ACET, Inc. Blog

National Foster Care Month is a time to acknowledge the 463,000 American children and youth in foster care and the family members, foster parents, volunteers, mentors, child welfare professionals, and policymakers who help them find permanent homes and connections. This year, the Children’s Bureau and Child Welfare Information Gateway are supporting National Foster Care Month through a special website for child welfare professionals with the theme, “Partnering with Families and Youth to Achieve Permanency.”  The website features information and resources that help caseworkers, administrators, managers, and policymakers improve permanency services and outcomes for children, youth, and families involved with the child welfare system. You can access the website here: http://www.childwelfare.gov/fostercaremonth/

The National Resource Center for Permanency and Family Connections has also prepared fact sheets about foster care. For each state, the following information is available:

• Number of children in foster care;
• Average age and number of children in care by age range;
• Gender;
• Race/ethnicity of children in out-of-home care and of the general population in the state;
• Average length of stay in care;
• Percentage of children reunified with parents or primary caretakers;
• Number of licensed foster homes;
• Percent of youth living with relatives;
• Percent of children adopted by foster parents and by relatives; and
• Contact information to find out how to become a foster parent in that state.

Information on foster care in Minnesota can be found at: http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/socwork/nrcfcpp/info_services/state/Minnesota.pdf

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