Publications and resources

Our publications, tip sheets, and webinars were developed by experts in the child welfare field to help you find safe, permanent homes for children in foster care.

In this section, you will find resources on the following topics:

• Finding families: tips about general recruitment, identifying families for teens and siblings, and using media and social media to raise awareness
• Supporting families: providing respite services, implementing family support programs, and improving customer service
• Working with diverse communities: cultural competence; recruiting families for Native children; working with LGBT families and youth and families in the military and living in rural communities
• Making interjurisdictional placements: strategies and tools to make successful placements
• Diligent recruitment tools: resources to help recruit, develop, and support families, including the Diligent Recruitment Navigator

New and popular publications

•  New! Creating Effective Narratives for Children Waiting to Be Adopted (1 MB PDF)
  Updated guidance for writing compelling public narratives that protect children’s safety, privacy, and dignity
• New! Creating Strengths-Based Profiles for Children and Youth Waiting to Be Adopted; a Guide for Administrators and Managers (2 MB PDF)
  Information about how to shape systems to ensure the most effective—and protective—public profiles of children waiting to be adopted.
• Finding a Fit that Will Last a Lifetime: A Guide to  Connecting Adoptive Families With Waiting Children (402 KB PDF) / en español (280 KB PDF)
• Effective ways of bringing waiting children and families together, with insights shared by families, youth, and professionals
• Wherever My Family Is, That’s Home! Adoption Services for Military Families (1.8 MB PDF )
  Making quality and timely adoption services readily available for military families
• What is Diligent Recruitment? (164 KB PDF)
  Tip sheet providing a list of elements to include in a diligent recruitment plan and program
• Improving Recruitment Outcomes: 11 Things a Practitioner Can Do (206 KB PDF) Steps recruiters can take to find and keep more foster and adoptive families
• Characteristics of Successful Recruitment Practitioners (198 KB PDF)
  Qualities of effective recruiters

Also visit the website of the National Resource Center for Diligent Recruitment.