A Home for Every Child

A Home for Every Child is a national initiative of the Administration for Children and Families focused on ensuring that every child has the opportunity to grow up in a safe, stable, and loving home.

The initiative is designed to address both sides of the child welfare equation by reducing entries into foster care through effective prevention and by increasing the availability of foster and kinship homes through stronger recruitment, kin-first approaches, and improved retention of caregivers.

At its core, A Home for Every Child is about right-sizing the ratio of available homes to children in need so that there are homes waiting on kids, not kids waiting on homes.

A happy multigenerational family hugging and having fun outside.

Alex J. Adams, PharmD, MPH, serves as Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families. Assistant Secretary Adams brings years of health, human services, education, and regulatory expertise to advance President Trump and Secretary Kennedy’s broader vision to Make America Healthy Again. Prior to leading ACF, Dr. Adams spent more than ten years in Idaho State Government. He led the Governor’s zero-based regulation initiative, which resulted in Idaho becoming the least regulated state in the nation. Dr. Adams also made significant efforts to improve Idaho’s child welfare system, enacting kin-specific licensing standards, announcing paid family leave for foster parents, extending foster care to age 23, and overseeing record recruitment and retention of foster homes. This webpage showcases resources that support the priorities identified by Assistant Secretary Adams.

Read More on Leadership: https://acf.gov/about/bio/alex-j-adams

Read More on A Home for Every Child: https://acf.gov/a-home-for-every-child

30 States Have Ended the “Orphan Tax,” Preserving Survivor Benefits for Foster Youth

Policy Announcement / Memoranda

As of July 15, 2026, 30 states have either ended or substantially reformed the practice of diverting Social Security survivor benefits from foster youth. The action marks a major milestone in protecting earned benefits for some of the…

Supporting Native Youth into Adulthood

Toolkit

Transitioning from foster care into adulthood can be challenging for any young person, but Native youth may also be navigating questions of culture, community, identity, and connection. This resource from the National Tribal Child Welfare Center…

Programming to Build Strong Families and Promote Economic Independence July 2026: Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood Programming in Tribal TANF

Webinar / Webcast

In June 2026, the Office of Family Assistance launched the Programming to Build Strong Families and Promote Economic Independence series, designed to provide flexible, practice-informed…

50 States Join A Home for Every Child, Creating Nationwide Momentum to Strengthen Families and Recruit Foster Families

Policy Announcement / Memoranda

On July 9, 2026, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announced 50 states, as well as Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico, joined “A Home for Every Child (AHEC),” the ACF initiative aimed at increasing the ratio of licensed…

Innovations In Service Collaboration: A Case Study on Tribal TANF Child Welfare (TTCW) Coordination Grant Programs

Profile / Case Study

The Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Child Welfare Coordination (TTCW) program funds demonstration projects administered by the Administration for Children and Families’ (ACF) Office of Family Assistance. These projects…

Roots & Routes – A Financial Capability Toolkit for Opportunity Youth

Toolkit

Aspen Institute released this financial capability toolkit designed for opportunity youth, or young people ages 16–24 who are disconnected from school and work. The toolkit helps practitioners bring financial education into programs through…