Fadwa’s Story

To say Fadwa is driven is an understatement. She doesn’t dream of becoming a surgical nurse, she is actively taking steps to make it happen. And to make her mother proud.

Fadwa lost her mother to cancer when she was just 13 years old. Her father expected Fadwa to assume her mother’s responsibilities and moved the family often, keeping them distanced from any extended family. She was not allowed to have friends or participate in extracurricular activities. She attended five different high schools and managed to maintain excellent grades while she cooked, cleaned, and took care of her two brothers and father.

At 17, she was abandoned by her father and placed in SCO’s foster care program. SCO helped stabilize the teen, placed her with a foster family, and eventually was able to locate a maternal aunt who opened her heart and home to her long-lost niece through kinship foster care.

Despite her early challenges, Fadwa stays focused on the opportunities ahead of her. SCO’s foster care staff helped her prepare for college; guiding her through the application process and helping her achieve both a Dream USA Scholarship and a Youth in Foster Care Award.  Currently a student at Borough of Manhattan Community College, SCO helped her secure an internship with a surgeon at Mount Sinai Hospital.

Fadwa’s goal is to keep her GPA high enough to get into nursing school. And we have no doubt she will achieve this and so much more.

 

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Bethany Program

The Bethany Program consists of group residences located in Brooklyn and Queens, which provide a supportive home environment for pregnant and parenting teens in foster care. Young women in the program are assisted with educational, vocational, and independent living skills acquisition as they develop the necessary parenting skills to provide safe and nurturing care for their children.

Who Can Benefit from this Program

Pregnant teens and teen mothers with custody of their child(ren)

Age Criteria or Other Eligibility Requirements

Ages 15-21; in foster care

How to Access this Program or Service

NYC Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) foster care services

Success Stories

Fadwa’s Story

Foster Care and Education

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Antoinette’s Experience at Morning Star

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Last year,

188

youth and adults with special needs participated in volunteer projects in their community

We shelter

4,900

youth, adults and children