The Child Welfare Information Gateway (Information Gateway) website includes links to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations. We provide these links solely for our users' information and convenience. See our Disclaimer of Endorsement for more information.

External links are intended to support Information Gateway’s mission. Links to .org, .gov, .edu, .mil, or other nonprofit sites that provide information related to Information Gateway’s mission are encouraged because of their general noncommercial, public-interest nature. Sites from the following sources are included:

  • Federal, State, and local government agencies
  • Organizations funded by the Children’s Bureau through grants, cooperative agreements, or contracts
  • Child welfare-related national organizations, associations, and nonprofit organizations

The following are evaluation criteria for selecting links for inclusion on the Information Gateway website. Information Gateway staff evaluates all suggested links using the following criteria:

  • Does the information on the website support Information Gateway mission and values? (See About Child Welfare Information Gateway for more information.)
  • Is the website an official government-owned or supported website?
  • Does the website provide official government information or services?
  • Does the website complement existing information, products, and services on Information Gateway?
  • Is the website user friendly and applicable to a wide audience?
  • Is the website's content relevant, useful, and authoritative for citizens, businesses, and/or government officials?  
  • Does the website's information appear to be accurate and current? (i.e., published within the last 5 years)? Seminal works that are older than 5 years can be included if they are deemed important to the field.
  • Is the website's approach to the privacy of personal information consistent with the government's privacy and security policies?
  • Is the resource available to the public free of change?
  • Is the website or publication a U.S.-based resource? 
  • Is the resource a personal website or blog? Resources are limited to professional websites, for the most part. Blogs may be included sparingly in web sections in which a personal perspective can be helpful.
  • Is the resource an article in an online popular periodical? Generally, these links are to trade and scholarly periodicals. Links to sites that require free user registration to access materials may be included, but usage of this type of resource is limited.
  • Is the website maintained on a secure server? 

Links to external websites and pages may be removed or replaced at the sole discretion of Information Gateway at any time without notice.

Information Gateway will not link to the following:

  • Websites or resources that exhibit hate, bias, or discrimination 
  • Websites that encourage the public to contact members of Congress or other Federal officials, as well as State or local officials, on behalf of an Administration position with respect to pending legislation, regulations, policies, appropriations, or ratification actions
  • Websites or resources that are primarily commercial in nature (i.e., advertising a product, charging a fee to access resources, soliciting user information)
  • Websites that are deemed to be misleading, contain unsubstantiated claims, or are determined to conflict with Information Gateway’s mission
  • Websites that allow any user to edit or contribute to the content