Black and African American as well as American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) children are overrepresented in the child welfare system, including among children waiting to be adopted. The deliberate recruitment of foster and adoptive families who reflect the racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity of children awaiting adoption and who have the skills to provide a stable, loving home for children experiencing a variety of needs is vital. 

Recruiting, supporting, and engaging families who reflect the racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds of children waiting to be adopted is an important step toward addressing disproportionality and disparity within the child welfare system. Recruiting diverse families allows children from diverse demographic backgrounds to remain in their community, supports their identity development, creates a sense of belonging, and builds resilience. Racial disparities occur at nearly every major decision-making point along the child welfare continuum, and it is critical for adoption and other child welfare professionals to understand the factors that influence these inequities, such as biases about and oversurveillance of low-income families. Addressing racial disproportionality, structural racism, bias, and discriminatory practices requires change across all levels of child welfare. It is important to acknowledge the historic distrust between families from marginalized populations and the child welfare system and the historical trauma faced by Black and African American and AI/AN communities through a culturally responsive and trauma-informed approach.

Culturally responsive support for resource families starts with their first interaction with the child welfare system. To be equitable and culturally responsive, professionals working in adoption recruitment can think about how to remove licensing barriers, meet families where they are, and provide additional training opportunities and ongoing support. By offering training virtually, professionals can expand access to and help more families meet licensing requirements. Additionally, it’s important to check that families receive culturally responsive and inclusive training. To do so, consider the following areas:

• Content: Is the importance of culture for both children and caregivers explicitly discussed? Does the information only focus on the experiences of White prospective parents? (For example, do discussions of placements of children with families from different racial or ethnic backgrounds assume and prioritize the experience of a White parent caring for a non-White child?)
• Representation: Do non-White families see people from their communities leading the training?
• Facilitation: Are staff aware of their own biases and the potential for microaggressions? Do facilitators know how to ensure everyone is included and feels safe to participate authentically?

The National Center for Diligent Recruitment works to improve permanency outcomes for children and youth in foster care by helping child welfare systems and professionals develop and implement strategic, data-driven diligent recruitment plans. The center provides technical assistance, diligent recruitment planning and implementation resources, and training for staff. In addition, the center helps states, tribes, and territories recruit, develop, support, and retain foster, adoptive, and kinship families who reflect the race and ethnicity of children in foster care and who can meet those children’s needs.