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This 18th annual KIDS COUNT Data Book provides national and state-by-state information and statistical trends on the conditions of America's children and families. New this year is information on child well-being in Puerto Rico. This year's essay examines the child welfare system and challenges the country to make lifelong connections for children and youth in foster care a national priority. The essay also focuses on the 726,000 children who spend time in foster care each year and what can be done to build and strengthen family relationships.

Describes the intersection of child welfare and early intervention (EI), provides an overview of the EI process, and outlines the challenges and strategies for implementing EI provisions in Federal law.

In every State there are children with special needs waiting in foster care for adoptive families. The most recent data estimate that 126,000 children are available to be adopted from foster care. In the past, the costs of care and services were major obstacles to parents who would otherwise adopt and love these children, and most were not placed for adoption. The Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 provided the first Federal subsidies to encourage the adoption of children from the nation's foster care system. These subsidies, known as adoption assistance, serve to minimize the financial obstacles to adoption. In addition, other types of assistance often are available to help with medical care or other services. Adoption assistance serves to remove barriers and contribute to an increase in adoption of children with special needs. This factsheet discusses this assistance by reviewing: Federal Title IV-E adoption assistance, State adoption assistance, and how to arrange adoption assistance.

This factsheet reports statistics about adoption disruption (before finalization of the placement) and dissolution (after legal finalization). Differences in disruption rates by age of the child and placement history, reasons why disruption and dissolution occur, and disruption and dissolution trends are noted.

Community collaboratives for child welfare are being formed by local agencies to prevent child maltreatment and promote community responsibility for child and family well-being. The collaboratives feature the use of community-based resources, family-centered services, an emphasis on results, the participation of individuals and community organizations, and flexibility. This issue of the biannual publication of the National Child Welfare Resource Center for Family-Centered Practice examines the characteristics of community partnerships and describes initiatives implemented in several states. The role of the Patch model in the implementation of the Adoption and Safe Families Act in Massachusetts specifically is discussed. Adapted from the British neighborhood approach, Patch was used to improve cooperation between public agencies and consumers of services by increasing access to social services, eliminating miscommunication and boundaries between social service agencies and families, empowering individual and families, nurturing local resources, and respecting diversity.

Explores the factors that contribute to racial and ethnic disproportionality and disparity in the child welfare system. It also describes strategies that can assist child welfare caseworkers, administrators, program managers, and policymakers with addressing these issues in general and at specific decision-making points along the child welfare service continuum.

Provides an overview of the intersection of child welfare and parental incarceration; highlights practices to facilitate parent-child visits during incarceration, include parents in case planning, and work toward reunification; and points to resources to help caseworkers in their practice with these children and families.

Provides information and lessons learned from Children’s Bureau grantees experience implementing kinship navigator programs, including cross-cutting themes and promising practices.

Explores the practice of of differential response in responding to child welfare cases, various approaches used to support children and families, and recent State implementation efforts that highlight practice in the field.

This directory lists organizations that maintain information about resources for parents and caregivers on children with disabilities/special needs. The groups provide direct service or referrals for technical assistance, professional training, respite care, educational issues, and advocacy. E-mail and Web address are provided when available.

Provides a high-level overview of the overlap between domestic violence and child welfare, the impact of domestic violence on child witnesses, and the trend toward a more collaborative, communitywide response to the issue. It also points to promising practices, as well as comprehensive resources on the topic.

A resource directory listing of national organizations that provide information & resources for and about fathers & their important role in families and the lives of children.

Provides suggestions for finding an adoption-competent therapist and offers information about the types of therapy that can help adopted children and their families. Foster parents considering adoption could face similar issues and therefore also may find definitions and descriptions in this factsheet useful.

Provides parents (birth, foster, and adoptive) and other caregivers with information about the best way to resolve their differences with a service provider or other child welfare professional. Since child welfare agency policies and procedures are State-specific, this factsheet presents information from a national perspective and points to additional resources about where to find information related to a particular State. The information and resources provided in this factsheet address the majority of complaints associated with the CPS system.

In 2002, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services launched the Healthy Marriage Initiative. Through the initiative, ACF seeks to improve the well-being of children and families already receiving help from other ACF programs, as well as by supporting the development of community-wide initiatives that involve many different types of organizations. This publication showcases some of the programs that organizations have developed using ACF grants and demonstrates how these programs are helping to create successful marital partnerships. This publication also provides insight into some of the lessons learned along the way that other agencies and organizations can use to promote healthy marriage in their communities. (Author abstract, modified)

Organizations that provide information & resources that promote healthy marriages.

