This study examines the challenges child protection efforts face in Greece within the broader context of European child welfare systems in the 21st century. Despite legislative mandates, Greece struggles with the effective implementation of child protection legislation and out-of-home placement of abused and neglected children. Drawing on the…

Fostering Opportunities is an innovative student engagement program for middle school and high school students who have experienced foster care. The goal of the program is to help youth who have experienced foster care be successful in school and ultimately earn a high school credential. Fostering Opportunities was developed because of the clear…

Relationships are important in helping youth, including vulnerable youth, achieve their goals and a transition into adulthood. Having the skills to manage healthy intimate partner relationships can make a difference as youth make decisions related to school, employment, pregnancy prevention, and establishing strong relationships. These skills may…

This paper reviews the research on youth empowerment in seven child welfare programmatic areas. A lack of studies specifically focused on the empowerment of youth in foster care was found. Conceptual perspectives and existing data, however, suggest that the empowerment of youth in and transitioning out of care is essential and should be overtly…

The lack of culturally appropriate health and mental health care has contributed to the large number of African American youth and families involved in the child welfare system. This article reviews the consequences of the insufficient access to culturally sensitive, evidence-supported interventions for African American foster youth. The authors…

As the health, social, and developmental needs of infants in foster care become more complex, foster families are challenged to develop specialized knowledge to effectively address these needs. The goal of this qualitative research study was to identify the process of becoming a foster family and providing family foster caregiving within the…

Examines the changes initiated to reorient Kentucky's child welfare system to a family prevention model; this includes an examination of the model's goals, the implementation of the model, training of the staff, problems encountered by the initiation of the new model, and an evaluation of the model. (Author/BB)

This guide helps child welfare agencies and their partners craft more family-focused and neighborhood-based service systems. It suggests a framework that agencies can use to assess their current policies and practices and develop plans to integrate Family to Family values, principles, and strategies into existing initiatives and activities. Family…

Describes the work of the Romanian Orphanage Trust, which is working in partnership with the Romanian government to develop a model foster care program. Discusses the scale of the challenge facing those attempting to build services for families and children in that country. (HTH)

This manual, which provides guidelines for effective adoption services for children in residential group child care who need new, permanent families, emphasizes interagency collaboration and communication as critical to effective adoptive plans. The manual is intended for public agency social workers responsible for placement and permanency…

Summarizes the objectives, conceptual model, results, and implications of a project called Foster Care Training: A Comprehensive Approach, in British Columbia, Canada, which was designed to illustrate ways in which a networking model can provide increased support and training for participating foster parents. (BB)

Provides descriptive information about visiting services developed by the Family Connection Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, that could serve as a model for the development of similar services in other communities. Describes the center's services to families with children in placement and program variations for divorced parents and their children.…

Highlights a failure on the part of social services to respond to the current needs of the child welfare system. Strongly advocates a commitment to concurrent planning, defined here as the process of working toward family reunification while at the same time establishing an alternative plan, usually in the form of permanency with a relative or…

Describes international programs developed in collaboration with Holt International Children's Services, a nongovernmental organization fostering international adoptions and assisting in developing child care programs and practices, in the Philippines, Thailand, India, and Romania. Considers strategies used for program development, including…

Describes the experience of the Philadelphia Kinship Care Task Force's collaborative process between political, public, and private communities to respond to the emergence of kinship care. Describes the achievements including a national summit, initiation of dialog on policy and program aspects, and formation of legislative and administrative…