FOSTER-2026 - Foster Care

FOSTER-2026 - Foster Care is sponsored by Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families (ACF). Provides funding to states and territories for foster care services under Title IV-E.

* PRESS RELEASE September 10, 2026 ### ACF Awards $7. 3 Million to Help States Build Prevention Infrastructure to Reduce Foster Care Entries The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is awarding $7.

3 million in Title IV-E Prevention Accelerator Grants to 10 states to strengthen their capacity to implement and sustain evidence-based services that help families stay together and prevent unnecessary entries into foster care. “Delivering on the promise of A Home for Every Child begins with strengthening families,” said ACF Assistant Secretary Alex J. Adams.

“With only 2% of federal child welfare spending currently going to programs, ACF’s Prevention Accelerator Grants give states the tools to turn proven prevention strategies into services that can reach more families before challenges become crises. By strengthening prevention, we can preserve families, reduce unnecessary entries into foster care, and ensure foster homes are available for children who truly need them.

”Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, and South Carolina are receiving grants of $600,000 to $750,000 to build the infrastructure needed to successfully implement prevention programs and expand access to critical services.

“We are grateful for this investment, which will allow us to expand the use of Motivational Interviewing alongside existing prevention services, helping families feel more engaged, prepared for change, and supported as they work toward their goals,” said Kansas Department for Children and Families Secretary Laura Howard.

“By expanding access to evidence-based prevention services, strengthening and sustaining community-based supports, and creating new pathways for families to get help before they reach a crisis point, we can meet Kansas families where they are and connect them with the right help at the right time.

” The awards advance ACF’s A Home for Every Child initiative, which is aimed at improving the ratio of foster homes to children in need of care. By investing in state child welfare prevention infrastructure, more parents will receive the help they need, preventing unnecessary entries into foster care.

“This grant from ACF is a tremendous investment in the future of prevention and furthers our priority of making prevention services available to the children and families who need them,” said Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services CEO Dr. Steve Corsi.

“These funds give us the opportunity to continue building the infrastructure, strengthening systems, and developing the capacity we need to successfully implement and sustain prevention programs that make a real difference. We're grateful for this support and excited with what it will allow us to accomplish. ”The $7.

3 million in one-time grant funding will support the 10 jurisdictions as they pilot or expand prevention services. Colorado will implement COMPASS, a peer-led Motivational Interviewing coaching system that builds frontline staff fidelity and streamlines county workflows, while integrating MI service coding into its claiming infrastructure to capture federal Title IV-E prevention reimbursements currently going unclaimed.

Connecticut will build the claiming infrastructure needed to bill Title IV-E for Functional Family Therapy and Multisystemic Therapy, generating revenue to expand capacity and reduce waitlists, and to launch Motivational Interviewing as a new prevention service with its own training, fidelity, and claiming pathway.

Florida will build and test statewide referral, documentation, and data systems needed to achieve sustainable federal Title IV-E reimbursement for its Healthy Families Florida program, piloting the process in Hillsborough County before rolling it out statewide.

Idaho will scale its Community Pathways model through regional Assessment Centers for Motivational Interviewing-based screening and referrals, expanding Parent-Child Interaction Therapy statewide and Multisystemic Therapy for older youth, all while building a secure, Title IV-E compliant data system for eligibility, tracking, and claiming to sustain the model and safely reduce foster care entries.

Iowa will implement Intercept (formerly Youth Villages), an evidence-based, trauma-informed model that prevents foster care entry, reunifies families, and stabilizes placements for youth with complex behavioral health needs.

Kansas will strengthen its capacity to draw down Title IV-E funding by fully integrating Motivational Interviewing into four state-funded programs and using that integration to refine the data systems needed for eligibility, claims processing, service tracking, and outcome measurement across Family First services.

Nebraska has proposed to fully implement Motivational Interviewing (MI) by establishing and implementing MI claiming and reimbursement systems, develop provider capacity and referral pathways, establish data and reporting infrastructure, and ensure there is a long-term sustainability plan.

