point and proof of what’s possible.

At Forward Steps, 96% of Guardian Scholars earn a degree or credential.
💟Double your impact. Every gift this month brings us closer to $54k and unlocks our match. Donate today: https://mtyc.co/yaoqhf

Forward Steps is empowering real stories with real support. 💪

🎓Kayla, initially stepped away from her first attempt at college after finances and academics became too overwhelming. Since joining Guardian Scholars, she has the support she needs to truly believe in herself and succeed.
“I feel so confident, and I know who I can go to ask questions… it’s just given me a lot of confidence that I can do this.”

It’s success stories like hers that inspire us to keep mentoring, providing financial aid, and helping students navigate their resources!

❤️ Double your impact. Help us reach $54k to unlock our match. Donate today: ➡️ https://mtyc.co/yaoqhf

🌼 May is Foster Care Month.
Did you know only 13.4% of Colorado youth with foster care experience enroll in postsecondary education by age 21—compared with 49% of their peers?

And yet, Forward Steps Guardian Scholars are beating the odds, persisting at an 85–95% retention rate! 💥

Because staying enrolled without the family support many students can count on takes resilience, grit, and a community that won’t let you do it alone.

🫶🏾Double your impact. Help us reach $54k to unlock our match. Donate today: https://mtyc.co/yaoqhf

Celebrate the National Apprenticeship Week with us! 🎉

This week is the chance to highlight the value that apprenticeships bring to every community and strengthen our economy through valuable workforce training and experience!

Learn about Denver events that are happening and employers highlighting apprenticeships programs to career seekers ➡️ https://loom.ly/1OIDFVM

Realizing Aptitudes participated in Ag Day at the Aims Community College Open House, an event celebrating local agriculture. At our booth, we offered an immersive 7–8 minute 🥽 virtual reality (VR) experience. This career exploration tool helps young people clarify potential pathways by placing them directly in a real-world professional environment. When you can envision it, you can take the next steps.

Guardian Scholars Awarded $108,000 COSI Grant! 🎉

The Forward Steps Guardian Scholars Program has been chosen for a two-year Colorado Opportunity Scholarship Initiative (COSI) Career Launch grant from the Colorado Department of Higher Education. We will receive $54,000 annually if we raise $54,000 each year in matching funds for the next two years.

With this match, Guardian Scholars will grow its Fall cohort to 45 students, a 28% growth over 25/26 Academic Year!

Your contributions support scholars with financial aid, mentoring, resource navigation, and career coaching for Colorado foster youth as they pursue a postsecondary education. This match is a chance for the community to help us succeed together!

Donate now to help our team empower more Guardian Scholars ➡️ https://loom.ly/EhJ5B3c