A Bulletin for 

professionals

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Administration for Children and Families

Administration on Children, Youth and Families

Children’s Bureau

Child Welfare Information Gateway

Children’s Bureau/ACYF

1250 Maryland Avenue, SW

Eighth Floor

Washington, DC 20024

703.385.7565 or 800.394.3366

Email: info@childwelfare.gov

www.childwelfare.gov

Enhancing 

Permanency for 

Older Youth in 

Out-of-Home Care

What’s Inside:

The importance of focusing on older 

youth

Barriers to permanency for older 

youth

Strategies for permanency planning 

with youth

Promising programs

Resources

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Finding permanent families for older children 

and youth in out-of-home care continues to 

need a strong focus from foster care workers 

and other child welfare professionals. National 

statistics show that older children stay in 

foster care longer and achieve permanency 

at lower rates than younger children. Those 

youth who “age out” of the foster care system 

often leave with few skills, minimal education, and inadequate preparation for living as 

productive, independent adults.

June 2006
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Responding to the challenge, many States and 

local jurisdictions have begun to focus on this 

population, implementing programs specifically designed to help older youth establish 

permanent connections. Many of these programs help youth build on relationships they 

have established throughout their lives with 

kin, foster parents, teachers, social workers, 

and others; other programs help youth establish new relationships that can lead to permanent family connections. 

This bulletin addresses the specific challenges 

of permanency planning with older youth, 

highlighting successful models and activities. 

 The Importance of 

Focusing on Older Youth

Approximately half of the children in foster 

care are 11 years or older (U.S. Department 

of Health and Human Services [DHHS], 2005). 

Older youth in the foster care system remain 

in the system disproportionately longer than 

younger children, and their chances for achieving permanency decrease as they get older. 

Youth who age out of foster care have been 

in care an average of three times longer than 

children who leave foster care to join permanent families; at the time they exit foster care 

to independence, half have been in care for 

45 months (3.75 years) or more. In order for 

States to decrease the numbers of children in 

foster care and move children and youth to 

permanent families more quickly, a concentrated effort must be made to address the 

large group of older children.

All States need to address the problem of permanency for older youth in order to comply 

with outcomes on the Federal Child and 

Family Services Reviews (CFSRs). The National 

Resource Center for Youth Development conducted an analysis of findings from the CFSRs 

to identify trends concerning older youth in 

foster care (Winkle, Ansell, & Newman, 2004). 

While a majority of States had strengths on 

CFSR items that specifically mentioned youth, 

barriers to permanency were noted, including 

gaps in services for adolescents, lack of placement resources for adolescents, and problems 

with the quality and consistency of independent living planning.

Barriers to Permanency 

for Older Youth

Older youth in foster care face a number of 

barriers to achieving permanency that are 

specific to their age group. Recognizing these 

challenges may help child welfare workers 

seek solutions that can facilitate permanent 

families and connections for these youth.

Policies and attitudes may not reflect an 

emphasis on permanency for youth. Workers 

in programs for older youth often note resistance among many child welfare and court 

professionals to spending time and money 

on establishing permanency for older youth, 

whom these professionals may consider 

“unadoptable.” 

Case planning may be inadequate for permanency. The continued use of sequential 

case planning can slow the permanency 

process. When an agency waits until parental 

rights have been terminated before considering alternative permanency plans, the permanent family connection for a child or youth 
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is delayed. In addition, agencies may focus 

primarily on providing independent living 

services to youth, believing that these services 

meet expectations for working towards permanency. While independent living services are 

important in preparing youth for adulthood, 

they are not sufficient to connect youth with 

permanent families. 

There are not enough families recruited to 

foster and adopt teens. Most agencies need 

to place a greater emphasis on identifying 

families who are willing to provide homes for 

teens. There is often a lack of focused recruitment for this group; in addition, adolescents 

and older youth who need families are often 

invisible to the community (Mallon, 2005). 

Youth initially may be resistant to permanency planning. Many youth show initial 

resistance to permanency planning that 

involves the termination of their birth parents’ 

rights, because they still feel emotional ties 

to their families. They may fear embarking 

on a relationship with a new family because 

of repeated past disappointments. Youth 

may not understand the long-term consequences of not having a family to turn to as 

a young adult. Finally, certain older youth 

may be difficult to place because of ongoing 

behavioral issues.