North Carolina will expand its START program, pairing child welfare staff with peer mentors for families affected by substance use, and build the infrastructure needed to move it from a pilot into a sustainable statewide strategy.

Ohio will expand access to the evidence-based Triple P parenting program for up to 240 families through Community Pathways referral partnerships, while connecting its new Prevention Services Case Management System to CCWIS to enable Title IV-E claiming, data tracking, and fidelity assessment.

South Carolina will implement UPSTREAM SC, expanding rapid-response referral pathways and Motivational Interviewing engagement in high-risk counties to prevent unnecessary foster care entries and maximize Title IV-E prevention claiming.

ACF looks forward to working with these 10 states as they strengthen prevention infrastructure and share lessons learned that can help child welfare systems across the country better support children and families. The Prevention Accelerator awards build on ACF’s broader actions to support prevention, including recent expansions of programs eligible for federal reimbursement through the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse.

* PRESS RELEASE September 8, 2026 ### HHS Awards Over $225 Million to Improve Head Start Nutrition, Facilities and Services The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), today announced over $225 million in Head Start supplemental awards to strengthen nutrition services, improve facilities, and help programs address critical one-time needs to better serve children and families across the nation.

To deliver on President Trump’s directive to Make America Healthy Again, the awards include $89 million in supplemental nutrition funding for more than 400 Head Start grant recipients. This action builds on HHS’ 2025 investment of $62 million in supplemental nutrition funding to over 290 Head Start programs around the nation.

“Good health begins with good nutrition, and the earliest years of a child’s life shape health for decades to come,” said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “We are strengthening Head Start nutrition and creating healthier, safer environments that give children a stronger foundation for lifelong health. By putting prevention first, we are advancing President Trump’s commitment to Make America Healthy Again.

”Over $89 Million to Strengthen Nutrition and Healthy Eating The $89 million in supplemental nutrition awards to more than 400 Head Start grant recipients builds on HHS’ 2025 investment, increasing it by approximately $27 million to reach more Head Start programs, children, and families nationwide.

The funding will help Head Start programs improve access to nutrient-dense foods, strengthen food preparation and storage capacity, support farm-to-table and gardening initiatives, provide nutrition education for children and families, and make other investments that promote healthy development.

“The Trump Administration is committed to making Head Start better and brighter by returning the program to its core mission: giving children a healthy foundation to thrive,” said ACF Assistant Secretary Alex J. Adams.

“The supplemental investments build on our broader efforts to strengthen Head Start by putting nutrition, healthy development, and program flexibility back at the center of how we serve children and families. When we invest in healthier children today, we are investing in stronger families and a better America for generations to come.

”The nutrition awards advance Secretary Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again priorities by emphasizing prevention, healthy development, and access to nutritious foods during the foundational years of childhood. Over $88 Million to Improve Head Start Facilities Additionally, HHS is awarding 28 recipients over $88 million in supplemental facilities funding to support improvements to Head Start facilities and learning environments.

These investments will help grant recipients address facility needs that affect the health, safety, and quality of services provided to children and families. Funding may support renovations, repairs, and modernization, helping programs maintain environments that are safe, effective, and responsive to the needs of young children.

“Children thrive in environments tailored to their health, safety, and development,” said Director of the Office of Head Start Lizbeth Casco White. “These supplemental investments empower local programs with the flexibility to enhance learning environments while reinforcing the critical nutrition and family services that build a strong, lifelong foundation for the future.

”Over $47 Million for Critical One-Time Needs An additional award of over $47 million in one-time supplemental funding will help 180 Head Start grant recipients address operational needs, such as technology supports, buses and vehicles for transportation, installation of a new HVAC unit, the purchase of playground equipment, classroom furnishings, staff training or a building security system.

