Educational Funding and Youth Support

Our Mission

The Education and Training Voucher (ETV) Program allows Texas to help current and former foster youth and young adults, youth adopted at age 16, and youth that enter Permanency Care Assistance at age 16 to make a smoother transition to a successful adulthood by providing funding and supports to help youth and young adults achieve their educational goals.

About ETV

You may be eligible to receive up to $5,000 per year until your 23rd birthday, as long as you are enrolled in a post-secondary education institution and meet the enrollment criteria and satisfactory academic progress policies as established by the institutions. You must also meet the ETV eligibility qualifications and be enrolled in at least 6 semester hours.

The types of higher education institutions where ETV can be used include accredited or pre-accredited public, private, or non-profit schools:

that provide a bachelor’s degree or not less than a 2-year program that provides credit toward a degree or certification, or
that provide not less than one-year training to prepare students for gainful employment
that have been in existence for at least two years and provide a program of training to prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation.

Have You Considered Exploring Vocational and Technical Career Options?

If you want to learn a skill where you receive a license or certification in a short time, consider exploring other career options of interest. Local community colleges offer many choices of career and technical programs in various fields. You can also explore Career Schools and Colleges which are privately-owned institutions that offer classroom or online training to teach the skills needed to perform a particular job. More information about researching these schools is available at the Texas Workforce Commission website. Visit their online directory of licensed career schools and colleges.

Correspondence Courses, Distance Education Courses and Continuing Education Courses

If you are interested in correspondence courses, distance education courses, or continuing education courses, please contact your community college to verify if the college factors in the cost of attendance for the course(s). Some schools may not include these courses in their costs of attendance which will determine whether you can receive ETV funds or not. You can also contact the ETV Coordinator to discuss further.

You have healthcare coverage until your 26th birthday!

If you age out of foster care at age 18, you are eligible for healthcare coverage until you turn 26 years old! For more info, download the handout below or check out the Health section at the Texas Youth Connection website.