Federal funding uncertain for a program that keeps Black kids out of foster care

Hennepin County implemented a comprehensive overhaul of its child protection system, implementing a multi-pronged approach including increasing the staff and budget, splitting caseloads more evenly among workers, and instituting a two-month training program for new hires with ongoing education throughout their careers. The overhaul ensures families receive more comprehensive support, including therapy and addiction treatment services, reducing repeat cases and improving family outcomes.

Summit County, Ohio's juvenile court's Multidisciplinary Team Representation assigns a parent advocate and social worker to child-custody cases to help parents reunite with their children much more quickly than the system typically processes cases. The program has just begun in the county, helping a handful of families reunite, but a study in New York City showed the same approach reunited families 43% more often than if just an attorney were helping the family. Parents whose troubles lead to the temporary loss of their children need supports that help them get on firmer ground.

Parent Encouragement Programs teach parents new ways to connect and communicate with their children, helping them become more understanding and less authoritarian. Research shows that after seven weeks of classes, parents report increased satisfaction in their relationships with their children.

A pilot program within the child welfare system in Philadelphia is providing wraparound services for parents at risk of losing custody of their children. The multi-disciplinary services include an attorney, social workers, and a peer advocate in addition to services that help stabilize families such as housing, employment, and addiction treatment. Similar programs in New York City and Washington state show significant reductions of time spent by children in foster care and increased rates of reunification - saving money and reducing trauma.

Hennepin County Court, serving Minneapolis, MN and the surrounding area, has developed a co-parenting court – helping unmarried parents work together to raise their children, work through issues, and strengthen their partnership. Born out of a need for an alternative to family court, where individuals – typically fathers – are just given a child support amount to pay before being on their way, the program offers ongoing support, including co-developing a childcare plan to qualifying parents.

Lumen High School enrolls pregnant and parenting teens, providing a “learn-as-you-go” approach to learning that makes it possible for them to parent and stay in school. The school provides full-day child care, free baby supplies, mental health counseling and other supports to help get students to graduation day. All the Lumen High School students who graduate have been accepted into college, with 95% enrolling or choosing to start working within the six months after graduation.

My Two Aunties assists Indigenous families to help keep children out of foster care. The group provides parenting support and education, seeks to build relationships between families and their culture and also works to repair intergenerational trauma that can lead to creating an unsafe environment for children. In 2022, the program served 97 families and held 411 parenting classes and interest in the program is continuously growing.

Court-appointed special advocates (CASAs) are trained volunteers appointed by a judge to represent a child’s best interests throughout the foster care system and adoption court processes. CASAs spend time with the children to get to know them and their situations, including their medical, psychological and social needs, to advocate on their behalf. The CASA program began in the 1970s; today, there are about 1,000 CASA programs nationwide.

Inshuti z’Umuryango (IZU) is a group of almost 30,000 volunteers that identifies and helps children in need. One female and one male per village are elected by each village and serve as trusted community members who fill the gaps in the child protection system, including arranging health, education, income-assistance, and psychological support for children in need.

Youth Villages, a nonprofit started in Tennessee over 30 years ago has helped improve the lives of children who face difficulties in their homes while saving money on the child welfare system. Instead of immediately removing children from their problematic homes, Youth Villages works on building relationships with the parents and providing in-home support services to both the parents and the children to ensure that they have a successful future. Additionally, the organization supports foster kids who age out of the system, and has managed to place many children back with their families securely.