Our Approach... Foster America works alongside government and community leaders to strengthen promising approaches — and explore new ones — that connect families to resources before challenges escalate, reducing unnecessary child welfare system involvement through early, proactive support. This kind of innovation requires strength in four key capacities:
Co-design: Those who have experienced the child welfare system firsthand are leading the way in transforming it. At Foster America, we bridge the gap between government agencies and the communities driving change, ensuring that policies and services are shaped by the people they impact most. By working alongside individuals with lived experience, we co-design and test new approaches that reflect what families truly need — building trust, shifting power, and creating solutions that work in the real world. Collaboration: No single agency or sector can transform how our nation serves families. We bring together leaders from government agencies, nonprofits, community organizations, and more, empowering them to develop coordinated, responsive approaches that harness their collective strengths and respond to families’ true goals and needs. Finance: Less than 15% of child welfare funding is dedicated to prevention, while the vast majority is spent on removing children from their families. The current policy landscape makes it far easier to finance separation than to invest in the kinds of community-based programs that help families stay together. We help redirect resources toward community-based supports that strengthen families and promote economic stability — moving away from punitive models and toward sustainable solutions. Learning: Lasting change requires understanding how the child welfare system works now and whether new approaches are effective in better meeting the needs of families. We analyze qualitative and quantitative data — drawing from insights from both those who work in the child welfare system and the families impacted by it — to refine strategies, adapt in real time, and scale the approaches that work.
12 | Foster America 2024 Annual Report
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