The transition from adolescence to adulthood is a critical period and can be particularly difficult for youth aging out of foster care. Administered by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), the John H. Chafee Foster Care Program supports youth in or formerly in foster care as they transition to adulthood. Selected state officials told the U.S. Government Accountability Office that they decide on their service array by using data, participant feedback, and information from other states. These officials also reported offering youth services based on individual skills and needs. The most widely used services in selected states are related to education, health, and housing.

This U.S. Government Accountability Office report addresses: (1) how selected states support youth transitioning from foster care to adulthood, (2) ACF resources for states on effective Chafee services, and (3) the extent that state and federal funds are used to support services for older youth.

To help ensure that children have safe and permanent homes, the federal government provides states with funding for child welfare programs. Some sources of federal funding, such as Title IV-E and Title IV-B of the Social Security Act, are dedicated to child welfare. Under Title IV-E, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reimburses states for providing foster care to eligible children, among other things. States may use funds provided under Title IV-B for a variety of services to prevent and address child abuse and neglect. Other funding sources can be used for child welfare, among other purposes. The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) grant funds a wide range of benefits and services for low-income families. Some of these benefits and services may be administered by state child welfare agencies.

This U.S. Government Accountability Office report examines states’ use of Title IV-E, Title IV-B, and TANF funds for child welfare purposes.

This brief describes the American Public Human Services Association and Chapin Hall’s partnership to build momentum and consensus for child welfare system transformation by bringing together human services agency leadership, experts with lived experience, and national partner organizations to advance cross-sector recommendations for shared responsibility across public health and human services to prevent child maltreatment and unnecessary involvement with the child welfare system. This approach expands access to economic and concrete supports as protective factors and promotes family stability, integrity, and well-being at the individual and population level.

Helplines provide referrals to community and government resources that support parents and other caregivers in raising their children safely and successfully. By connecting children and families to upstream services, helplines can be an effective strategy in efforts to prevent child welfare system involvement. These helplines are intended to be proactive, providing immediate upstream support to families experiencing a crisis or an unmet need, therefore preventing potential child maltreatment down the road.

This Casey Family Programs brief highlights various helplines implemented across the country but focuses on helplines intended to prevent child welfare system involvement. However, some helplines are designed specifically to provide targeted support to families and older youth already involved in the child welfare system.

In the child welfare system, where families often face compounding challenges, coordinated efforts can prevent deeper system involvement and promote family stability. Every role contributes a distinct and essential piece to achieving these outcomes. This ZERO TO THREE webpage offers several strategies to illustrate how collaboration across programs and sectors can improve family outcomes, including: 

1. Centering families through Family Team Meetings;
2. Community coordination to bridge support;
3. Judicial leadership sets a collaborative tone;
4. Legal advocacy to elevate support;
5. Child welfare leadership drives systems change;
6. Building a network with Active Community Teams;
7. Driving sustained impact with Site Implementation Teams; and
8. Scaling success through policy and funding.

In American Indian/Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian communities, Elders are highly respected and are referred to as the community’s leaders, teachers, keepers of knowledge, and role models to all. Elders ensure the continuation of traditional native customs. Research confirms that connections between Elders and children protect and support the well-being of both groups. For children, benefits of these intergenerational connections include social-emotional gains, such as increased self-awareness, improved relationship skills, and better decision-making. Intergenerational connections also have been shown to contribute to greater academic success, better self-esteem and mood, and healthier habits. Even though intergenerational connections benefit children, very few child welfare programs include intergenerational services.

The Elder Connections Project was designed to better understand how American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian Elders’ knowledge, experience, and observations are helpful in developing strategies, resources, and culturally safe and appropriate practices to prevent children from entering foster care. This Casey Family Programs brief offers a summary of those findings, which are applicable to children and families of all communities.

During their work in multiple states, the Foster Insights team at the University of Chicago has observed notable trends in kin placement rates and the stability of kin placements. The Grandfamilies and Kinship Support Network will host a webinar on September 29, 2025 at 2:00 p.m. ET to share these observed trends and discuss their implications for stakeholders across the child welfare space. There will be a discussion on what can be learned about kinship families using placement data, and how these data-driven insights can help further the case for a kinship-first culture.

When the school year ends, millions of children lose access to the school breakfasts and lunches they rely on during the school year. This can exacerbate summertime food insecurity for those children in kinship. The Summer Nutrition Programs are designed to replace school breakfast and lunch and can help lower food costs for families. These programs ensure that children have consistent access to healthy meals during the summer months, which is critical for their health and well-being. This Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network tipsheet explains Summer Nutrition Programs along with benefits and eligibility.

In FY2022, states spent more than 44 percent of federal TANF and state funds on non-assistance services, including work, education, and training activities; childcare; and child welfare services. Questions have arisen about how states use and account for TANF funds, and as a result the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to review TANF non-assistance spending. This GAO report, part of a series of reports reviewing TANF, examines how the seven selected states have used TANF non-assistance funds, non-assistance data collected and used by selected states, and any data challenges faced by selected states and the extent to which the Department of Health and Human Services provides support to address these challenges.

The Office of Child Care (OCC) works with Child Care Development Funds grantees to ensure that all program funds are used to the benefit of eligible children and families. This OCC factsheet highlights their efforts to strengthen program integrity by focusing on reducing administrative errors and preventing, detecting, and eliminating fraud.