How we help families

We’re here to help families every step of the way, from starting the process to foster or adopt to receiving a placement and accessing supportive services. We supply information, resources, and referrals and connect families seeking to foster and adopt with children and their caseworkers.

We remind families: you don’t have to be perfect

Our humorous public service announcements on radio and television and in print help families become aware of children in foster care and the opportunity to parent them. Our message is simple: “You don’t have to be perfect to be a perfect parent. There are thousands of children and youth in foster care who will love you just as you are.” Learn more about our adoption recruitment campaign.

We supply information and resources

Online and over the phone, AdoptUSKids provides information and resources to families interested in fostering and adopting.

  • Our staff of foster care and adoption specialists are just a phone call, email, or chat away. These knowledgeable staff provide introductory information about getting started in the foster or adoption process and connect families with professionals in their state, in both English and Spanish.
  • Our website guides families through the details of fostering and adopting and connects families with local resources.
  • On our blog, we regularly share stories about families who foster and adopt, caseworker profiles, and informative articles.
  • We produce a monthly newsletter, where we share announcements from AdoptUSKids, stories from real foster and adoptive families and foster care alums, and recent child welfare news.
  • Through our social media channels, including a vibrant community on Facebook and an active Twitter channel, we engage with current and prospective parents and share information and articles about adoption and foster care.

We connect families to children and their workers, and vice versa

We offer the only federally funded national photolisting of children and youth in foster care in the United States who are available for adoption. All of our services are provided to families and professionals free of charge.

Families who are approved to adopt or are licensed to provide foster care can register with AdoptUSKids to access the following benefits:

  • Create an online profile of their family that will appear in searches conducted by children’s caseworkers.
  • Search for children and save the results of these searches.
  • Inquire about children with a click of a button.

More than 36,000 children previously photolisted on AdoptUSKids now live with permanent families.

Frequently asked questions about how AdoptUSKids works with families

Every day, AdoptUSKids staff respond to hundreds of questions from families and professionals who call our adoption and foster care resource specialists or visit our Facebook page. Below are responses to a few of the frequently asked questions.

Is AdoptUSKids an adoption agency?

No, but we work with and on behalf of the public and private agencies that have custody of children and youth who need families and with the agencies that prepare families to foster or adopt. We do not work directly with children. We connect families interested in adoption and foster care with local agencies and resources.

How can I search for children on adoptuskids.org?

Anyone can view public profiles for children photolisted with AdoptUSKids. To gain additional information about particular children and to inquire about adopting them, you’ll need to register with us. Only families who have a home study, are approved to adopt from foster care as verified by the agency that completed their home study, and who are actively looking for a placement can register. Learn more about how families use our photolisting.

Who do I call with questions about adoption?

You can call our team of foster care and adoption specialists Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.–8 p.m. eastern time: 888-200-4005. They are also available through our online chat feature weekdays, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. eastern.

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