Editor’s note: Added the rate of verified homeless and former foster youth students eligible for tuition waivers from the last spring semester on Dec. 9.

Of over 30,000 students at Florida Atlantic University, there are 53 homeless and 125 former foster youth students this fall, according to university records. 

Other records show that there has been an increase in registrations for tuition waivers this semester. In the last spring semester, there were 40 homeless students and 97 former foster youth students.

FAU provides a “safety net” of advocacy resources for all students but can be invaluable for this demographic, who have been dealt a challenging stack of cards. Verified homeless or former foster care students can access these waivers and resources for additional assistance.

Under Florida Statute 1009.25, if a student in the college system is experiencing homelessness, they can receive a Homeless Fee Exemption waiver that covers the entire cost of tuition. However each semester, they must be verified first by the Dean of Students office at FAU.

The Florida law defines student homelessness as: “A student who lacks a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence, or whose primary nighttime residence is a public or private shelter designed to provide temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized, or a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.” 

According to the same Florida law, former foster youth students qualify for the Department of Children and Families (DCF) fee exemption that also covers tuition and some additional material fees.

According to the waiver’s description, DCF will provide funding to students who were not able to live with their biological parents but were instead in DCF’s custody or placed with a relative/non-relative caregiver up until the age of 18, were adopted after May 5, 1997 or spent at least six months in their custody after turning 16. The waiver is valid until the student turns 28 years old.

School officials may learn that a student has experienced homelessness or foster care and inform them about available resources. Alternatively, students may later identify as homeless if their living situation changes, in which case they can apply for the waiver or support programs.

For higher education leaders to effectively help homeless students or former foster youth, it helps to have been in their shoes before.

FAU alumnus Matthew Patterson is a prime example. Patterson had attempted college while homeless in 2005 but dropped out due to substance use issues. After a failed marriage and struggles with his sexuality, he fell into a deep depression. 

Around 2008, he got involved in the South Florida gay club scene and started using crystal methamphetamine — a highly addictive drug. He found himself in and out of jail, with no stable housing and was homeless from 2012 to 2019. It was a continuous cycle.

Patterson feels that the criminal justice system failed him by providing stable rehabilitation. After his initial release, he’d ended up homeless for a limited time and visited multiple recovery treatment centers in an attempt to get clean, only to return to jail again. Despite his efforts, his last time in jail was no different. Instead, he fell into a “system of change.”

Everything changed when he tested positive for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) — which attacks the body’s immune system — while incarcerated. While learning he had HIV was scary, he later said the experience was one of the best things that happened to him. He clarified that testing positive was not but through his diagnosis, he was able to use resources he hadn’t been able to access before. 

After being released from jail for the last time, he lived at Broward House which is a nonprofit in Fort Lauderdale that provides housing and services for people living with HIV. For over a year, he worked to gain a foothold in the world and become sober. 

His therapist and the support team at Broward House advised him to try attending college again, as it had always been in the back of his mind to complete. They encouraged him to apply for a homeless tuition waiver to attend college, which helped with his current financial constraints.

Thanks to the waiver, Patterson earned his associate degree from Broward Community College in one year. Despite his doubts, the staff at Broward House continued to push him to apply to FAU.

He says that while filling out the application, he fought guilt from his past and wanted to quit multiple times. Patterson says he took it “one day at a time” during this process. 

However, when he submitted his application, FAU put him through an admissions review board due to his criminal record. He said the meeting could have gone a couple of directions, but FAU Dean of Students Audrey Pusey saw hope in him and wanted to offer a fresh start.

“There was nothing special about me,” Patterson said, as he attributed a lot of his success to FAU’s resources and mentorship during his journey that opened their doors with love instead of judgment. 

Patterson honestly admitted that he never thought he’d be able to finish college. Now at 36, he has earned his bachelor’s degree in social work and two master’s degrees. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in public administration. 

Patterson says he “damn sure” didn’t experience the level of acceptance FAU provided him at any other college. As his eyes begin to tear up, he reflects, “I had ‘convicted felon’ tattooed on my forehead,” which he noted at the time was his imposter syndrome speaking — a psychological experience where one doubts their abilities and feels they don’t belong. 

Patterson is now a board member of the Champions Empowering Champions, a local nonprofit organization that empowers college students who have experienced foster care or homelessness. During his undergraduate years, he was a student member and now is in a position to help others. 

