Maria Rodriguez has been in foster care for about seven years and got adopted at the age of 16. She moved to eight different high schools from freshman year to the end of sophomore year and eventually graduated last May. Currently, she has enrolled at Gateway Community College located in Phoenix, Arizona. She is undeclared about her major, however she forsees herself creating prevention programs and working with foster youth in some way. In the meantime, she has been actively involved in the foster care community, specifically toward youth wight mental health and helping youth transition into adulthood with Mercy Maricopa youth board. Maria and the youth board try to educate the youth in care to get more involved and learning their rights as a foster kid. Due to foster care, she was forced to change who she was and she is currently in the process of finding herself, in the hopes it will give her insight to future life choices. Maria is a fitness buff, a shopper, an advocate ... and a foster kid.
