Advocacy

In recent years, adoptions from foster care have increased significantly. Unfortunately, supportive services for families raising children with special needs have not kept pace. In some areas, post-permanency supports have even been cut or threatened with elimination. Part I of this page describes how advocates can respond to proposed reductions in services. Part II outlines… More

This NACAC brief explains the mental health needs of many children and youth adopted from care, explores successful post-adoption services programs, and recommends policy changes that will facilitate the expansion and replication of necessary services. July 2007 Click here to download a PDF… More

This issue brief from the Donaldson Adoption Institute and NACAC presents research on how adoption assistance benefits increase adoptions from foster care, while saving states money over the cost of keeping children in care. It is designed as a tool for advocates to use in efforts to maintain or improve adoption assistance benefits in their… More

This NACAC report makes the case for improving the federal adoption assistance program. The text dwells on the human benefits of subsidies as well as financial considerations, and outlines three specific recommendations for making the program more effective and useful. May 2008 Click here to download a PDF… More

We at NACAC believe that all adoptive families should have access to a continuum of support to meet their needs after adoption. We encourage you to advocate for post-adoption services in your community. Adoptive families—especially those who adopt children from foster care—often need support. Many children in foster care, including those waiting for adoption, have… More

If your state or provincial adoption assistance program is facing cuts from policy makers or you think the program is not doing enough to help children and families, you can make a difference! We at NACAC are committed to ensuring that children adopted from foster care have the support they need to succeed in their… More

Just as it did in 2014, the number of children and youth in the U.S. foster care system rose in federal fiscal year 2015. As of September 30, 2015, 427,910 children were in care—up from 414,429 in 2014 and 397,605 in 2011. The increase was expected given the continuing impact of the opioid crisis. In… More

NACAC, like many organizations, is committed to ensuring that those affected by laws and rules have a voice in shaping those policies. Engaging youth and parents in advocacy is both the right thing to do and an effective way to achieve your goals. NACAC has experienced success at state and federal levels when we’ve partnered… More

“We just want to do the same things as our friends! We just want to be normal!” is the battle cry of youth in foster care—backed by their caregivers—across the country. These youth want the chance to play sports, spend the night with friends, go on a class trip, or take a family vacation without… More

Think back to when you were leaving high school and starting college. What did you do in the summer? Attend cookouts and other events with your family? Sleep in and hang out with friends? Work to earn money for school? What about the 20,000 youth in foster care who age out each year. How do… More

from Summer 2011 Adoptalk “He’ll never amount to anything.” Would those words destroy or motivate you? For me, the words simply seemed true; I should be a failure. Statistics would predict that I’m in prison, but that wasn’t my destiny, was it? Who can know for certain if I will amount to anything, and why… More

“Part of the adoption process should be to help adoptive parents and children connect with other adoptive families. I don’t go to the agencies when I need answers. I go to other adoptive families and find out how they handled the situation.”  ~ adoptive parent In September 2010, NACAC began surveying adoptive families in the… More