Tells the story of the relationship between a youth in foster care and a BraveLife peer navigator. Both talk about the personal sharing and mutual trust that have forged a connection that will last a lifetime.

This handout is part of the series, “Perspectives on Normalcy: Videos and Discussion Questions.” It is designed to facilitate discussion about the issues raised in the video, “Kinship Adoption: You Get a Call, ‘Do You Want These Kids?’”

Explore promising practices in pregnancy, parenting, and prevention services and view practice examples, including evidence-based programs, in-home services, and specialized units.

See how listening and relatability helped build trust between a youth and his attorney.

Underscores the importance of consistency and encouragement in trusting relationships. A Fostering Success peer mentor gave impactful advice to the youth she mentored: Stop listening to the people who don’t believe in you.

Explore a family-focused program that embodies many of the changes that Kentucky wants to see throughout its child welfare system in this podcast. The START, program demonstrates a shift in organizational culture to focus on family and serves as an example of a truly collaborative team that uses early intervention and a shared decision-making model to work with families.

In this episode leaders from the District of Columbia child welfare agency and a community collaborative organization discuss their longstanding partnership. The commissioner for Kentucky's child welfare agency describes the agency’s strategic communication plan and considers the role of the agency as part of the larger child welfare system.

Demonstrates how showing up and listening are foundational to developing a nourishing relationship with youth. A young woman describes the constant support she and her family received from a social worker as she evolved from a youth into a teen mom and an advocate.

Recorded webinar of youth with lived expertise and child and family serving agency leaders discussing strategies to support meaningful youth engagement and integrating family and youth voices at individual, practice, and system levels.

Explore tips and strategies to effectively engage and sustain the involvement of families and youth at the agency level. 

Use the guide and digital stories from this library with teams and individuals to advocate, inspire, support, recruit, train, and coach towards a better child welfare system. 

Addressed developmentally appropriate services for youth in foster care and identified best practices for Federal support of States and territories in implementing provisions of the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act (P.L. 113-183).

Brandon is a 21-year-old alumnus of the foster care system. He was in the foster care system for about 10 years and serves as a foster care advocate, working in State government for the last 3 years. He feels that normal activities for all youth in foster care should include getting a driver’s license, going on out-of-State and overnight trips, and participating in sports.

Desiree is an alumna of the foster care system. She lived with the same foster care family for 14 years. She entered foster care with three of her siblings, and wants to use her experiences growing up in foster care to make a difference for those still in the system.

Illustrates the four thematic pillars necessary for organizational capacity supporting engagement with young people currently and formerly in foster care. Each of the four segments succinctly defines an element of organizational capacity building for youth engagement.