Disney sweetheart turned pop starlet Selena Gomez has been named the ambassador of Ryan Seacrest's charity foundation for children.

The Ryan Seacrest Foundation is dedicated to "enhancing life for ill & injured children through multimedia & interactive platforms to enlighten, entertain & educate".

Seacrest confirmed the exciting news earlier today (April 20) on his live radio show and explained that the 'Wizards Of Waverly Place' actress, singer and designer was an easy choice, and he's so proud to have her on board:

"From the beginning, I could tell that Selena really understood our mission. I'm so grateful that she's decided to take on this larger role with us, joining our efforts to bring hope and spirit to seriously ill and injured kids. With her as ambassador, we will continue to expand our programmes at children's hospitals throughout the country."

19-year-old Gomez also opened up about her decision to get involved with the organisation and recalled a meeting with a fan of hers who was in hospital and explained it was so touching she simply had to help:

"So I met Julia and she was so sweet and adorable. I did a concert a long time ago on Valentine’s Day, and I gave my entire audience roses since it was Valentine’s Day. A year later she [Julia] had saved that rose and put it in foil. She showed me that she still had it, and I was super emotional."

"She was learning the guitar, and she played me three of my own songs. It was a really sweet moment because you don’t realize how the little things are really the biggest things for these people, and it was really sweet that she had saved it. She’s adorable. I actually went back to see her and I sang my song with her while she played my song.”

Watch Gomez and Seacrest discuss the foundation and its work during this morning's interview here: