Tania had never met her niece, Naomi, when she found out the 4-year-old had been placed in foster care. A single mother with one adult son, Tania recently had accepted a promotion at work and was not anticipating raising another … Read More
Author Archives: Jamar Little
How Can Child Protection Agencies Promote and Support Joint Sibling Placements and Adoptions?
When Mars Presswood was 15 years old, he and his younger sibling were placed together in foster care. Despite being moved from an urban setting to a small rural town and enduring many other changes and uncertainties over the next … Read More
What Lessons Can We Learn from ICWA Courts?
Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) courts are created to better support American Indian/Alaska Native families in child protection cases. More than simply a specialized docket, ICWA courts actively strive to improve collaboration between state and tribal partners and increase compliance … Read More
How Can Plans of Safe Care Help Infants and Families Affected by Substance Abuse?
Overview In 2024, almost 46,000 infants in the U.S. were referred to child protective services with prenatal substance exposure, and over a third of children who entered out-of-home care had parental alcohol or drug use as an identified reason for … Read More
Parent Partners: The Power of Peer Support
Based on a peer support model, parent partner programs connect parents impacted by child welfare with a mentor who can offer them hope and support as they navigate the system. Ensuring that this lived expertise and support is available to … Read More
How Do Individuals with Lived Experience of Child Welfare Define Permanency?
Defining permanency is important In the child welfare system, the word “permanency” is used to describe a legally permanent, stable living situation — ideally one in which family, culture, and community connections are preserved. Safe reunification with parents always is … Read More
How Have Home Study and Licensure Requirements for Kinship Caregivers Been Simplified?
When children cannot remain safely in their homes, placing them with kin not only minimizes the trauma of removal and separation, but increases their likelihood of remaining connected to siblings, families of origin, and community, which improves their overall well-being. … Read More
How Do Family-based Residential Treatment Programs Help Reduce Substance Use and Improve Child Welfare Outcomes?
Every day, millions of parents in recovery from substance use disorders show that healing is possible and that families can thrive. Recovery improves relationships, prevents child removal, reunites families, and strengthens communities. Yet too many families still face barriers to … Read More
The AFCARS Dashboard
FFY 2024 AFCARS Foster Care Data ReleaseThis report provides some, but not all, of the same information that is available in the dashboard. All information presented in this report is also available in the dashboard, so the dashboard is the … Read More
What are examples of organizational initiatives that create a workplace culture around wellness?
Overview Organizational wellness is the responsibility of everyone in an organization — from human resources and executive leadership to supervisors and frontline staff. In a child protection agency, where work is inherently complex and emotionally demanding, the organizational culture rests … Read More