The program, which is not affiliated with the university, connects students with volunteer mentors who can provide hands-on advice about navigating this rocky ride. He remarked that support is available now for registered individuals, noting if people don’t use it, it could disappear. 

Patterson says that many students registered for the waivers in the fall don’t ask for or accept help, especially those from the homeless population. Champions Empowering Champions currently has 50 former foster youth members out of the 125 that utilize the waiver.

Patterson also points out that the program’s fellowship helps address imposter syndrome. In these circumstances, he says a student might think, “I’m not sure I belong here,” or “Will this even help me? Will I make it to graduation?”

“But stigma is a huge barrier… People don’t want to be identified, and then there’s this residual viewpoint of social welfare, this ‘by my own bootstraps’ mentality where people will be like, ‘No, no, I got the tuition waiver,’ [and] I don’t need any more support,” he explained.

Joseph Murray, the associate dean of FAU’s Educate Tomorrow program — which provides academic advising services to these students — agrees with Patterson, but said it can be challenging to locate students.

While the university does not disclose the names of students who qualify for tuition waivers, they notify all qualifying students about standing resources. To Murray, encouraging students to use available resources is difficult and is not only “special” to former foster care youth or people experiencing homelessness but all students. 

Educate Tomorrow offers educational expense grants for housing, Murray states the amounts vary on financial aid eligibility and available funding. However, he said they raise funds through donations and need financing for next spring to continue.

But there are strings attached to the grant. To receive it, he mentioned students must attend mandatory academic advising every semester and participate in other services, such as mentoring, career advising and counseling.

Murray hypothetically points out that simply handing any student a check for $3,000 doesn’t move the needle to improve graduation rates. However, providing substantial resources does help despite some minor setbacks.

“If you don’t make it required, most students don’t take advantage of it,” he added. 

On that note, Murray encourages students to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form to take advantage of all financial aid offers on the table. The form can be challenging to complete for independent students especially if they cannot file taxes. He suggested the FAU Financial Aid office for assistance with verification. 

When completing the FAFSA form, the United States Department of Education typically considers students dependent if they are under 24. Students must include their parents’ financial information. According to the FAFSA website, students who are unaccompanied and homeless or at risk of homelessness can apply as independent students. 

This status allows them to apply for financial aid without being required to provide parental financial information and can potentially increase financial aid options, Murray added. 

The U.S. Department of Education does not offer a financial aid program specifically for students who are or have been in foster care. However, you may still be eligible for federal student aid if you meet the eligibility requirements. 

Question 49 on the FAFSA form reads: “At any time since you turned age 13, were both your parents deceased, were you in foster care, or were you a dependent or ward of the court?”

FAU’s Dean of Students office is a “key piece” in verifying the situation and offering resources to help, says Murray. The office reviews applications for Homeless Verification through a committee process and the DCF waiver is processed through University Advising Services under the Educate Tomorrow program, Pusey wrote in an email to the University Press on July 29. 

Kimberly Dunn, co-founder of Champions Empowering Champions and president of FAU’s Faculty Senate, explains that the program is also actively promoting its services instead of waiting for students to reach out. She said this includes accepting students in the program who may have been in foster care in another state and might not qualify for the waiver in Florida. 

Dunn isn’t a stranger to foster care, having been through the system at eight years old. She was later reunited with her parents but still remembers the discomfort of being dropped off at a stranger’s house and not fully understanding what was happening.

“So, I knew firsthand how difficult it is to navigate college if you don’t come from a family that can share experiences,” said Dunn, explaining what inspired her to co-create the program launched in 2019. “ I adopted both of my sons from foster care and I saw them struggling with navigating the college environment.”

Foster care is when DCF removes children from their living situations and places them in a “temporary” household with a certified caregiver. As Dunn explains, while some foster parents eventually adopt the child, the more common goal is reunification with the biological parent. But sometimes that is not the case. 

“So, as the typical senior in high school transitions to college that comes from a more stable family, they have a support system to help them make that transition,” Dunn said. “Whereas children who have aged out of the foster care system lack that same support system to help them transition from high school to college to becoming an independent adult.

Murray points out that while some of FAU’s former foster youth are homeless, many are not, and the reverse is also true — some homeless students are not former foster youth.

