B7 - The Kinship Care Paradox – Why We Provide Less Support for Youth in Placements Where We Most Want Them and What We Can Do to Fix It

A primary goal of our child welfare system is to keep children with family where they are more likely to thrive. Another is to meet children's individualized needs with appropriate services and supports. Yet when children are placed with relatives, they often receive the least support even though kinship families often need the most support.  This workshop will overview a 50-state survey assessing differing approaches to supporting youth in kinship care, discuss innovative strategies to leverage critical resources to improve outcomes for children placed with relatives, and detail ongoing advocacy efforts to ensure equitable support for youth in kinship care.

Presenter(s): Angie Schwartz, Alliance for Children's Rights, San Francisco, CA; Brian Blalock, Bay Area Legal Aid, Oakland, CA; and Jennifer Miller, Child Focus, Inc., Warwick, RI