Most of us lean on our family and friends in times of need. Recognizing the value of these relationships, child welfare agencies are shifting to better support kinship care—a practice where youth are raised by family or trusted adults when the birth parents aren't an option. Kinship care has been around far longer than the child welfare system, but efforts to place more children in care with people who know and love them have accelerated in recent years. This growing recognition inspired a recent gathering that may redefine the future of child welfare in the United States.

In March 2024, the National Convening on Kinship Care in Washington, D.C., co-hosted by Think of Us and the U.S. Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Children’s Bureau, assembled policymakers, advocates, practitioners, and child welfare agency directors and leaders—representing 20% of the youth in the child welfare system—to celebrate recent wins and discuss new ways to enhance support for kinship families.

Children in kinship care experience more stability, better mental health outcomes, and a higher likelihood of graduating high school on time. As a result, this approach is widely favored across the United States. 90% of Americans support prioritizing family members as caregivers and believe they should receive the same resources as traditional foster parents.

In November 2023, the Biden Administration introduced new federal rules to support this shift – unlocking an estimated $3 billion over 10 years. These rules give states the flexibility to match their processes to the unique needs of kin caregivers, so more children can be placed with kin and kin caregivers can receive the same financial support as other foster care providers. 

Key Takeaways from the National Convening 

To build on this momentum, the convening dug into the day-to-day challenges and strengths of kin caregivers and the hurdles and opportunities shaping the future of kinship care. Opening remarks were delivered by several leaders, including ACF Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Jeff Hild, Commissioner of Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF) Rebecca Jones Gaston, Associate Commissioner of the Children’s Bureau Aysha E. Schomburg, and Think of Us Founder and CEO Sixto Cancel.

“What children get when they're raised by their grandparents, by kin, by relatives, is the benefit of their wisdom,” said ACYF Commissioner Jones Gaston. “The benefit of perseverance and the benefit of love. And by strengthening these family bonds, maintaining them, supporting them, we help children maintain connections to their people and their culture.” 

Children’s Bureau Associate Commissioner Schomburg shared: “I know everyone in this room would step up and take care of ours in a minute. So let kin caregivers take care of theirs and be in support of that. Use your power to make sure that they have what they need to take care of our children.”

The convening unfolded in four panels, with the people most impacted leading the way.

Moderated by child welfare advocate Sonia Emerson, the first panel, “Voices of Kinship: Navigating the Journey,” began with exploring the experiences of kin caregivers and youth placed with them.

“I would be the result of what kinship care can do,” said Jimmel Ebanks, fourth-year college student from Los Angeles, California who was raised by extended family members. “I made it to college – and I’m almost finished. I'm 24 now, and I now have legal guardianship over my great niece, who is two. And, my mom helps take care of her too!” 

The next session, “Modernizing Kinship Care: Shaping the Future of Family Support,” led by Ana Beltran, director of the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network, explored the evolving standards and practices within kinship care. 

“One of the things we're very proud to talk about in Oklahoma is that 50% of our children who are in foster care are in kinship care. That's because we actually took the federal government up on its challenge, to create a statutory framework that could allow for this,” said Brittany Hunt-Jassey, Administrator of Integrated Legal Services for Child Welfare Services, Oklahoma Human Services.

The third session of the day, “Bridging Gaps: Kinship Care in Practice and Policy,” was guided by Think of Us Senior Advisor of Policy Innovation Steven Olender, and dove into kinship care’s practical and policy dimensions. 

“I think about kinship care as a hallmark of prevention,” said David Simmons, director of government affairs and advocacy at the National Indian Child Welfare Association. “We can't change what happened in the past. But if we want to change moving forward with what's going to happen in the future, and we want kids to be connected and happy, it's a prevention activity.”

“When I got to Allegheny County, I wouldn't have ever thought of any other way than a predominant kinship care model,” Erin Dalton, director of the Allegheny County Department of Human Services shared. “Families have always been first in my education around child welfare. 68% of our kids experience kinship care.”

Moderated by Think of Us Founder Sixto Cancel, the final panel of the day, “Beliefs and Behaviors: Addressing the Core Threat to Kinship Care Transformation,” tackled the entrenched beliefs and mental models that often hinder the effective implementation of kinship care. Panelists shared perspectives on the need for a paradigm shift in how families are seen and supported, focusing on moving from blame and vilification to compassion, care, and love that fosters a supportive environment for youth.

Moving forward, Think of Us and its partners will continue supporting the states and tribes that are considering or have begun to take advantage of the new federal flexibilities regarding kinship care and to implement new policies and practices to support kin. For those interested in supporting or learning more about kinship care, explore essential resources from Think of Us partners to help make a difference in the lives of children and families.