nsoro provides college-preparatory programs and direct educational scholarships for youth in foster care, those who've "aged out" of the foster care system, and wards of the state. Darrell Mays, founder of nsoro, was moved to this mission after viewing the PBS documentary, "Aging Out" on the plight of aged-out foster care kids. Kids who've spent time in the foster care system are already far more likely to: Be socially disconnected Perform poorly in school Struggle with drugs, alcohol, and mental illness Experience poverty But once "aged-out," life gets far riskier for them. Often with no place to live anymore, largely unable to fend for themselves, and with little or no positive guidance in their lives, these kids are dangerously vulnerable to take a wrong turn in life. nsoro steps up and steps in during this precarious period in their lives, and driven by this deep and abiding belief: education is the great equalizer in life. Our mission is to reverse this grim statistic... A mere 3% of youth in foster care graduates from college. nsoro is successfully rewriting the future life stories of these youth in foster care across the country—700+ since 2005—with these two programs: Direct Educational Scholarships to be used for tuition, books, room/board, and other academic expenses College Bound Program In weeklong, summer immersion programs on eight (and counting) college campuses, high school level youth in foster care "test-drive" a real-world experience. The Results: our nsoro scholars: 100% have graduated or are still enrolled in school 70% are pursuing an advanced degree 98% have not been incarcerated 96% have not abused drugs or alcohol 78% have not been homeless 75% have developed and maintained a budget
