National Adoption Month November is #NationalAdoptionMonth. The month is set aside to raise awareness about the urgent need for adoptive families for children and youth in foster care. This year’s theme is Older Youth and spotlights the need to find permanent families for teens.
facts & figures
Over
123,000 children & youth
Among those waiting to be adopted, kids of color are overrepresented, specifically
american indian/alaska native, black or african-american, & bi- or multi-racial youth.2
are waiting to be adopted across the United States.1
8,094
florida children
were waiting to be adopted in FY2017, nearly
1/5 of whom were teenagers.
3
only
11.5%
of 3,831
adopted Florida youth were 13 or older in FY2017.3
approximately
25%
of
transition-age
florida youth
(16 -21 years old)
emancipated or aged out of foster care in 2015.4
extended foster care
is an option for those who age out of the legal custody of the Department of Children and Families.5,6
institute affiliates We have several affiliates who work on the topics of adoption and youth aging out of foster care. Learn more about their work in our affiliate directory:
ficw.fsu.edu/affiliates
Martie Gillen, Ph.D.
Mitch Rosenwald, Ph.D.
Khalilah Louis-Caines, MSW
Lisa Schelbe, Ph.D.
university of florida st. leo university
barry university
florida state university
institute spotlight dr. martie gillen, Associate Professor
at the University of Florida Department of Family, Youth, and Community Sciences, has been an Institute research affiliate since 2017. She offers trainings on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), trauma and brain development, and trust-based relational intervention (TBRI). She frequently engages with adoptive parents through her trainings, as well as through their requests for assistance in best helping their children. In addition to her research and community outreach, she is a parent through adoption. To learn more about Dr. Gillen and her work, please visit:
fycs.ifas.ufl.edu/faculty/martie-gillen 1 2 3 4 5
6
Children’s Bureau. (2018). The AFCARS Report. Retrieved from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/cb/afcarsreport25.pdf Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2016). Racial disproportionality and disparity in child welfare. Retrieved from https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/racial_disproportionality.pdf
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. (n.d.). Florida. Retrieved October 16, 2019 from https://cwoutcomes.acf.hhs.gov/cwodatasite/pdf/florida.html Child Trends. (n.d.) Transition-age youth in foster care in Florida. Retrieved from https://www.childtrends.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Transition-Age-Youth_Florida.pdf Florida Department of Children and Families. (2019). Independent living: Extended foster care—Requirements. Retrieved October 16, 2019 from https://www.myflfamilies.com/service-programs/independent-living/extended-foster-care.shtml
Daniel. (2019). Florida’s Independent Living Resource Center. Retrieved October 16, 2019 from https://www.danielkids.org/our-programs/floridas-i-l-resource-center
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