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Capacity Building

CENTER FOR STATES

Adoption

Listen to the stories of foster parents and kinship caregivers who adopted children when reunification wasn’t possible. Hear from youth and young adults whose adoptions were successful and from others who returned to foster care. These stories reveal how caregivers, youth, and young adults made decisions, coped with the trauma intrinsic to childhood abuse or neglect, navigated the uncertainties of foster care, and negotiated boundaries, communication, support, and normalcy as families.

Find adoption stories that best meet your needs by selecting filters on the left and use them with activities from the discussion guide to build understanding and foster connections as you advocate, inspire, support, recruit, train, and coach individuals and teams.

Connect With Us

Learn how we can help your agency build the capacity to thrive.

Email: capacityinfo@icfi.com 
Phone: 1.844.222.0272

Visit the Center for States' Contact Us webpage for more information.

Showing 1 - 5 of 5 Voices of Lived Experience Stories
Video

Cole’s Story

Hear a foster and adoptive father of African American boys talk about fighting cultural biases to support his sons’ well-being.

Video

Debra's Story

This video is a part of the Empowering Caregivers, Strengthening Families Video Series.

Video

Melissa's Story

Tells the story of Melissa and her two sons, David and Emilio, following their adoption. This set of digital stories underscores the need for connections, educational supports, and post-adoption services.

Video

Joan's Story

Underscores the importance of community connections and ongoing supports to child and family well-being. In this set of digital stories, a grandmother, Joan, promotes the idea of “surround-sound parenting” for her adopted grandson, Chad.

Video

Shary's Story

Reveals the complexity of family dynamics through the experiences of Shary, a kinship parent caring for her niece, Brianna, and grandson, Random. In the first digital story, Brianna seeks to reconnect the pieces in her family puzzle.