The court process may slow or frustrate 

efforts toward permanency. Even when 

agencies and workers are focused on permanency for youth, their efforts can be hindered 

by court processes that are slow or by judges 

who are reluctant to terminate parental rights. 

Judges also may not be aware of the viability 

of finding adoptive families for older youth. 

Another barrier in some cases may be the lack 

of a good working relationship between child 

welfare workers and courts. 

 Strategies for 

Permanency Planning 

With Youth

Supported by Federal legislation, States and 

localities have worked to develop programs 

and practices that offer better permanent 

outcomes for older youth in foster care and 

services for successful transition to adulthood. 

The following are some strategies that have 

emerged from the literature.

Strengthen Family Preservation/

Reunification Services

Maintaining the child safely in the home 

with the birth family remains the first priority. For youth still living at home but at risk of 

being removed due to their own behavior or 

a parent’s behavior, family preservation services may help to support the children and 

the parents, so that these youth can remain 

in their homes. The array of services needed 

depends on each family’s circumstances but 

may include:

Family support services that build on family 

strengths

Coordination with other community services 

Services or training specifically tailored for 

the parent or youth

Mental health services for the youth

Most youth have a goal of reunification with 

their birth families, and support services to 

promote this goal should be provided to 

youth in out-of-home care and their families. 

Such services should be part of the case plan 

that addresses the unique circumstances 

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and needs of each youth and family, so that 

safe and successful reunification can be supported. Reunification can still be an option for 

youth who have been in care for years, as the 

elapsed time may have allowed the family to 

address the issues that brought the youth into 

care. However, in cases where steps toward 

reunification have not been successful, reunification should not be used as a default option 

for youth who are aging out of care without 

other permanency options.

A practice that has shown success with a 

number of families in promoting family preservation, permanency, and connectedness 

for youth is family group decision-making

(FGDM). In FGDM, extended family members 

and other important people in the life of the 

youth come together to establish and implement a plan for the safety, well-being, and 

permanency of the child or youth. Typically, a 

family conference is arranged and facilitated 

by a child welfare worker or agency. The family 

meets to develop or revise a permanency 

plan, including the roles of family members 

in implementing the plan. The proposed 

plan must ultimately be approved by the 

agency (and court, if there is court involvement); however, the family’s participation 

helps to garner their commitment to the youth 

and to the plan’s success. A recent synopsis 

of research on FGDM found the following 

(Merkel-Holguin, Nixon, & Burford, 2003):

A number of studies reported reduction in 

re-abuse rates for families who participated 

in FGDM, compared to those who did not.

Families involved in FGDM showed an 

increase in relative care.

Children and youth involved with FGDM 

experienced either a minimal or a 

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decreased number of moves, compared 

with traditional samples.

Some studies showed that FGDM resulted 

in greater chances for family reunification.

FGDM increased family supports and 

helped family functioning.

FGDM increased the involvement of fathers 

and paternal relatives.

One resource for FGDM is the website of the 

National Center on Family Group Decision 

Making, a program of American Humane, 

found at www.americanhumane.org/fgdm. 

Other resources for FGDM are available on 

the website of the National Resource Center 

for Family-Centered Practice and Permanency 

Planning at http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/

socwork/nrcfcpp/info_services/family-groupconferencing.html. 

Consider Open Adoptions

While adoption is the most legally permanent 

family arrangement, some youth may resist it 

because they believe it requires severing relationships with their birth parents or siblings. 

Open adoptions allow for both a permanent 

legal family for the youth and continued connections with birth parents, siblings, or other 

relatives. 

Make Kinship Care a Priority

While informal kinship care has always been an 

option for some families, more formal arrangements, made by the child welfare system, have 

become more prevalent since the late 1980s. 

Most States now have policies that require 

agencies to seek out placement with relatives 

when possible (Geen, 2003a). In terms of permanency, the Adoption and Safe Families Act 

(ASFA) of 1997 provided guidance to States 

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in recognizing the importance of permanent 

placements with relatives as a permanency 

option (Geen, 2003b). In cases where the caregiving arrangement requires the child to stay 

with the family into adulthood, the family may 

pursue guardianship or adoption. 

