Collin Gosselin Is Now Juggling His Military Commitment and College Life
Hannah and Collin had been living with their father since 2018, but now they are headed off to college.
Updated June 19 2024, 12:15 p.m. ET
Jon & Kate Plus 8 was a force to be reckoned with in 2007. The TLC reality series followed the everyday happenings of Jon and Kate Gosselin, along with their eight children. You have twins, Cara and Mady, 24, followed by sextuplets: Aaden, Collin, Joel, Alexis, Hannah, and Leah, 20. Can you believe they are all grown up?!
Their busy, chaotic lives were endlessly fascinating. On screen. the kids seemed to be happy and thriving — until Jon and Kate went their separate ways, finalizing their divorce in December 2009. A custody battle then ensued.
To this day, fans of the reality TV show family are highly interested in Collin. This is likely because the sextuplet stopped appearing in family photos and was later revealed to be living apart from his siblings.
Keep scrolling to find out what Collin has been up to.
Collin was revealed to have "special needs" — and was sent away in 2016.
Collin was 12 when Kate sent him to live in a special needs educational facility. Although there weren't any specifics offered at the time about what these special needs were, the mom of eight made it clear that it was what was best for her son. Jon, meanwhile, had nothing to do with this decision.
“Collin has special needs. [There’s] a fairly fluid diagnosis of what those needs are, but he needs to learn certain strategies to help him deal with things," Kate told People in 2016. "This has been a struggle we’ve had for a very long time, and it’s one I’ve dealt with on my own."
Jon Gosselin gained full custody of his son Collin in 2018.
Jon was awarded full custody of Collin in late 2018 when Kate failed to appear in court. Less than a year later, the father of eight spoke out about the alleged abuse his children have suffered while living with their mother.
"I know my children have suffered abuse and I know one day they’re going to tell their own story,” Jon told The Daily Mail in September 2019. “And sadly enough, I know what PTSD is. It’s really upsetting."
Jon claimed Collin was sent away to the care unit because of behavioral issues stemming from ADHD — and that he was in a "cage" for three years. Throughout that entire time, Kate reportedly only visited Collin three times for a total of two hours.
Collin and sister Hannah were living with Jon until they went off to college.
In a February 2020 interview with First Class Fatherhood, Jon opened up about the past 12 years he'd spent in court over custody of his kids.
"I got sole custody of Collin, Kate has a no contact with him, so there's a whole bunch of stuff that happened with him," Jon said. "So, I ended up with two, there could be more that come, so I have no idea. But, I mean, it's a long battle ... I just didn't give up, I'm still not gonna give up."
At the time, Jon explained, "Right now, it's very tumultuous, pretty much, because there's no contact between Collin and his other siblings." "There's contact between Hannah and the other siblings. So, the problem right now is we have parent alienation and we have sibling alienation," he added. The exact status of their relationships remains unclear, but it's evident that Collin and Hannah have developed a strong bond while living with their father.
Despite the alleged physical and psychological trauma Collin faced while living with his mom and the special needs facility, it seems he's doing extremely well these days.
Where is Collin Gosselin now?
Collin graduated from high school in 2023 and is set to start college in the fall of 2024. While he and his sister Hannah store some belongings at Jon's home, they have already moved away for college, officially making their father an "empty nester." In 2023, Jon revealed that Collin had enlisted in the military and is now balancing both military service and college life.
In April 2024, Jon told E! News that his other children are residing in North Carolina, while Mady and Cara have made their home in New York. A glance at Mady's Instagram shows she's truly enjoying life in the Big Apple. As for Jon and Kate's relationship, he says he hasn't spoke to her since 2018. He has, however, been seeing a woman named Stephanie Lebo since 2023, and hinted in his E! News interview that he might be popping the question soon.
