Every other week, The Imprint will feature one key indicator from Kidsdata, which offers comprehensive data about the health and well being of children across California.
The graph below shows a nearly 40 percent decline in the number of California children in foster care between 2002 and 2012. While social workers try to safely reunify children with their parents or secure another permanent home, such as adoption, too often this goal is not achieved.
Instead, many children spend years in foster homes or group homes and are at increased risk for a variety of emotional, behavioral, and academic problems. Recognizing these issues, advocates and policymakers have made efforts to safely reduce the number of children living in foster care.
For more information on this and other key indicators related to California youths and the systems that serve them, click here to visit the Kidsdata website.
