The PEYC Statewide Workgroup

Building Community and Access for Youth in Care in Illinois

October 8, 2025
by Kate Danielson

Since 2021, a coalition of leaders from colleges, universities, community-based organizations and state agencies across Illinois has been working together under the banner of the PEYC Statewide Workgroup. Our shared mission is clear: improve outcomes for young people who have experienced foster care as they pursue post-secondary education.

Among the most significant achievements of this collaborative effort is the development and rollout of the Y‑CAP (Youth in Care – College Advocate Program). Now entering its third year, Y-CAP operates on eight college campuses statewide, providing students with lived foster-care experience a connection to peers, mentors, and a supportive community of others who understand their journey. Each campus hosts Peer Advocates — students who have themselves been in care and completed at least one year on campus — who help mentor, support and build the sense of belonging that can make all the difference.

Partners in this work include the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (Office of Education and Transition Services), the Illinois Community College Board, the Illinois Board of Higher Education, and major universities throughout the state — including Governors State University, Northern Illinois University, University of Illinois Urbana‑Champaign, University of Illinois Chicago, and Eastern Illinois University, along with the City Colleges of Chicago and research partner Chapin Hall.

Together, these stakeholders lift up the belief that students with foster-care backgrounds should not just attend college — they should belong, succeed, and graduate. The Workgroup collaborates on large-scale efforts ranging from designing campus-wide peer support networks to hosting events like the inaugural Virtual College Fair for Youth in Care.

At its core, the PEYC Workgroup combines policy, practice, and lived experience to remove barriers for youth in care. It makes connecting to college less a leap of faith and more a supported step forward. As this work continues, Foster Progress is proud to play an active role and looks forward to deepening its impact alongside its statewide peers.