WASHINGTON – Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., was on hand Thursday to support a bill being
introduced by Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., to fund mentors for foster children. However, it was
Landrieu’s aide, Betty Krupa, who took center stage as she told the tale of growing up in foster
care.
Nearly 450,000 children are in foster care, according to the Department of Health and Human
Services. Bass’ Foster Care Mentoring Act would authorize $15 million to establish statewide
mentoring programs for foster children. The bill also would provide $4 million to start a
nationwide awareness campaign and mentor recruitment program and offer $10 thousand in loan
forgiveness for college students who agree to volunteer as mentors.
“Without exception, every time I met a group of children who were in the system, they always
said that the one thing that they wanted was an adult that would work with them who was not
paid to be with them. And what they were describing in their own way, was really a mentor,”
Bass said.
Less than 3 percent of foster care children graduate from college, according to the National
Foster Care Coalition.
Krupa, who works as an assistant scheduler for Landrieu, was in foster care from birth until she
was adopted at age 14. But for a few years before her adoption, she got a mentor, a Drug Abuse
Resistance Education officer, whoshe said helped bring her to where she is today.
“I don’t know who to trust, but I knew I had to get out, so this was the only outlet that I knew
that I could get out safely. Having this mentor, I always knew I could count on one to help me
stay stable and develop a sense of security,” Krupa said.
Krupa said being taken in by her mentor gave her the chance to be a typical kid –spending
time with children her age and taking part in activities she hadn’t experienced, such as going
shopping, getting her nails done and a trip to Ocean City.
Having a mentor helped her deal with the challenges of being a foster child. She said her
classmates teased her and spread rumors about her when they learned she wasn’t living with her
birth parents.
“I was able to hunch through all those challenges and made even more friends because of it, and
I say, that was one of the main attributes about my personality, is that I’m very vocal, and I use
my voice, which a lot of youth in care don’t typically do,” she said.
With the help of her mentor and foster parents, Krupa went on to receive her bachelor’s
degree from Stevenson University. She obtained a Capitol Hill internship in 2008 through the
Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, which eventually led her to her current position.
“I want to go back for my master’s in clinical social work,” she said. “I love helping people and I
always will advocate for foster care adoption issues.”