Offers guidance on helping children with the foster-to-adoption transition process, including specific coping strategies for different developmental stages. Explores ways to promote attachment and provides resources available to help families with permanency.

Provides an overview of child welfare in-home services, components of effective service delivery, and Federal funding sources for services. It also points to core practice elements of in-home services, evidence-based programs used during the provision of in-home services, and State examples of efforts to improve their in-home services delivery.

Discusses issues of interest to the growing number of grandparents and other relatives caring for children whose own parents are unable to care for them. Sometimes, the arrangement (referred to as "kinship care") is an informal, private arrangement between the parents and relative caregivers; in other situations, the local child welfare agency is involved. This factsheet is designed to help kinship caregivers--including grandparents, aunts and uncles, other relatives, and family friends caring for children--work effectively with the child welfare system. Resources, such as links to more detailed information or places to find help, are included.

Organizations that provide information and resources for kinship and relative care providers.

Includes national organizations selected by the Children's Bureau to serve as partners in the national child abuse prevention initiative. Their collaborative efforts and input focused on preventing child abuse and promoting healthy families were instrumental in creating the prevention Resource Guide.

As part of the national evaluation of family support programs mandated by the Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1993, the Administration on Children, Youth and Families contracted with Abt Associates Inc. to conduct a meta-analysis of existing research about the effectiveness of different types of programs and the impact of services on families with a variety of needs and characteristics. The meta-analysis provides a statistical summary of 665 studies of 260 programs. In general, the findings revealed that family support services resulted in slight improvements in some outcomes. However, existing research has not identified one model that is effective for all groups of people. The majority of programs did not have a significant impact on parents' knowledge about child development, their attitudes about child rearing, or family functioning. The most effective programs used a group approach for parent education and support and targeted specific types of families. Professional staff achieved greater success than paraprofessional staff. Direct services to children had greater impact on cognitive development than parent education. Positive effects also were found for services that were directed toward teen mothers with young children, families with children who have special needs, and families with children who have behavior problems. The meta-analysis concludes that program administrators and policymakers should review the assumptions of current programs and identify approaches that will improve the effectiveness of family support services. The report details the methodology of the meta-analysis and the characteristics of the programs and studies. 26 references, numerous figures and tables.

Includes resources for and about youth involved with child welfare.

Explores parent education programming for child welfare and highlights programs that have shown positive results or promise for strengthening families and preventing child maltreatment. The brief looks at the elements of effective parent education programs and research that demonstrate their benefit. It also includes examples of State and local parent education programs and a list of resources.

Reviews what substance use disorders (SUDs) are, how parental substance use affects families, and how child welfare professionals can support these families. It also considers how collaboration between child welfare professionals and SUD treatment providers, as well as others, is an essential component to assisting families. This factsheet is intended to serve as a brief primer on the intersection of parental SUDs and child welfare rather than a comprehensive guide. Additional information and resources are provided throughout to help readers explore the topic in more detail.

Helps child welfare professionals gain a better understanding of parent-child interaction therapy (PCIT), including which clients should be referred for this approach, how it is implemented, and resources for additional information. PCIT is a family-centered treatment approach for children ages 2–7 with disruptive behavior and has also been used with abused and at-risk children ages 2–12. It is an appropriate therapy for all caregivers—birth parents, adoptive parents, or foster or kin caregivers—and includes the treatment of both the parent and child together along with live coaching. One of PCIT's benefits is that it can help reduce the risk for child maltreatment.

Intended to help parents (birth, foster, and adoptive) and other caregivers better understand the challenges of caring for a child or youth who has experienced maltreatment and learn about available resources for support.

Shares stories and advice from caregivers and birth parents who have experienced kinship care on the importance of maintaining boundaries, managing family dynamics, building trust, positive parenting and communication, and securing support.

Highlights common themes and unique examples gathered by Community Collaborations to Strengthen and Preserve Families grantees during Children's Bureau-led site visits to other jurisdictions with promising approaches to community-based primary prevention.