Relatives of youth and other adults important 

to them can take some effort to locate but 

may be happy to be found. The literature is 

replete with anecdotes of relatives and others 

who had lost contact with youth or who had 

tried to maintain contact but were rebuffed 

by child welfare agencies in the past. When 

located and asked to provide a permanent 

connection or to be involved in helping the 

youth transition, many were delighted to do 

so. Paternal relatives may not have received 

adequate emphasis initially from the child 

welfare system, but may provide the needed 

family connection.

States vary in the services and support they 

offer to kinship caregivers. When the caregivers are licensed foster parents, they may 

receive the standard foster parent stipend for 

their jurisdiction. Some States have alternative arrangements for kinship caretakers that 

provide various levels of support. 

Offer Guardianship and Subsidized 

Guardianship as Options

For youth who are reluctant to have legal ties 

permanently severed with their birth parents, 

even when the birth parents are unable to 

care for them, the option of guardianship may 

provide the necessary legal and permanent 

family. Guardians may be relatives or nonrelatives, when provided for in State law, who 

assume parental responsibility and authority for the youth, as established by a court. 

A limited number of States have applied for 

and received time-limited Federal waivers that 

provide them with more flexibility in using 

Federal funding, and they offer subsidized 

guardianship programs. Other States fund 

guardianship programs with their own State 

money. This type of program may enable caregivers who have been receiving a foster care 

subsidy to become legal guardians without 

losing necessary financial support. 

Expand Permanency Options

Ideally, permanency for youth should include 

a permanent legal connection to a family, 

such as reuniting with birth parents, adoption, 

kinship care, or legal guardianship. However, 

when these options are less likely, workers may 

want to help youth pursue other permanent 

connections concurrently with caring adults. 

Such adults may provide lifelong support that 

will help the youth in transitioning to adulthood. Youth may build on connections with 

maternal and paternal kin, teachers, former 

foster parents, employers, and others for 

support, and eventually may be able to pursue 

a legal connection. In such instances, formalizing the permanent connection can help 

clarify what the youth can expect from the 

caring adult.

A study with California youth in care gave 

youth the chance to talk about their views on 

permanency (Sanchez, 2004). Not only did 

youth desire permanent connections, but they 

also made distinctions among the different 

types of permanency. When choosing among 

relational, physical, and legal permanence, 

most youth felt that relational permanence 

was most important.

Two resources that may be helpful are:

The Permanency Pact developed by 

FosterClub (www.fosterclub.com) that iden-

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tifies 45 specific supports a permanency 

partner might offer a youth in transition 

from foster care

The National Foster Care Month website 

(www.fostercaremonth.org/Home) that 

offers resources for families about how to 

become involved in youths’ lives in ways 

that can lead to permanency

Implement Concurrent Planning

Sequential case planning may involve delays 

in permanency outcomes for youth in out-ofhome care. For most children and youth, the 

primary goal is family reunification. With concurrent planning, a secondary goal is pursued 

simultaneously. If the secondary goal is placement with relatives, child welfare workers 

can begin to identify and contact relatives 

even while continuing to work toward family 

reunification. 

For information on concurrent planning, see:

Child Welfare Information Gateway’s 

Concurrent Planning: What the Evidence 

Shows at http://www.childwelfare.gov/

pubs/issue_briefs/concurrent_evidence/

index.cfm

The National Resource Center for FamilyCentered Practice and Permanency 

Planning website at www.hunter.cuny.edu/

socwork/nrcfcpp/info_services/concurrentpermanency-planning.html

Recruit Foster and Adoptive 

Families for Older Children

Recruitment efforts for foster and adoptive families for older youth may focus on 

(1) getting the message to the public about 

older children available for fostering or adoption, (2) the benefits of adopting older youth, 

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and (3) finding permanent connections for 

specific children. Recruiting foster parents for 

older youth carries great potential for finding 

permanent adoptive or guardianship families 

for these youth: In FY 2003, foster parents 

became adoptive parents for more than 60 

percent of the children who were adopted 

from foster care that year (U.S. DHHS, 2005).

