retention

About three years ago I wrote an article published by The Imprint entitled “California’s Continuum of Care Reform – Will It Produce as Promised?” So has it? The goal of the Continuum of Care Reform (CCR) was to reduce group home placements by shifting foster youth to family-based services.

As a new leader in the child welfare space, I thought it would be worth my while to do some listening before I made any big changes. So I went on a tour all over the state of Washington.

Newly released data compiled and analyzed by The Imprint suggests that the United States is on the downside of its most recent foster care surge. For most of the 2010s, federal data showed the number of children in foster care steadily increasing after a previous decade of decline.

Each day for the next two weeks, we’ll count down 10 of the biggest stories The Imprint published in 2018. In each, we’ll connect readers with a few links to our coverage of this issue.

Foster parents are the primary intervention in the lives of abused and neglected children. In order for children placed into foster care to receive the safety and stability they need to heal and thrive, available and willing high-quality families are needed.

Starcania Ford’s first call came not too long after she had completed two months of background checks and trainings. Could she come and pick up a young man waiting at the juvenile delinquency court near downtown Los Angeles?

The number of U.S. children in foster care has been on the rise since 2012, and most experts agree that the upward trend will continue. But how are states doing at ensuring there are enough foster homes and other placements to take these children in?