Foster and Adoption Resources
The FOL Foster and Adoption Support Group created a list of resources for those who are interested in the foster or adoption process and those who want to support families. If you would like additional information and learn how you can get involved, please email info@folcov.org and we'll connect you with the coordinator.
Alliance for Children’s Rights: Free legal services and advocacy for children in foster care. Utilizes volunteers to help process adoptions, administrative work, translation, client intakes and more
California Youth Connection: Foster youth advocacy. Youth-led since its inception, California Youth Connection (CYC) empowers foster youth ages 14-24 to build leader- ship skills and forge supportive relationships while advocating for child welfare reforms that directly impact their lives. To build their skills, members receive one-on-one support and mentoring, specialized training, and frequent opportunities to speak to policymakers, child welfare practitioners, other foster youth, and the general public.
Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA): CASA volunteers are appointed by judges to advocate for abused or neglected children, to make sure they don’t get lost in the overburdened legal and social service system or languish in inappropriate group or foster homes. Volunteers stay with each case until it is closed and the child is placed in a safe, permanent home. For many of the children we serve, their CASA volunteer will be the one constant adult presence in their lives.
Guardian Scholars: Supports foster youth in college. A comprehensive program with a goal of supporting former foster youth in their efforts to gain a university, community college or trade school education. (CSU Long Beach, Long Beach City College)
The Rightway Foundation: Supports transition-age youth with housing, therapy, job placement, financial literacy, career counseling, and education.
*Many of the following Foster/ Adoption Agencies and Support Organizations have meaningful volunteer opportunities as well.
Short-Term Care
Respite Care: Time-limited care (usually days to weeks) of foster children when their primary foster family needs a break or is unable to care for them during a certain period of time. Respite care certification process is similar if not the same as foster parent certification.
Safe Families (through Olive Crest): Volunteers open their homes to children whose parents are experiencing a short-term emergency, such as hospitalization, or a longer- term crisis, such as drug abuse. Designed to extend and strengthen the community safety net for at-risk families, Safe Families for Children is a positive alternative to the state child welfare system, allowing parents to work out their problems without having to worry about losing custody of their children. Children may be 0-18 years and placements may be days to up to 3 months.
Foster Care and Adoption
FOL families have had experience with these agencies but there are many others.
Foster Care/Adoption through Foster Care
Domestic, Private Adoption
International Adoption
Resources recommended by various FOL foster and adoptive families.
Support Organizations
Training
Resource (Foster/Adoptive) Family Approval classes and resources
Books
Alliance for Children’s Rights: Free legal services and advocacy for children in foster care. Utilizes volunteers to help process adoptions, administrative work, translation, client intakes and more
California Youth Connection: Foster youth advocacy. Youth-led since its inception, California Youth Connection (CYC) empowers foster youth ages 14-24 to build leader- ship skills and forge supportive relationships while advocating for child welfare reforms that directly impact their lives. To build their skills, members receive one-on-one support and mentoring, specialized training, and frequent opportunities to speak to policymakers, child welfare practitioners, other foster youth, and the general public.
Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA): CASA volunteers are appointed by judges to advocate for abused or neglected children, to make sure they don’t get lost in the overburdened legal and social service system or languish in inappropriate group or foster homes. Volunteers stay with each case until it is closed and the child is placed in a safe, permanent home. For many of the children we serve, their CASA volunteer will be the one constant adult presence in their lives.
Guardian Scholars: Supports foster youth in college. A comprehensive program with a goal of supporting former foster youth in their efforts to gain a university, community college or trade school education. (CSU Long Beach, Long Beach City College)
The Rightway Foundation: Supports transition-age youth with housing, therapy, job placement, financial literacy, career counseling, and education.
*Many of the following Foster/ Adoption Agencies and Support Organizations have meaningful volunteer opportunities as well.
Short-Term Care
Respite Care: Time-limited care (usually days to weeks) of foster children when their primary foster family needs a break or is unable to care for them during a certain period of time. Respite care certification process is similar if not the same as foster parent certification.
Safe Families (through Olive Crest): Volunteers open their homes to children whose parents are experiencing a short-term emergency, such as hospitalization, or a longer- term crisis, such as drug abuse. Designed to extend and strengthen the community safety net for at-risk families, Safe Families for Children is a positive alternative to the state child welfare system, allowing parents to work out their problems without having to worry about losing custody of their children. Children may be 0-18 years and placements may be days to up to 3 months.
Foster Care and Adoption
FOL families have had experience with these agencies but there are many others.
Foster Care/Adoption through Foster Care
- Children’s Bureau of Southern California
- Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services
- Koinonia Family Services
- Olive Crest
- Orange County Social Services Agency
Domestic, Private Adoption
- Bethany Christian Services (Private local adoption and short-term infant care placements)
International Adoption
Resources recommended by various FOL foster and adoptive families.
Support Organizations
- Advokids helps foster parents, relative caregivers, social workers, CASA volunteers and attorneys better understand and navigate California’s child welfare and juvenile court dependency system through: Child Welfare Law Information Hotline, Children’s Attorney Consultation Line, Child Welfare Legal Tools and Resources, Statewide Trainings and Conferences, and Statewide Child Welfare Reform
- The Alliance for Children’s Rights protects the rights of impoverished, abused and neglected young people. Efforts are focused in three main areas: Free legal services and advocacy for children in foster care, Training and education for those who work with or care for these children, and System-wide reform to change policies to improve children’s lives
- FosterAll recruits prospective resource/foster parents from faith communities and provides ongoing support to families so that they can provide safe and loving homes for the thousands of children who have been abused and neglected.
- Home Forever advocates for children and supports those who envision a world where every child has a permanent family. Recruits and encourages individuals and churches to take an active role in foster care and adoption both in the U.S. and around the world. Equips foster and adoptive families. Conducts foster/adoption related research and educates policy makers. Provides mentoring and resources.
- Show Hope gives adoption aid grants.
- UCLA TIES for Families is an interdisciplinary program dedicated to optimizing the growth and development of foster/adoptive children from birth to age 21, and their families. Services include: Pre-placement consultation prior to adoption, Individual consultation on children, Transition services, Support groups, Speech/language evaluations, Interventions. They have a South Bay location in Torrance.
Training
- Empowered to Connect seminars: Featuring Trust-Based Relational Intervention® methods developed by Dr. Karyn Purvis and Dr. David Cross from the Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development, this conference helps bring attachment and connection in families.
- Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development (Online Training Videos)
- Long Beach City College Foster and Kinship Care office
Resource (Foster/Adoptive) Family Approval classes and resources
- OC United Respite: The RESPITE program provides support groups, parent trainings, date nights, wellness classes, and trauma trainings to foster, adoptive, and kinship families.
- Saddleback College offers free training for fostering and adoption required hours, including CPR
- Village Well: Ministry of Newport Mesa Church, provides parenting tools, resources and a free annual conference with trainings to support foster, adoptive and kinship families.
Books
- Beyond Consequences, Logic, and Control: A Love-Based Approach to Helping Attachment-Challenged Children With Severe Behaviors, Heather Forbes and B. Bryan Post
- The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, Bessel van der Kolk M.D.
- The Connected Child: Bring hope and healing to your adoptive family, Karyn B. Purvis, David R. Cross and Wendy Lyons Sunshine
- Mind over Mood: Change How You Feel by Changing the Way You Think, Dennis Greenberger and Christine A. Padesky
- Twenty Things Adoptees Wished Their Adoptive Parents Knew, Sherrie Eldrige
- You Can Adopt: An Adoptive Families Guide, Susan Caughman and Isolde Motley (Helpful for those first starting to consider adoption who want to learn more)