170 Mississippi foster students denied college scholarship weeks before start of semester

MISSISSIPPI (WXXV) — Imagine spending months preparing for college, only to learn weeks before the semester starts that the scholarship you were counting on has been denied. That’s the reality 170 foster students across Mississippi are facing, leaving many scrambling for answers and wondering if they’ll be able to stay in school.

This concerns the Fostering Access and Inspiring True Hope scholarships (FAITH), a financial aid program for any Mississippi resident under the age of 25 who has been in legal custody of the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services. This financial aid provides foster students with full-ride scholarships to cover tuition, housing, academic materials, and much more.

We sat down with one student from Diamondhead who was recently forced to reconsider her options after being unexpectedly denied that funding.

“Honestly, I’m stressed about the financial burden that has been put on me now. Just terrified. I had this opportunity. It feels like it was just taken away from me out of nowhere. Especially two weeks from moving in. It just hurts,” said Katelynn Kennedy-Edmonson.

Katelynn has spent months preparing for one of the biggest milestones of her life—starting college at Ole Miss this fall. Her classes were scheduled, her dorm room essentials were purchased, and her excitement for this new chapter continued to grow. Then, just weeks before move-in day, one unexpected email changed everything.

The message left her heartbroken and questioning what comes next after the future she had worked so hard to prepare for suddenly felt uncertain.

“I entered the system March 10, 2024. For two years I’ve been promised ‘This is opening new doors for you. You’re gonna be able to go to college for free. You’re not gonna be in debt.’ So, that really set my mind on what I wanted to do in the future, and it gave me motivation to go to college and make something of myself,” said Katelynn.

Foster students across the state received the same message — that their FAITH scholarship, which they had anticipated would cover the hefty cost of schooling, would not be awarded as funding had run out.

“I applied to 20 other colleges in the country and they just continuously kept trying to give me opportunities, and I declined all of those to go somewhere in state,” she said.

“Because we thought we were getting the full scholarship,” said Darrian Edmonson, Katelynn’s adoptive mother. “Not to point at anyone in particular, but if CPS is under the assumption of these children are going to be able to go to a university, college, wherever they want in the state of Mississippi for free, and that’s not the reality of it, then we need to meet together and make sure that they know that. You’re promising a kid something that’s not a promise. It’s an opportunity.”

Katelynn will still be attending Ole Miss this fall, but now, she and her family are facing the reality that they may be forced to apply for loans to get her through school.

“More than likely, I will have to go into debt,” said Katelynn.

“We will have about $20,000 [in debt],” said Darrian.

“That terrifies me a little bit, but we’ll figure it out,” Katelynn said.

Her family is also concerned about the many other students facing the same reality—especially those who may not have the financial means to continue their education. Those students were instructed by the state to reapply for the FAITH scholarship for the 2027–2028 academic year, leaving some current and former foster youth scrambling to find a way to pay for school in the meantime.

For others, the loss of funding could mean putting their college plans on hold—or abandoning them altogether—until financial aid becomes available.

“These kids have been through more trauma than your average child, and uprooting and saying ‘Hey, you’re about to start college in two weeks, you got denied.’ Most of these kids are not gonna go to college, because they don’t have anybody to advocate for them. Most of them didn’t get adopted, or have that strong support system,” Darrian said.

WXXV has been in contact with Senator Scott DeLano, who says he is actively working to find a solution for the foster students impacted by this funding shortfall. We will continue following this story and bring you updates as new information becomes available.