By HANNAH SWOGGER
Guest Columnist
On a cold morning recently, 13 young people walked into a warehouse on the east side of Indianapolis and stepped into something many of them rarely get: a glimpse of possibility.
Inside the Bone Dry Roofing warehouse, they weren’t just listening to a presentation or sitting through a lecture. They were learning directly on the job. At one station, they nailed shingles onto a roof. At others, they practiced installing siding and masonry. Some even spent time shadowing the company’s call center.
For many of these young people – each with lived experience in foster care – it was their first time seeing what a career in construction could actually look like. One participant summed it up perfectly: it was exciting to try something they had never done before.
That day was about more than just learning a new skill. Thanks to Foster Success’s partnership with Bone Dry Roofing, it was about expanding horizons for young adults who too often grow up without access to opportunities that many of their peers are afforded.
Each year in the United States, more than 20,000 young people age out of the foster care system without a permanent family support network to rely on. Too many enter adulthood facing enormous challenges. Roughly one in five will experience homelessness after leaving the system, and according to a 2022 Journal of Economic Perspectives article, by age 26, former foster youth who age out have 50 percent lower earnings and 20 percent lower employment rates compared to their peers with comparable education levels.
Behind every one of these statistics is a young person with talent, resilience, and ambition. What many of them lack is not potential, but exposure and opportunity.
At the Bone Dry Roofing Career Day, employees didn’t just demonstrate technical skills. They worked side-by-side with participants, answering questions, sharing their own career paths, and offering an inside look at an industry many had never considered.
In quieter moments between activities, conversations unfolded: What does a typical day look like? What training do you need? What opportunities exist beyond the job site?
Those interactions matter.
Indiana businesses also stand to gain from these partnerships. Across the state and nation, industries from construction and manufacturing to logistics and healthcare are facing workforce shortages. Employers are searching for motivated individuals ready to build meaningful careers.
Young people with lived experience in foster care represent an often-overlooked talent pipeline. Many have developed remarkable adaptability, problem-solving skills, and perseverance simply by navigating the challenges they’ve already faced. With the right training and mentorship, they can become dedicated employees and future leaders in Indiana’s workforce.
But they cannot get there alone.
At Foster Success, our Workforce Readiness programming focuses on connecting young people to career exploration, job training, and employer engagement. In the past year, more than half of our participants achieved one of their work-related goals.
These outcomes happen because employers step forward. They open their doors. They share their knowledge. They show young people what’s possible.
In order for Indiana to build a strong workforce for the future, we must ensure that every young person with lived experience has the opportunity to explore careers, gain skills, and see a path forward. For young people who have experienced foster care, that chance can be life-changing.
Sometimes, it starts with something as simple as walking through a warehouse door on a cold morning – and realizing the future might be bigger than you imagined; one shingle at a time.
Hannah Swogger, of Indianapolis, is the Assistant Director of Program Delivery at Indiana-based nonprofit, Foster Success. More information about Foster Success can be found at fostersuccess.org.