THE ADOPTION EXCHANGE ASSOCIATION TO LEAD NATIONAL EFFORT TO RECRUIT ...continued

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Children’s Bureau again selects The Collaboration to AdoptUsKids as the recipient of a five-year Cooperative Agreement with an award of $3,669,500 in FY08.

Following a very successful five years, the Adoption Exchange Association (AEA) has again been selected by the Children’s Bureau to lead AdoptUsKids, a national initiative to partner with States and Tribes to recruit foster and adoptive families for children in foster care.  According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there are more than 500,000 children in foster care in the United States.  Approximately 114,000 of those children will not be able to return to their parents and are waiting for families to adopt them. 

In 2002, the Children’s Bureau made its award to AEA, and The Collaboration to AdoptUsKids was launched.  Founding partners of The Collaboration to AdoptUsKids include AEA, The Adoption Exchange, Inc. (Aurora, CO), Northwest Adoption Exchange (Seattle, WA), Child Welfare League of America (Arlington, VA), Holt International (Eugene, CO), and University of Texas at Austin. 

During the first five years of The Collaboration to AdoptUsKids :  1)  more than 8,000 children who were featured on adoptuskids.org were placed with adoptive families; and 2) almost 40,000 prospective parents inquired about becoming licensed to foster or adopt.  Dixie Davis, AEA President, says "The AEA is determined that no child in America be without a family.  We are proud to coordinate the efforts of over 205 adoption service organizations from across the country in this important service of The Children's Bureau."  During the next five years, The Collaboration to AdoptUsKids will build upon its success to achieve the following:

• At least 70 on-site days of training and technical assistance annually to States and Tribes
• Creation of an Interjurisdictional Information Network to facilitate the adoption of children across county and state lines
• Over 6,000 children each year listed on www.adoptuskids.org
• Enhancements to adoptuskids.org and adopte1.org that will increase use of the English and Spanish-language websites by professionals and families
• Increased retention of foster and adoptive parents through the development of effective and replicable respite programs to serve parents in their local communities.

Elements of the Collaboration that make these tremendous accomplishments possible include:  two national adoption website ( www.adoptuskids.org, and www.adopte1.org); a national media campaign in English and Spanish; training and technical assistance; Recruitment Response Teams; publications; foster and adoptive parent support; an evaluation component, and national meetings, including Workgroup and Summits.
Since it began five years ago, the Collaboration to AdoptUsKids involved more than 205 organizations across the country in its national charge to find adoptive families for children.  AEA is grateful and honored to receive the award again, and we look forward to continuing to partner with all of you to find adoptive families for children in foster care.

[back to top]