Equity

Diligent recruitment efforts should prioritize advancing equity to address the effects of the disproportionate representation of Black, Indigenous, and Latinx youth in child welfare. These efforts should focus on improving the disparate outcomes for LGBTQIA+ and older youth leaving care.  

Diligent recruitment involves child welfare agencies using data-driven, comprehensive best practices to identify and engage foster and adoptive families who reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the children in their agency care and who can meet their needs. Diligent recruitment prioritizes kinship care, uses an equity lens in developing processes and procedures, and emphasizes youth voice and input from those with lived expertise.

The resources on this page will help you learn about:

• The importance of kinship care in helping preserve cultural bonds. 
• Why it is important to consider race and culture in permanency decisions. 
• Strategies for engaging families of color. 
• Frameworks for engaging youth in their own permanency planning.