The use of the media to present children 

waiting for adoption has grown tremendously. 

Photolisting on the Internet has become a 

prevalent practice that provides information 

to anyone with Internet access. Prospective 

families reading the listings find enough 

information on a particular youth to pique 

their interest so that they follow up with the 

youth’s agency. The AdoptUsKids photolisting 

service (www.adoptuskids.org), in English and 

Spanish, is a national photolisting campaign 

funded by the U.S. Department of Health and 

Human Services. In addition, agencies have 

found some success with television campaigns 

such as Wednesday’s Child, print campaigns, 

and videos and videoconferencing.

Marketing to families most likely to adopt 

children from foster care also has become 

popular. Several organizations have begun 

to make use of both marketing (media presentations, bulletin boards, etc.) and market 

research, which is used to identify families or 

communities most likely to adopt (Capriccioso, 

2004). Those families can then be targeted 

through direct advertising methods. 

Creating opportunities for families and adults 

to come into contact with adolescents who 

need homes is the key to broadening the pool 

of potential adopters. Activities sponsored by 

the John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence 

Program like job fairs, teen conferences, 

employment mentoring, and life skill groups 
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provide excellent opportunities for youth to 

meet caring adults who might become permanent connections. Adults who may never 

have considered adopting may become more 

open to the idea once they meet a particular 

child in need. Supportive relationships, such as 

mentoring, may also become long-term placements when adults find they have grown more 

connected to the youth.

Other ways of creating opportunities to bring 

youth and prospective families together 

include adoption parties in which waiting 

youth and families meet during scheduled fun 

activities. In some cases, agencies or States 

have organized events in which workers for 

waiting youth meet workers for prospective 

families with completed home studies.

Involve Youth in Their Plans

The literature shows that involving youth in 

planning for their own permanency outcomes 

can greatly facilitate the process. The use of a 

team approach in which the adolescent is an 

active team member can help identify possible permanency resources. Youth can supply 

information about family members, distant 

and near, as well as other people (e.g., teachers, former foster families, neighbors) with 

whom they feel a connection. In addition, 

talking to youth and actively involving them in 

the permanency planning process can help to 

prepare them for the transition to a new family 

or situation. Youth who are involved in the 

planning process may take more responsibility for the success of the arrangement. One 

resource for involving youth in permanency 

planning is FYI Binder from Foster Club (http://

www.­fosterclub.com/fyi3/binder/flash/binder.

cfm). 

Focus on Pre- and 

Postplacement Services

The provision of appropriate and timely services may make the difference in whether permanency outcomes are successful for youth. 

Preplacement services should focus on:

Helping youth understand the long-term 

benefits of having a permanent family

Helping both the youth and the family 

decide whether the placement is desirable

Providing the family with full background 

information about the youth

Helping the youth and family determine 

how connections to birth family members 

will be maintained (in most cases)

Planning for the youth’s educational, health, 

and other needs

Preparing both the family and the youth for 

typical transition issues

The availability of postplacement services 

may make adoption possible for many families and youth that require financial assistance and services after adoption. (See the 

Child Welfare Information Gateway publication Postadoption Services: A Bulletin for 

Professionals at http://www.­childwelfare.

gov/pubs/­f_­postadoptbulletin/index.cfm.) 

Adoptive families may need services in any 

number of areas, including:

Financial assistance or subsidies (most children adopted from foster care are eligible 

for subsidies)

Community services (including medical or 

mental health services, educational services, and respite care)

Support groups (including those for parents 

and those for youth) 

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Provide Staff Enhancements

Staff who are overburdened with caseloads are 

not able to provide optimum services to youth 

and families. A summary of CFSR findings 

identified frequency and quality of caseworker 

visits to youth and birth families as being significantly associated with better permanency 

outcomes (U.S. DHHS, 2004). In addition, 

stability of caseworker assignment can impact 

casework. Frequent changes in the worker 

assigned to a case may result in disruptions in 

permanency planning for youth (Landsman, 

Tyler, Black, Malone, & Groza, 1999).

