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KALAMAZOO, Mich.—As National Foster Care Month is observed in May, students, faculty and staff at Western ¾ÅÒ»Â鶹ÖÆƬ³§ University are celebrating WMU's commitment to foster care youth with a number of events designed for young people, professionals and community members.

Activities range from a free movie about foster care and a seminar for young people on writing about their foster care experiences to a statewide conference of ¾ÅÒ»Â鶹ÖÆƬ³§'s Fostering Success network. A website, , includes links to register for events as well as details about each effort.

Public activities

• A Tuesday, May 12, webinar on Writing My Success Story: Young Adults' Experiences of the Pursuit of Higher Education, from 2 to 3 p.m. The event is free, but .
• A Wednesday, May 13, free movie screening at Alamo Drafthouse in Kalamazoo that includes a film about foster care at 6 p.m. followed by a panel discussion by WMU students and staff.
• The Friday, May 22, , held in Lansing. The free event is organized by the Center for Fostering Success, a statewide initiative based at WMU that aims to increase awareness, access and success in higher education and post-college careers for youth and alumni of foster care.
• A series of dine-outs at restaurants around Kalamazoo from 4:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday, May 28, with each of four locations dedicated to a different topic--community engagement, policy, networking and student engagement. The evening will conclude with a communitywide gathering at Cityscape in downtown Kalamazoo.

Other events include a pre-conference training session for people who will serve as coaches for foster care youth. National Foster Care Month at WMU opened April 26 with a Seita Scholars talent show featuring performances by students in WMU's renowned support program for young people who have aged out of foster care and are enrolled at the University.

For more news, arts and events, visit wmich.edu/news.