Explore the efforts agencies, community collaborative organizations, and others are making to bring families, youth, and communities to the table as they strive to improve the child welfare system in this podcast. 

Use the resources in this list to support young people’s transitional needs and help them develop the skills needed for independent living after exiting foster care.

Bruce and Brenda have been married for 33 years and have four daughters. From 2006 to 2009, they provided a kinship placement for their four grandchildren. In 2010, the couple adopted Bruce (now 18 years old), Tre’Nae (now 15 years old), Mason (now 13 years old), and Kiaunna (now 10 years old).

Learn to be more intentional about creating opportunities to relate to the staff and families you serve and to infuse more empathy into your agency.

Explore workforce challenges in child welfare and highlight the urgent need to be brave in addressing those challenges.

Explore additional resources to learn actionable ways to engage in authentic, nonexploitative storytelling practices with people with lived experience and expertise.

Explore additional resources to learn actionable ways to engage in authentic, nonexploitative storytelling practices with people with lived experience and expertise.

Learn actionable ways to engage in authentic, nonexploitative storytelling practices with people with lived experience and expertise. 

Explore additional resources to learn how child welfare organizations can create equity in the workforce. 

Learn how child welfare organizations can create equity in the workforce. 

Examine the benefits of engaging youth voice in practice, peer support, and system-level change.

Explore additional resources to learn how incorporating voices of lived experience can help improve child welfare services. 

Learn strategies to address the mental health needs of children, young people, and families.

Learn about organizational capacity to assess readiness and how it impacts retention of people with lived expertise in child welfare agencies.
 

Learn how to support state planning and implementation of the reasonable and prudent parent standard (RPPS), which is required by the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act (P.L. 113–183), to help children and youth in foster care experience normal childhood and adolescent activities.