Training for staff should include training in 

working with teens and in recruiting and 

working with families for teens. Robert Lewis 

and Maureen Heffernan (2000) note a number 

of training topics for supervisors to cover in 

training staff to find permanent homes for 

adolescents:

Making the case for permanency to staff 

Permanency tools to use with teens 

Supporting permanency 

The National Child Welfare Resource Center 

for Adoption (http://www.nrcadoption.org/

index.htm) also offers training curricula for 

staff who work with teens through their Family 

Bound curriculum, which emphasizes cultural 

competency, knowledge of issues facing 

youth, easy rapport with youth, and a firm 

belief in the family permanence potential of 

all teens.

Promote Court Reform

The literature points to the court process as 

one of the impediments to achieving timely 

permanency outcomes for children and youth. 

The recommendations of the Pew Commission 

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on Children in Foster Care (2004) included 

a number of recommendations for improving the court system, such as the use of court 

performance measures, collaboration between 

courts and child welfare personnel, effective 

representation of children and families, and 

leadership from Chief Justices and other State 

court leaders to reform the system. More 

recently, a number of leading national judicial 

organizations partnered to produce a curriculum for caseflow management for cases involving children in foster care (Salyers, Somerlot, & 

Conner, 2005). The curriculum is designed to 

promote collaboration among court personnel, attorneys, and child welfare personnel so 

that they can develop strategies to address 

delays in the court process. A companion 

paper (Fiermonte & Salyers, 2005) explores 

the ways that courts across the country are 

collaborating with child welfare agencies to 

expedite the court process and improve permanency outcomes for children.

Promising Programs

A number of jurisdictions have begun to 

develop new programs that target older youth 

for adoption and other permanency outcomes. Federal waivers have made it easier 

for some States to use flexible funding to test 

pilot projects designed to help youth achieve 

permanency. In addition, Federal funding 

in the form of grants, such as the Children’s 

Bureau Discretionary Grant program, has provided funds for other innovative programs. 

In Fiscal Year 2005, the Children’s Bureau 

awarded 5-year cooperative agreements to 

nine organizations to develop, implement, 

evaluate, and disseminate information about 

programs that provide adoption services and 
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supports to youth who wish to retain contact 

with family members to improve permanency 

outcomes. This grant cluster is working closely 

with three Children’s Bureau National Resource 

Centers to promote information-sharing within 

the cluster and with the field. The grantees 

are focusing efforts in areas such as strategies 

to introduce the concept of open adoption to 

youth; strategies to connect youth with caring, 

responsible adults; and effective models of 

youth leadership and youth involvement in 

planning. 

Other, nonfederally funded, projects have 

grown out of State and local efforts. Three 

projects are described here.

New York City’s You Gotta 

Believe: Finding Permanent Homes 

to Prevent Homelessness

You Gotta Believe (YGB) is a New York-based 

program that places teens and preteens from 

foster care into permanent homes. Prospective 

families are trained and prepared to provide 

permanent, not temporary, homes, and 

receive certification for adoption.

How it works. YGB receives youth referrals 

from city, county, and other municipal foster 

care agencies (Louisell, 2004). Motivated 

agency workers give YGB access to the youth 

being referred so that YGB staff can begin 

to follow up on leads for permanent families. These youth can also participate in YGB 

activities, such as the YGB cable television 

show and other activities that present youth to 

prospective families.

YGB recruits families by sending out staff 

members, current and former foster youth, 

and experienced adoptive families to talk to 

groups at places such as churches, community board meetings, and street fairs. Training 

classes for prospective families are offered 

year-round in four locations. Families can join 

the 10-week training sessions at any point. 

These sessions are taught by YGB staff, adoptive parents, and youth and provide another 

opportunity for teens seeking permanent 

homes to meet prospective families. 

Once a teenager is placed with a family, YGB 

provides postadoption services in the form of 

ongoing group services, crisis intervention, 

and social activities (Louisell, 2004). A shadow 

postplacement worker is assigned by YGB to 

make at least weekly contact with the family. 

These workers are experienced adoptive 

parents who understand the problems that 

families encounter and are able to provide 

support. 