“So they’re not mutually exclusive, but there is certainly some overlap,” he added, noting that while the cases of homeless students vary, this living condition is more common among students than one might think.

Imagine one day, while living with your parents, they say: “That’s it, you’re out of here.” Murray narrated by painting a scenario where students are kicked out of their homes and not supported financially or with their basic needs.  

You grab a few pairs of clothes and whatever belongings you can pack, and you start “couch surfing,” he explained.

“This is not to be critical, but, you know, these students are not the ones you’re finding under the bridges as you drive around or panhandling in the turn lane,” said Murray. “…You would not be able to recognize homeless or our former foster youth; you wouldn’t be able to pick them out just by walking around.”

Murray explained how housing insecurities and rising rent have forced some students to live in hotels or cars in the FAU parking garages. He imagines that they use the showers at the Recreation Center or stay in the library late at night. There are other students’ situations that can change at any time, as he pointed to instances of single parents who are laid off from their jobs or even tragic situations of family death or incarceration.  

“You also have a paper due today. Are you going to prioritize your time and energy towards finishing a paper, or towards finding a safe place to stay and maybe your first meal in three days? Academic achievement cannot be a priority when basic needs are not met,” said Danielle Groton, a social work professor at FAU who studies homelessness and housing, in an email to the UP on July 30.

Groton says that in addition to managing the trauma of homelessness itself, some face physical dangers, along with barriers to hygiene and health. This is sometimes the case for unsheltered students, as she defines this as having a lack of temporary housing or even emergency shelter.

Despite the stigma, Groton explained in an email that the majority of individuals who have experienced homelessness do not have a severe mental health disorder or substance use disorder.

“For individuals who do report a substance use disorder, sometimes the substance use began after entering homelessness as a method of coping with the stressors of living unhoused,” she wrote.

With all the stereotypes surrounding homelessness, Murray emphasized that these students are no different from everyone else.

“You look the same. You’re doing the same things, but now, all of a sudden, you don’t have that safety net underneath you,” he said.

Patterson firmly believes that earning a college degree will secure individuals a better job and help them escape poverty. 

However, many people take for granted support from family, such as learning how to apply for a job or do their taxes. He added that these skills are taught outside of high school or college. 

Based on Patterson’s research on students experiencing homelessness, he recognized that housing and food insecurity go hand in hand — especially after losing family support.

He recommends applying for student housing as soon as possible and being transparent about your situation. According to Patterson, programs want to help but aren’t able to assist unless they know the needs of students.

This fall, Patterson organized the “Housing Insecurity in Paradise” photo gallery on Oct. 16 to break the stigma around homelessness. Firsthand, he has helped students in the same boat that he was once in, and he recognized outside of the waiver that some receive housing scholarships or use financial aid to live in dorms.

“But then, where do they go over the summer? Or where do they go during Christmas break?” he questioned, highlighting the challenges students face when the semester ends and campus housing is no longer available. As he further explains, the waiver only goes so far and does not cover book, transportation or housing costs.

Attending school with secure housing is easier as he states the high cost of living and the expensive rental market don’t help. He also points out that the shortage of dorms at FAU only worsens the situation.

To Gorton, the most effective approach to assisting students experiencing homelessness is finding “suitable” housing. 

“By suitable, I am referring to ‘permanent’ style housing, which is private housing that includes a rental or occupant agreement and gives the student some stability and security in knowing they cannot be suddenly removed from the housing without just cause,” she wrote.

She said this is also known as the “Housing First” model, where the need for stable housing is provided and then any additional barriers are addressed.

In an effort to assist with securing housing for students, Pusey’s department partners with FAU Housing and Residential Education staff along with community agencies to investigate further, as she states.

“We provide case management services, which includes on-campus and off-campus referrals related to housing options and other needs,” she wrote in an email. “…We do our best to provide emergency housing options for students in urgent need as resources allow.”

According to university records, there are students who may be homeless but did not fill out the waiver. While other students who may not qualify have contacted the Dean of Students office for housing needs. However, they do not track the number of non-verified outreaches. 

Regarding food insecurity, Pusey says her office provides food-insecure students access to the Beyond Food program and food pantries.

“This program is open to any student in need, not just our homeless population,” she wrote. 

Additionally, she added that her department provides comprehensive case management services with monthly check-ins or more frequent follow-ups if additional needs arise. 

Michael Cook is the News Editor for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email cookm2021@fau.