This special issue of Protecting Children is a response to the need for empirical knowledge and research on family group decision making (FGDM) to support its future implementation, practice improvement, and sustainability. The first four articles present overarching philosophical and methodological considerations in FGDM research and evaluation. The remaining articles summarize a wide range of FGDM studies in action or already completed, including experiences in California, Washington, Florida, Arizona, North Carolina, Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, Utah, Nebraska, Massachusetts, Canada, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, and England. The overall findings, divided into the categories of implementation, process indicators, and outcome indicators, offer considerable support for the advancement of FGDM and good reasons to explore ways to mainstream its practice. (Author abstract modified)

Presents information from a review of current research linking protective factors to well-being for children and youth in and transitioning out of foster care. Topics include individual skills and capacities that can improve the well-being of children and youth in foster care, creating a community that supports the well-being of children and youth in care, strategies for practitioners, and resources for more information. This factsheet is part of a series of five factsheets for practitioners exploring the importance of protective factors in working with in-risk populations served by the Administration on Children Youth and Families.

Presents information from a review of current research linking protective factors to well-being for children exposed to domestic violence. Topics include individual skills and capacities that can improve the well-being of children exposed to violence; how parents, guardians, and others can contribute to the well-being of these children; creating supportive communities; and strategies for practitioners. This publication is part of a series of five factsheets for practitioners exploring the importance of protective factors in working with in-risk populations served by the Administration on Children, Youth and Families.

Presents information from a review of current research linking protective factors to well-being for the five in-risk populations served by the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF): children exposed to domestic violence, homeless and runaway youth, pregnant and parenting teens, victims of child abuse and neglect, and youth in and aging out of foster care. Topics include individual skills and capacities that can improve the well-being of children and youth; how parents, guardians, and others can contribute to the well-being of these children; and strategies for practitioners. A model framework for organizing and applying protective factors is included, as well as a table listing specific protective factors for ACYF populations by level of influence. This publication is part of a series of five factsheets for practitioners exploring the importance of protective factors in working with in-risk populations served by ACYF.

Presents information from a review of current research on specific protective factors that carry moderate or strong association with improved well-being for pregnant and parenting teens. Topics include individual skills and capacities that can improve the well-being of teens who are pregnant and/or parenting; how parents, guardians, friends, and others can contribute to the well-being of these teens; creating supportive communities; and strategies for practitioners. This publication is part of a series of five factsheets for practitioners exploring the importance of protective factors in working with in-risk populations served by the Administration on Children, Youth and Families.

Presents information from a review of current research on specific protective factors that carry moderate or strong association with improved well-being for victims of child abuse and neglect. Topics include individual skills and capacities that can improve the well-being of children who have been abused or neglected; how parents, guardians, friends, and other adults can contribute to the well-being of these children and youth; strategies for practitioners; and resources for more information. This publication is part of a series of five factsheets for practitioners exploring the importance of protective factors in working with in-risk populations served by the Administration on Children, Youth and Families.

Provides an overview of national protective factors approaches to prevent child abuse and neglect. It is designed to help child welfare professionals, administrators, service providers, policymakers, and other interested individuals understand the concepts of protective and risk factors in families and communities and learn ways in which building protective factors can help lower the risk of child abuse and neglect now and in the future.

Highlights the importance of understanding the concerns and needs of children and families in rural communities, their strengths and resources, and the cultural sensitivity required of child welfare professionals as they work to achieve safety, permanency, and well-being for rural children.

This bulletin for child-serving professionals outside of child protective services discusses ways to support children and their caregivers and connect them with appropriate resources that may mitigate any risks for harm during crisis situations. This document is organized by the five protective factors that build on family strengths to foster child and youth well-being and development. Each section contains questions that professionals can address with parents/caregivers and with children/youth in the course of their work with families, with an emphasis on content appropriate for virtual visits.

Helps child welfare professionals build a better understanding of trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), including which clients should be referred for this approach, how it is implemented, and resources for additional information. TF-CBT helps children, adolescents, and their parents (or other caregivers) overcome trauma-related difficulties, including child maltreatment. It helps children address distorted or upsetting beliefs and attributions and learn skills to help them cope with ordinary life stressors. TF-CBT also helps parents who were not abusive to cope effectively with their own emotional distress and develop skills that support their children.

Provides an overview of basic child welfare services, describes how domestic violence services (DVS) and child welfare professionals can support one another’s efforts in working with families, and lists resources for more information.

Helps law enforcement agents understand the work of child welfare professionals and how a mutually beneficial relationship is in the best interest of children, families, and communities. Discusses the importance of information-sharing and cross-training and Includes a list of helpful resources.

Helps child welfare professionals promote kinship care by providing kinship caregivers with information, referral, and support services to ensure the safety, permanency, and well-being of children in their care. Topics covered include the types and benefits of kinship care, training for caseworkers and caregivers, specific strategies for supporting kinship caregivers, and examples of successful State and local child welfare programs that provide services to kinship caregivers.