Realities for Children

“I became a little bit disillusioned at that point in time,” Eric Schulz says, his eyes narrowing as he considers the statement. “I guess what I mean is that I was challenged morally.” Sitting in his shaded office in Boulder, the executive director of Realities for Children in Boulder County, a promotional organization that works with businesses to serve the needs of abused youth, sounds a bit dejected as he continues. “Kids leave foster care on their 18th birthday. It’s a federal mandate. We kick them out when most haven’t graduated, and very little have transitional help.”
That phrase would weave its way throughout our conversation. “Transitional help” is the reason Shultz does what he does, and also why he did what he did. The former manager for the Boulder Shelter for the Homeless worked also for the Mental Health Center before moving on to work with adolescents. It was there that he discovered the flaw that challenged his morals—making teens leave foster care when they were considered legal adults: independent, self-sufficient and responsible.

The reality of “adults” that leave foster care at 18, however, is much bleaker than that. According to a recent study at the University of Chicago, 34 percent are arrested by 19. And Schulz, who saw this truth play out in real time, decided to try to correct the imbalance by starting a group home called Polaris House. “We opted out of foster care licensure, which meant we opted out of being paid for these kids. But we could keep them past 18 and they could move in with us in a transitional capacity.”

Polaris House is now part of Realities for Children, the collaborative organization that both promotes businesses who contribute to the charity, as well as partners with affiliate agencies to serve youth throughout Boulder County. To do so, they provide emergency funding, education, awareness and support to other nonprofits. One-hundred percent of contributions go to assisting youth in need, including those at Polaris House—a place that seeks to change the statistic that two-thirds of foster children never attend college.

“Four youths live at Polaris House now and they’re all going to college,” Schulz said. Of those four, one is considered a Guardian Scholar, a program that provides two undergraduate degree scholarships annually to Boulder County youth who have overcome significant adversity. “One youth that’s there now lost both of her parents at a young age. She lost her father when she was 9 and her mother when she was 13.”

The progress made by Realities for Children after only a year in Boulder County can be seen in the scholarships that Schulz hands out annually. What were two $4000 scholarships given away last year, will be two $105,000 scholarships this year. And it’s all due to Realities for Children and the collaborative nature that both promotes business and programs for abused or neglected youths.

“I’ve got kids that I’ve worked with who are in prison for murder. I’ve got kids who are deceased. I’ve worked with kids who are homeless and I’ve worked with kids who are in college,” Schulz said. “I’ve also got kids who are raising kids and being great dads. It doesn’t take very many to overcome the hardship. It just takes time.”