Foster Youth Mentoring Act of 2025

It would create a new grant program to fund community-based, structured mentoring that matches youth with screened and trained adult or peer volunteers for at least one year and supports academic, social, and transition-to-adulthood goals.

• Children and families: Children removed from parental custody and people who were in foster care up to age 25 would gain access to consistent, development-focused mentoring aimed at school success, healthy relationships, and reducing risky behavior.
• Mentors and community groups: Nonprofits, State child welfare agencies, local schools, Indian tribes, and faith-based groups could receive grants to recruit, screen, train, compensate, and support mentors and to cover mentee participation costs.
• Program rules and oversight: Applicants must show youth input, plans for diverse and culturally competent recruitment and training, criminal background checks excluding certain child-safety convictions in the past 10 years, and grantees must provide annual reports and cooperate with federal evaluations.

*This bill would increase federal spending by authorizing $50 million for FY2026 and $50 million for FY2027, with additional unspecified funding authorized in later years.*