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Guardian Scholars

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The Guardian Scholars Program (formerly known as Fostering Connections/Hemlock Scholars) was developed in 2018 to support the needs of current and former foster youth, students who are experiencing housing insecurity and those who come from non-traditional living environments but were not technically placed in care. The Guardian Scholars Program (GSP)  is here to nurture you as you continue to flourish, build community, and gain the skills needed to thrive at Stanford and beyond. 

2024-2025

Join Guardian Scholars

If you're interested in being apart of the Guardian Scholars Program, fill out the connected form so we can get to know you and help get you involved! 

Guardian Scholars Mission Statement

Guardian Scholars aims to create a community of support for students that have faced experiences in the foster care system, as well as other non-traditional family backgrounds. We hope to improve the lives of students while they are at Stanford and aid in the development of qualities that they will carry with them after Stanford. We believe that all students coming from adverse backgrounds should be able to pursue their academic interests without fear of lacking the academic, social, or financial support that comes with more traditional families and home backgrounds.

A current or former foster youth is someone who is currently in foster care or someone who has since been emancipated from the foster care system. Students experiencing housing insecurity are individuals that lack a fixed, regular, and adequate housing situation. Students from non-traditional living environments include students that do not identify with traditional narratives of family and/or home, whether they are living with relatives other than their parents or with close friends.


What We Do

  • Direct access to campus social worker
  • Basic needs support
  • Priority consideration for year round housing
  • 1:1 advising with Assistant Director
  • Social events and close-knit community meetups
    • Game nights, paint night, cooking session
  • Care packages for students throughout the quarter
  • Peer mentoring and student programming
  • Hold space for students to breakdown unique & shared experiences
    • community issues, life experiences, while fostering community and support for one another 
  • Address the needs of the community, such as:
    • Understanding Cardinal Care
    • Cheap, homemade meals for FLI students
    • Transitioning from online classes to in-person classes
    • Discussions on imposter syndrome while attending an elite university 
  • Develop personal, academic, career-building skills through workshops with CareerEd & FLISSC
    • Cooking, leadership, time management, teamwork, career planning, and many more

Staying Connected

  • Fill out our Google Form! We want to get to know you and better understand how to cater our support to your needs throughout the year!
  • Join our email list! After filling out our Guardian Scholar interest form, you will receive a notification to join our email list! 

Be on the lookout for virtual and in-person programming via our email list and GroupMe!