Recruiting and Supporting Families for TeensNovember 2, 2018

Melissa OteroTracy SerdjenianElizabeth BresciaAlicia Groh

About AdoptUSKids

Our mission:• Raise public awareness about the need

for foster and adoptive families for children in the public child welfare system

• Assist states, territories, and tribes to recruit, engage, develop, and support foster and adoptive families

About us

Introducing our team of presenters

Focus for this workshop

• Highlighting the value of a coordinated approach for recruiting, developing, and supporting families for teens

Goals for this workshop

• Address the need for more families for teens

• Share specific strategies, tools, and resources that help child welfare systems recruit families for teens

• Share specific strategies and resources for preparing and supporting families and teens for adoption

• Learn from each other and share ideas

Who’s in the room?

• Your role• What you hope to get out of the

workshop

National Adoption Recruitment Campaign

• Campaign objectives• Target audience• Strategic focus

National Adoption Recruitment Campaign

• Campaign creative materials

National Adoption Recruitment Campaign

• 2018 Campaign PSAs – TV• Video infographic – localizable• Other social elements

– examples

National Adoption Recruitment Campaign

• Campaign toolkit – http://adoptuskids.adcouncilkit.org/

National Adoption Recruitment Campaign

• Human interest videos – Crenshaws– Liz and Ashley– In development

National Adoption Recruitment Campaign

• Ways to leverage the campaign– Orientations– Trainings– Online

National Adoption Recruitment Campaign

• Tips and tactics – Promoting the campaign with local

mediahttp://adoptuskids.adcouncilkit.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/52/2016/11/MediaTipsAndTactics.pdf

AdoptUSKids’ family finding tools

• Ability to search for families for teens• Demonstrating the tools

Speakers Bureau

• What is a speakers bureau?• Our philosophy • Purpose of a speakers bureau• Benefits of a speakers bureau

Speakers Bureau

• Speakers bureau development– Goals– Recruitment– Recruit, Engage, Develop, Inform,

Support

Speakers Bureau

• Best practices – What do you need?– Database – Formal approval process

Speakers Bureau

• Best practices– Media training – Preparation – Ongoing engagement

Speakers Bureau

• Best practices – Youth– Parents– Professionals

Speakers Bureau

• Best practices – Relationship-based– Opportunities– Follow-up/thank you

Speakers Bureau

• Leveraging the AdoptUSKids speakers bureau– Media training – Access to 100+ trained speakers – Media, events, personal stories – Human-interest stories – Other

Developing and supporting families for teens

• Finding families for teens means going beyond recruitment

• What we mean by “developing and supporting families”

• Helping families explore and self-assess option of parenting teens

Developing and supporting families for teens

• Sharing information during response and orientation with prospective parents about teens in foster care (e.g., how many, goal of permanency for all youth, what happens when youth age out)

• Giving prospective parents the chance to connect with teens– Including teens in orientation sessions – Including teens in pre-service training (in

person or recorded videos) to share personal perspectives

Developing and supporting families for teens

• Providing information to families about support and resources available to families who adopt teens (e.g., tuition assistance, help with getting a teen a driver’s license, support groups for families with teens, support services for teens)

• Offering ongoing trainings and support to help families with teens build their skills (e.g., training on developmental stages, peer support from other families with teens)

Developing and supporting families for teens

• Hearing from you: What else would help prepare and support families for parenting teens?

Engaging and preparing teens for adoption

• Importance of including teens in their permanency planning– Start early and have ongoing

conversations; not a one-time discussion– Explore ways to engage teens in their own

recruitment (e.g., writing their profiles, developing recruitment materials, reading family profiles on photolistings)

Engaging and preparing teens for adoption

• Prepare teens for the idea of being adopted– Explain what adoption and permanency

means, both in general and what it can mean for them

– Ask them about their questions, hopes, and concerns

– Include other important people in their life in discussions about being adopted (e.g., siblings, other workers, foster parents)

– Involve teens in planning and timing for adoption (e.g., visits, transition to adoptive family)

Engaging and preparing teens for adoption

• Helpful resource: Talking With Older Youth About Adoption (tip sheet): www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/talking/

Engaging and preparing teens for adoption

• Giving youth a voice on permanency—for themselves and others– Provide opportunities for teens in foster

care to have a voice in recruitment planning and recruitment messages about families for teens

– Can help strengthen recruitment efforts, provide leadership and development opportunities for teens, and provides model for other teens about valuing permanency

Group discussion

• What are you doing to recruit, develop, and support families for teens?

Highlighting resources and assistance from AdoptUSKids

• Family support materials

• Recorded webinars, including 2018 National Adoption Month webinar on youth voices

• Speakers bureau information

• Tailored capacity-building services

• Website and newsletters

Contact us

Melissa OteroAdoptUSKids National Campaign Directormotero@adoptuskids.org

Tracy SerdjenianAdoptUSKids Director of Capacity Building and Engagementtserdjenian@adoptex.org

AdoptUSKids is operated by the Adoption Exchange Association and is made possible by grant number 90CO1133 from the Children’s Bureau. The contents of this presentation are solely the responsibility of the Adoption Exchange Association and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Children’s Bureau, ACYF, ACF, or HHS.