These awards provide targeted resources for programs to respond to immediate priorities and make investments that strengthen their ability to deliver high-quality services. Together, the approximately $225 million in awards reflect HHS and ACF’s commitment to ensuring Head Start programs have the resources needed to support healthy children, strong families, and high-quality early childhood environments.

* PRESS RELEASE September 17, 2026 ### ACF Awards $2. 2 Million to Modernize Child Welfare Licensing Infrastructure In an ongoing effort to advance A Home for Every Child and improve outcomes for children and families, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) today announced 14 child welfare jurisdictions will receive between $54,000 and $200,000 in Licensing Infrastructure Modernization for Child Welfare grants.

These grants will help expedite foster family licensure and placements by making fingerprinting more accessible and convenient for caseworkers while also supporting improvements to background check systems to reduce delays, streamline administrative processes, and help agencies meet federal requirements that enhance the safety of children.

“Across the country, outdated equipment and technology, along with inefficient systems, have slowed required background checks during the placement process. These barriers can hold up the approval of qualified kin, foster families, and prospective adoptive parents — making it harder for children to be placed quickly in safe and loving homes,” said ACF Assistant Secretary Alex J. Adams.

“ACF is proud to award the 14 jurisdictions with resources to expand technology to help expedite the placement process with the goal of achieving A Home for Every Child.

”ACF has awarded these Licensing Infrastructure Modernization for Child Welfare grants to Alaska, District of Columbia, Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Georgia, Fort Belknap Indian Community, Oklahoma, Kawerak, Inc., Knik Tribe, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oregon, Vermont, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

“This investment strengthens Alaska’s statewide capacity by bringing modern, mobile fingerprinting tools directly to our state’s rural and remote communities,” said Tracy Dompeling, Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Family and Community Services. “By reducing delays and expanding access, we are improving outcomes for children and families and advancing our commitment to timely, safe placements.

”Each award will be used to identify gaps in current technology and business processes, purchase and deploy compliant fingerprinting equipment and services, train staff on new systems and workflows, establish performance measures, and develop sustainability plans to maintain improvements over time.

These systems changes will support states in their efforts to achieve A Home for Every Child and improve their ratio of foster home to children in foster care by expediting the licensure and placement processes. “Utah is honored to receive this important grant to help our child welfare modernization efforts,” said Tracy Gruber, Commissioner of the Utah Department of Health and Human Services.

“The funding award will help reduce fingerprint-based background deck delays, especially for rural and high-barrier households, facilitate quicker kinship safety assessments at the point of crisis, expand our state’s active pool of licensed caregivers, and help us make progress toward the federal A Home for Every Child initiative.

”ACF looks forward to working with each jurisdiction as they implement new technology and systems, making fingerprinting more accessible and background checks less burdensome so children can be placed with safe, stable, and nurturing homes as quickly as possible.

* PRESS RELEASE August 18, 2026 ### HHS Announces New Peer Support Prevention Services to Strengthen Families, Advancing the Great American Recovery and A Home for Every Child Initiatives The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) today added new peer support programs to the Title-IV Prevention Services Clearinghouse, for which all states can now claim federal reimbursement.

The expansion advances the Trump Administration’s Great American Recovery and A Home for Every Child initiatives by equipping states with evidence-based resources to help parents overcome addiction, thereby strengthening families and reducing the number of children entering foster care.

* PRESS RELEASE August 13, 2026 ### ACF Awards $6 Million to 10 Jurisdictions to Advance Use of Predictive Risk Modeling in Child Welfare The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is awarding $6 million in grant funding to 10 child welfare jurisdictions to pilot new technology aimed at improving child safety and caseworker decision-making.

* PRESS RELEASE August 6, 2026 ### HHS Unveils Proposed Head Start Reforms to Expand Access and Empower Parents The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced that the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) unveiled a new proposed rule, “Reducing Federal Burden for Head Start Programs,” aimed at delivering on President Donald J.

Trump’s vision to expand access, reduce red tape, and refocus the program on its core mission of preparing America’s most vulnerable children for success.