Funding. A variety of funding streams support 

this program. The City of New York provides 

the bulk of funding, but YGB staff supplement 

with money from speaking engagements. In 

addition, the Dave Thomas Foundation pays 

for the salaries of several part-time recruiters. YGB also received a Federal Adoption 

Opportunities grant in 2001.

Outcomes. Between its founding in 1995 

and 2001, YGB found permanent families for 

18 youths. After the receipt of funding from 

New York City and the Federal Government, 

beginning in 2001, more than 100 youths were 

placed with families. 

Contact information. 

Pat O’Brien, Director

You Gotta Believe

1728 Mermaid Avenue

Brooklyn, NY 11224

Phone: 800.601.1779

Email: ygbpat@msn.com 

Website: www.yougottabelieve.org 
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Massachusetts Families for 

Kids: Making Lifelong Family 

Connections for Adolescents

The Department of Social Services and 

Children’s Services of Roxbury’s Massachusetts 

Families for Kids (MFFK) program are working 

together to prevent teenagers in foster care 

from aging out of the system without a permanent family connection in their life. Lifelong 

Family Connections for Adolescents (LFCA), 

a statewide initiative, is designed to improve 

outcomes for older foster youth by helping 

them to identify and maintain a permanent 

connection with an adult.

How it works. LFCA uses seven components 

to help adolescents in foster care develop 

lifelong family connections:

A community of care review to develop 

the youth’s understanding of the need for 

permanence and to search for adults willing 

to commit to the youth

Specialized recruitment for adolescents who 

do not have a permanent connection within 

their own community of care

A family consultation team that includes 

the youth and significant adults and social 

service providers who produce a written 

plan for permanency 

“Family bound” training to help prepare 

adolescents to make permanent connections and transition from institutional to 

family settings

Parents As Tender Healers (PATH) training 

for adults

The MFFK Speak Out team to offer support 

and mentoring 

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Specialized postplacement services (LeBeau 

& Stevens, 2004)

Youth, age 14 to 18 years, are referred by 

social workers and join the program voluntarily. They are given responsibility for the 

process and are asked to identify people with 

whom they want a connection (Louisell, 2004). 

The MFFK staff encourage youth to try to 

make more than one connection, and the staff 

follow up on the leads that the youth identify. 

Postplacement services are funded separately, 

but MFFK staff maintain contact for 3 to 6 

months after placement. 

Funding. Initial funding for the pilot project 

in 2001 was provided by the Department of 

Social Services. Their success led to a State 

contract. In 2003, they received a Federal 

Adoption Opportunities grant, which runs 

through 2008. They also raise money through 

fundraising, training, and consultation 

(Louisell, 2004).

Outcomes. When the pilot project began in 

2001, 33 youths were referred, 24 received 

services, and all 24 made permanent connections (Louisell, 2004). Between 2003 and 

2004, 27 youth were referred, and 20 received 

services. With the receipt of the Federal 

Adoption Opportunities Grant, MFFK staff 

plan to have 125 youth referred, with 100 

receiving services (Louisell).

Contact information. 

Edwin Gonzalez, Program Director Lifelong 

Family Connections, Massachusetts Families 

for Kids

520 Dudley Street

Roxbury, MA 02119

Phone: 617.989.9444 or 413.586.2303, Ext. 14

Email: egonzalez@csrox.org 

Website: www.csrox.org/lfc.html

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Colorado’s Project UPLIFT: Caring 

Connections for Adolescents

Project UPLIFT (Understanding Permanency 

Lessons in Future Teamwork) Adolescent 

Connection was a 9-month pilot study in 2002-

2003 in five Colorado counties, with the aim of 

connecting adolescent youth with previously 

involved adults. Youth participants included 

a number who had significant barriers to 

permanency, including involvement with the 

juvenile justice system or behavioral/mental 

health issues.

How it worked. Fifty-six youth (average age 

14 years) living in out-of-home care worked 

with four Adolescent Connection workers to 

identify possible permanent connections. 

All possible connections were explored, and 

workers used a variety of methods to locate 

connections, including Internet search engines 

(Custer Enterprises, 2003). Four types of 

existing relationships were identified for each 

youth (birth parents, other kin, foster parents, 

and others), and 16 different levels of contact 

were established, ranging from “no contact” 

to “reunification with birth parents.” This 

allowed workers to “score” relationships and 

develop some estimation of both the number 

and the importance of the connections that 

were established for each youth.

