WASHINGTON — First Lady Melania Trump is leading a new initiative aimed at improving career and educational opportunities for children growing up in foster family.
Her husband, President Donald Trump, signed an executive order Thursday that creates the Fostering a Future program, which brings together federal agencies, nonprofits, educational institutions and the private sector to develop these opportunities for foster youth.
The order also creates an online hub that will help youth access key career and educational resources while expanding access to vouchers and grants to support them in these efforts.
Saying the initiatives contained in the executive order “make me extremely proud,” Melania Trump said the efforts are “both sensitive and strategic.”
“I encourage the leadership of these various organizations, including the private sector, to join my efforts,” Melania Trump said from the East Room to an audience that included lawmakers, Cabinet officials and members of the foster care community.
The First Lady added: “Rise above the ease of inaction.”
The broader Enabling the Future initiative is an offshoot of the “Be Best” campaign that was its signature campaign during Trump's first term. The initiative began in 2021 and offers scholarships to current and former foster youth. Participating schools include Vanderbilt University, University of Miami, Villanova University and Oral Roberts University, according to the first lady's office.
Trump, the president, said he was “delighted” to sign the initiative. He noted that the second lady, Usha Vance, was also active in Melania Trump's efforts.
“We will achieve absolutely incredible results,” the president said.
The federal agencies involved include the Departments of Health and Human Services, the Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, and the Office of Personnel Management.
