Category: Foster Care
Accurate and transparent adoption and foster care data are essential to understanding the state of the U.S. child welfare system and the needs of the children and families it serves. Each year, the...
Download the PDF Version "When should I talk to my child about their parents?" "How much should I tell my child about the circumstances of their birth?" "What if my child has a b...
For years, research has shown that children are spending increasing amounts of time in foster care. By the end of FY 2022, children who remained in foster care had already spent an average of 22.5 ...
Download the PDF Version What is kinship adoption? Definition: Kinship adoption refers to the formal legal process when a child is adopted by their grandparents, aunts, uncles, godparen...
This post was updated in January 2026 to give you the most current information. NCFA has been a strong advocate of the Adoption Tax Credit (ATC) since its inception, as a fiscally responsible way t...
Download the PDF Version Quick Look: What's New in NTDC? You Asked, We Listened! Training materials are now available with Spanish translation! New and expanded content, incl...
For the most up-to-date information on the Adoption Tax Credit, including the credit and refundability amounts, please click here. The Adoption Tax Credit can significantly offset the costs and fee...
Download the PDF Version Introduction This article summarizes findings from a study of barriers to finalizing adoptions for prospective adoptive parents (PAPs), identified by a research...
Download the PDF Version Introduction For many parents considering adoption, the idea of adopting a child who has been exposed to drugs prenatally presents one of the greatest potential...
Alexandria, VA - The team at National Council For Adoption (NCFA) endorses legislation (S. 1458/H.R. 2833) introduced this week that, if enacted, would support more families who adopt children in n...
Download the PDF Version Editor's Note: As of July 2025, the Adoption Tax Credit is now partially refundable. Updated information on the Adoption Tax Credit is available here. Adoption...
Download the PDF Version Did you know that 30% of the children currently in the U.S. foster care system are waiting to be adopted? This equates to more than 100,000 children, with 27% h...
We see every day the impact adoption can have on children in foster care, especially youth waiting the longest. But to fully understand the true power of adoption, it's important to recognize what ...
how to adopt Considering adoption? You probably have a lot of questions. How does the process work? Do I qualify? What are the options? How can I afford adoption? Isn't it really expensive? Who d...
ALEXANDRIA, VA (June 21, 2022) - National Council For Adoption was proud to present the 2022 Warren and Mary Alice Babineaux Award to Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Indiana Department of Chil...
Renewed discussion of racial inequality throughout the U.S. has revitalized attention to racial disproportionalities in the child welfare system and how they might best be addressed. The Multiethni...
Transparent and effective child advocacy requires adoption agencies to weigh important ethical considerations and follow best practices. In this issue of the Adoption Advocate, Jennifer Lanter and ...
Download PDF At various times throughout the year, we are immersed as a culture in times of annual celebration that are strongly linked to traditions, memories, friends, and family. Whi...
In 2019, 23 percent of all children in foster care were 13-17 years old, and nearly 6 percent of those were adopted that same year.1 While international adoptions have declined overall since 2005,...
National Council For Adoption (NCFA) is pleased to name the late Becky Weichhand of Stevensville, Michigan as the 2020 recipient of the Warren and Mary Alice Babineaux Award for her pass...
Our thanks to guest blogger Rob Scheer, the 2019 recipient of NCFA's which honors individuals and organizations who have gone to extraordinary lengths to ensure children who have been placed in fos...
Uplifting Youth Voices During National Foster Care Month & COVID-19 Entering this new chapter of leadership at the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI), I am excited to enga...
Home has taken on new meaning the past few weeks. We stay home to protect the broader community. We’re working from home. Having birthdays at home. And for many, a stable place to call home might ...
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has released their Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System data for FY 2018, capturing data from October 1, 2017, to September ...
May is National Foster Care Month. In this month's issue of NCFA's Adoption Advocate, Dr. Wayne Sharp lays out the enormous social and economic cost when youth age out of foster care - as approxim...