Funding. The project was funded by a Federal 

Adoption Opportunities Grant.

Outcomes. Of the 56 youth, 47 made at least 

one connection. A total of 122 connections 

were documented for these youth, 75 percent 

of which were interjurisdictional. Twelve 

connections were adoptions or intentions to 

adopt, and two youth were being reunited 

with birth families. In addition, an evaluation of 

the financial savings provided by this program 

showed that the expected savings from the 

cost of residential and foster care for the 14 

youth who had made permanent placement 

connections would amount to $1,776,000 

(“Connecting adolescents,” 2004).

Contact information. 

Cheryl Jacobson 

Colorado Recruitment and Retention Specialist 

for Adoption and Foster Care Phone: 

303.866.4306 

Email: cheryl.jacobson@state.co.us

Summary

Ensuring that older youth do not leave foster 

care without a permanent family has become 

a focus for many child welfare workers and 

agencies. As States and agencies work toward 

this goal, supported by Federal legislation and 

funding, more evidence-based practice will 

become available to inform the field. Model 

programs and pilot projects such as You Gotta 

Believe, Lifelong Family Connections for 

Adolescents, and Project UPLIFT provide both 

practical information for policymakers and 

child welfare workers, as well as inspiration 

that older youth in out-of-home placements 

can find permanent families who will provide 

them with a lifetime of love and support.
Enhancing Permanency for Older Youth in Out-of-Home Care www.childwelfare.gov

12 This material may be freely reproduced and distributed. However, when doing so, please credit Child Welfare 

Information Gateway. Available online at www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/focus/enhancing/index.cfm.

References

Capriccioso, R. (2004, May 3). Marketing parenting. Retrieved June 2005 from www.connectforkids.

org/node/568 

Connecting adolescents to their past and future. (2004). Perspectives on Practice: A Newsletter 

for Colorado Child Welfare Professionals, Vol 1(1). Retrieved July 6, 2005, from www.

perspectivesonpractice.org/images/Printable%20Newsletter%20-%20Oct%2004.pdf 

Custer Enterprises. (2003). Project UPLIFT Adolescent Connection: Evaluation Report. 

Unpublished. 

Fiermonte, C., & Salyers, N. (2005). Improving outcomes together: Court and child welfare 

collaboration. Retrieved July 5, 2005, from the Judicial Education Reference, Information and 

Technical Transfer Project website: http://jeritt.msu.edu/Documents/ABA_Collaboration_Final

_06-21-05.pdf

Geen, R. (2003a). Kinship foster care: An ongoing, yet largely uninformed debate. In R. Geen 

(Ed.) Kinship care: Making the most of a valuable resource (pp. 1-23). Washington, DC: Urban 

Institute Press. 

Geen, R. (2003b). Permanency planning with kinship foster parents. In R. Geen (Ed.) Kinship care: 

Making the most of a valuable resource (pp. 153-178). Washington, DC: Urban Institute Press. 

Landsman, M. J., Tyler, M., Black, J., Malone, K., & Groza, V. (1999). The permanency for teens 

project. Iowa City: University of Iowa School of Social Work, National Resource Center for Family 

Centered Practice.

LeBeau, M., & Stevens, K. (2004, Summer). CSR/Massachusetts Families for Kids-Lifelong 

Family Connections: An adolescent permanency model. National Resource Center for Youth 

Development Update, pp. 5-7. Updated link retrieved March 2, 2007, from www.nrcys.ou.edu/

yd/eupdate/pdfs/yd_update_2004_sum.pdf

Lewis, R. G., & Heffernan, M. S. (2000). Adolescents and families for life: A toolkit for supervisors. 

Gloucester, MA: High Popples Press.

Louisell, M. (2004). Model programs for youth permanency. Retrieved July 6, 2005, from California 

Partnership for Youth Project website: www.cpyp.org/Files/ModelPrograms.pdf 

Mallon, G. (2005). Toolbox no. 3: Facilitating permanency for youth. Washington, DC: CWLA Press.
Enhancing Permanency for Older Youth in Out-of-Home Care www.childwelfare.gov

13 This material may be freely reproduced and distributed. However, when doing so, please credit Child Welfare 

Information Gateway. Available online at www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/focus/enhancing/index.cfm.

