National Adoption Month is an initiative of the Children’s Bureau that began as National Adoption Week in 1984. In recent years, we have focused our efforts on adoption of teens because we know that teens in foster care wait longer for permanency and are at higher risk of aging out without permanent connections, which places them at risk for negative outcomes.
This year’s National Adoption Month theme is “Honoring Youth: Strengthening Pathways for Lasting Bonds.”
Young people should have a strong support network that meets their needs; embraces and affirms their racial, ethnic, and cultural identity; and promotes family, community, and cultural connections.
By honoring every youth and their network, professionals can work toward an adoption that is meaningful and purposeful, paving the way for healing, well-being, and long-term stability.
As of September 30, 2022, there were nearly 109,000 children waiting to be adopted who were at risk of aging out of foster care without permanency. The average time in care for children waiting to be adopted after termination of parental rights was 19.1 months.
