Over the past decade, more than 1,500 Ohio children who waited in foster care now have permanent homes, thanks to a program focused on placing older kids, ages 12 to 15, who typically have a more difficult path to a permanent home. Ohio Department of Job and Family Services director Matt Damschroder said the program s recruiters have smaller caseloads, and are tasked with regularly visiting and connecting with a child, in addition to reaching out to extended family members, teachers and other adults in a kid s life that might be the right match for adoption. "Certainly there are programs and supports in place to help that young person transition from being a foster youth into adulthood," he said. " .
North Carolina is among the states where the child population has increased, but nationwide numbers suggest a decline in children, which could potentially impact education, health care, and the workforce. According to a report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, more than 1 million children were not reported in the 2020 census. .
Ohio hit an adoptions milestone with the help of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, where more than 1,500 children have been placed into permanent homes.
With a new legislative session on the horizon and new legislators after the November elections, the Coalition for a Strong Nebraska is bringing policymakers, nonprofits, service providers and state agencies together to find solutions to the most pressing issues facing Nebraskans. Laurie Ponce, director of the Coalition, said a main emphasis of the gathering will be finding ways to give children the best chance to succeed by keeping kids with their families and away from Child Protective Services. "We find that kids in the long run do better if they are not put into the system, if they are not made state wards," Ponce observed. " .