Merkel-Holguin, L., Nixon, P., & Burford, G. (2003). Learning with families: A synopsis of FGDM 

research and evaluation in child welfare. Protecting Children, 18(1&2), 2-11. Retrieved 

August 25, 2005, from www.americanhumane.org/site/DocServer/FGDM_Research_intro.

pdf?docID=1042 

Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care. (2004). Fostering the future: Safety, permanence and 

well-being for children. Retrieved July 5, 2005, from http://pewfostercare.org/research/docs/

FinalReport.pdf

Salyers, N., Somerlot, D., & Conner, M. (2005). A national curriculum for caseflow management 

in juvenile dependency cases involving foster care. Retrieved July 5, 2005, from the 

Judicial Education Reference, Information and Technical Transfer Project: http://jeritt.msu.

edu/Documents/National_Curriculum_Final_06-21-05.pdf 

Sanchez, R. M. (2004). Youth perspectives on permanency. Retrieved September 21, 2005, from 

California Partnership for Youth Project website: www.cpyp.org/Files/YouthPerspectives.pdf 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2004). General findings from the Federal Child 

and Family Services Review. Updated link retrieved March 2, 2007, from www.acf.hhs.gov/

programs/cb/cwmonitoring/results/genfindings04/index.htm

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2005). The AFCARS report: Preliminary FY 2003 

estimates as of April 2005 (10). Updated link retrieved March 2, 2007, from www.acf.hhs.gov/

programs/cb/stats_research/afcars/tar/report10.htm

Winkle, E., Ansell, D., & Newman, A. (2004). An analysis of State’s Child and Family Services 

Reviews and Program Improvement Plans from a youth development perspective. Updated 

link retrieved March 2, 2007, from University of Oklahoma National Resource Center for Youth 

Services College of Continuing Education, National Resource Center for Youth Development 

website: www.nrcys.ou.edu/yd/resources/publications/pdfs/summaryv2.2.pdf

Resources

The following is a sample of web-based resources for permanency planning for older youth. Please 

refer to the Reference list (above) for additional resources.

California Permanency for Youth Project (www.cpyp.org) 

California Youth Connection (www.calyouthconn.org) promotes the participation of foster youth 

in policy development and legislative change to improve the foster care system and strives to 

improve social work practice and child welfare policy.
Enhancing Permanency for Older Youth in Out-of-Home Care www.childwelfare.gov

14 This material may be freely reproduced and distributed. However, when doing so, please credit Child Welfare 

Information Gateway. Available online at www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/focus/enhancing/index.cfm.

Casey Family Programs (www.casey.org), especially for tools to pass on to youth such as Casey 

Life Skills tools (www.casey.org/Resources/Tools/CaseyLifeSkills.htm). 

Casey Family Services (www.caseyfamilyservices.org), especially materials from their 2006 National 

Convening on Youth Permanence and the white papers and publications written by the Casey 

Center for Effective Child Welfare Practice.

Foster Care Month website (http://www.fostercaremonth.org/Home) offers ideas about how to 

get involved and show appreciation for the foster families and staff who support the children and 

youth in foster care.

FosterClub (http://fosterclub.org/index.cfm), a resource for youth in care

National Child Welfare Resource Center for Organizational Improvement (http://muskie.usm.

maine.edu/helpkids/about.htm), especially the webpage on adolescents (http://tatis.muskie.usm.

maine.edu/pubs/pub2Wtemp.asp?SUBJECT_AREA=Adolescents) 

National Child Welfare Resource Center for Youth Development (www.nrcys.ou.edu/nrcyd.htm)

National Resource Center for Family-Centered Practice and Permanency Planning (www.

hunter.cuny.edu/socwork/nrcfcpp/), especially the Youth Permanency Tools (www.hunter.cuny.edu/

socwork/nrcfcpp/info_services/youth-permanency.html) 

Orphan Foundation of America (www.orphan.org)

Suggested Citation: Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2006). Enhancing permanency for older 

youth in out-of-home care. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.