Fostering Panther Pride students witness signing at White House

“Someone pinch me, please,” thought sophomore Lucas Secrest upon entering the White House as an invited guest. Red carpets and presidential portraits of Lincoln, Carter and Eisenhower, to name a few, overwhelmed his sense of sight. Likewise, junior Xelise Ochoa recalls feeling impressed by the stately landscaping and décor, adding “I felt very nervous and excited. I felt shaky, but I was like, ‘Okay, this is a big deal.’” A band played in the background. “I knew it was gonna be a great experience,” she adds.

This past fall, Secrest and Ochoa flew to Washington, D.C., to attend President Donald Trump’s signing of an executive order that launched First Lady Melania Trump’s “Fostering the Future” initiative, which aims to “modernize America’s foster care system and empower young Americans transitioning out of foster care with greater tools, resources and opportunities to promote lifelong independence and success.” Fostering the Future will “expand educational, employment and mentorship opportunities for youth transitioning from foster care to adulthood.”

Considered by the White House to be “a lead university partner” on the initiative, FIU launched its own program more than 10 years ago to assist students experiencing homelessness or aging out of foster care. Fostering Panther Pride (FPP) provides support in the form of mentoring, academic advising and financial aid assistance to help students succeed. Since its inception, nearly 500 have earned undergraduate degrees, and another 116 have earned advanced degrees. The program has provided those it serves with the stability needed not just to survive but to thrive.

From tutors who have helped him with course material to success coaches like Christine Dome, Secrest appreciates the academic resources FPP offers him as well as the built-in community that has welcomed him. “I’ve made a lot of friends who are also in the same position as me. They…understand what it was like. We bond over that…and we’ve become close.”

Foster care can be challenging, to say the least. It can be a “traumatic” process, going “from one family to another and one place [to another], having a relationship with someone then [having] to start again with a new person,” explains Secrest. Community, therefore, is paramount to many of these youth who find themselves without a support system to protect and nurture them.

Echoing this sentiment, Ochoa values the community Zoom meetings hosted by FPP during which members gather and chat about relevant topics like mental health. “I got to know other students, and I got to feel like I wasn’t alone. I got to meet other people that are in kind of the same shoes as me,” she says. Likewise, FPP-sponsored events enable students to bond as they share more than a meal together. They exchange personal stories of resilience while celebrating the accomplishments of alumni.

This past year’s annual Turkey & Toast Luncheon is one example of such an opportunity. It included a pre-Thanksgiving feast and had students painting pumpkins. “It was a really fun event because we were all kind of struggling, but [then] we used our own creativity and [channeled that] into painting,” Ochoa recalls. “We were all emotionally expressing ourselves and connecting.” This felt particularly apt for Ochoa, an arts and communications major.

The opportunities for personal development extend beyond the local to the national. When Secrest and Ochoa traveled to the nation’s capital to represent FIU, they first stopped at FIU’s D.C. office to meet Carlos Becerra, senior associate vice president for federal relations. Becerra gave them a tour of the space and discussed various internship opportunities, from working with politicians to different national organizations, to which they might apply.

The visit with Becerra and an explanation of the university's government lobbying efforts proved to be “eye-opening” for communications major Ochoa: “It was really exciting for me to see how FIU works behind the scenes. I got to see firsthand what it looks like to work in that field.”

Secrest, a criminal justice major, took advantage of an important networking opportunity. Becerra helped facilitate a meeting between the student and the current director of the U.S. Marshals Service, Gadyaces S. Serralta, a 1994 alumnus. Back in Miami, the two discussed potential internships. Given Secrest’s interest in potentially working for the FBI one day, the connection holds promise for advancing his career.

Witnessing President Trump sign the Fostering the Future Executive Order resonated with the students, both of whom have come far.

“I'm there showing up, basically, for all the foster kids in the country,” Secrest says. “It made me proud, because it shows we're being seen. I felt very proud to show the blue and gold [for FIU]. It was a very big honor.”

He hopes that the White House initiative will continue to raise awareness and channel more support and resources to the foster care community.

Similarly, Ochoa remarks, “It makes me feel like I am seen. I was given [an] opportunity, and now other kids will be given [similar] opportunities, and that’s amazing.”

Both agree that FIU's program not only acts as a safety net for students in their position, but also a wellspring of opportunity led by caring folks who genuinely want them to succeed. They each, in turn, expressed their deep appreciation of Ana Ramos, the program director.

Per Secrest, “Without the program and Ana, I wouldn’t be in the places that I am right now. It is opening a bunch of doors for me.”