WASHINGTON — First lady Melania Trump marched on Capitol Hill Wednesday to advocate for more resources for foster children, particularly as they age out of the system and are left on their own.
“As parents and leaders, it is our ethical obligation to ensure American children develop emotionally and physically within a safe environment,” she told lawmakers on the House Ways and Means Committee.
The first lady was lending her support to legislation to update the Chafee Foster Care Program, which provides grants to states to support youth in the foster care system and as they exit it. It’s over 30 years old.
“New legislation for the foster care community is a moral imperative,” she said, pointing to the fact only 3% of children in foster care received a college degree in 2025. “We can close this gap.”
She pointed to the particular challenges that foster children face, including housing issues, financial barriers, transportation, and access to technology.
There are approximately 360,000 to over 400,000 children and youth in foster care in the US at any given time, according to federal data.
Trump took up the foster care cause shortly after she left the White House for the first time. She has made children’s issues — including education, technology and AI — a central part of her platform in her second tenure.
She was at President Trump’s side last November when he signed an executive order creating the “Fostering the Future” program, which requires federal entities, nonprofits, educational institutions and the private sector to work together to improve career and educational opportunities for children raised in foster care.
The first lady has her own “Fostering the Future” initiative that is part of her “Be Best” campaign. It offers scholarships to current and former foster youth.
Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith (R-Mo.) said a youth in his House district, named Seth, received one of her scholarships.
“He entered foster care around age 15, and aged out at 18. He experienced homelessness, and he worked three jobs, walking six miles each day to go between them,” Smith said.
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“Seth received the Melania Trump foster youth independence housing voucher, which provided him stable housing. In his words, that voucher quote, ‘flipped the script’ on what he thought was possible in his life. He currently works as a corrections officer and intends to apply to college this fall.”
And the first lady plans to extend her call for supporting foster children, taking her message to the entire nation.
She thinks these kids “deserve protection and a voice of their own,” Marc Beckman, exclusive senior advisor to the first lady, told The Post.
“Although she’s partnering with Congress to advance landmark legislation, she is calling on our entire nation to meet this ethical obligation. The obligation to ensure that America’s children will develop emotionally and physically in order to have the tools needed to thrive over their entire lifetimes,” he said.
Trump has gotten more active in policy issues in her second tenure in the White House. She successfully helped shepherd the TAKE IT DOWN Act into law. The law outlaws “revenge porn” and sexual exploitation of women. She’s also hosted a summit of world spouses on technology and education.
She came to Capitol Hill as lawmakers are weighing improvements to the John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood (the Chafee program).
The various proposals focus on strengthening coordination between child welfare and federal housing programs, expanding access to education and training opportunities beyond the traditional four-year college degree, and improving support for foster youth who are parents or soon-to-be parents..
The first lady’s forum with lawmakers was her first public event since her unexpected statement last week denying any knowledge of Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes.
Two youth who were part of the foster care system also spoke about the need for more resources.
Jocelyn Fetting, who is studying for her master’s in social work from the University of Illinois, urged Congress to do more.
“We are expecting young people to achieve self-sufficiency without providing support to do so,” she said. “Foster youth are not broken. We are ready. But readiness is not the problem … If we truly believe every young person deserves a fair chance, then Congress must pass these reforms.”
