Governors' Scholarship for Foster Youth

The Washington State Governors’ Scholarship for Foster Youth is a scholarship program that helps young people from foster care continue their education and earn a college degree. The program is supported by Gov. Jay Inslee, The Honorable Chris Gregoire (former governor), The Honorable Gary Locke (former governor), and other former governors in Washington state.

Proceeds from the Governors’ Cup – an annual golf tournament – provide funding for approximately 30-40 new scholars each year who are planning to enroll in a Washington state college or university. Scholarship award amounts range from $2,000 to $4,000 depending on the college of attendance.

Selected students can access the annual scholarship for up to five years to complete undergraduate studies. Students must be enrolled full time and maintain satisfactory academic progress in order to renew the scholarship each year.

To be considered for the Washington State Governors’ Scholarship, students must:

Have a high school diploma or equivalent by June 2024
Have a minimum cumulative high school GPA of 2.0 or GED equivalent through spring 2023 term (if your GPA is lower, you will be allowed to submit your fall 2023 grades at a later date)
Plan to enroll by fall 2024 at an eligible college or university in the state of Washington
Have resided in Washington state for at least one year prior to enrolling in college
Have applied for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or the free Washington Application for State Financial Aid
Meet one of the following criteria (either currently or until age 18):
- Placed by a Washington state court order in any of the following living situations:
  - Foster Care, Guardianship or Dependency Guardianship (non-relatives, relatives, residential/group care)
- Placed in federally-recognized care (a private nonprofit agency in Washington state), classified as an unaccompanied minor and rendered legal permanent residency in the United States
- Placed under a dependency tribal court order outside of your home

Applicants are not eligible if they:

Have been adopted
Returned to live with their parents before turning 18 (regardless of whether the court continued to remain involved)
Have had their dependency court order dismissed
Were not dependent of a federal, state or tribal court prior to age 18
Have been emancipated