Protecting faith, family, and foster children

America’s foster care system faces a persistent shortage of families willing to support parents in crisis and care for vulnerable children.

Public policy should expand — not shrink — the pool of qualified foster homes. Recent changes by the Donald Trump administration to remove ideological barriers to fostering move policy in the right direction.

The United States continues to face a severe foster care shortage, with approximately 329,000 children in the system nationwide, according to the latest U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data (AFCARS FY 2024). In many communities, agencies struggle to recruit enough foster families, particularly for teenagers, sibling groups and children with higher needs.

The shortage is stark and urgent. Recent federal and state data indicate that for every 100 children in foster care, only 55-57 licensed foster homes are available nationwide. That persistent gap has real consequences for children: some wait for hours or even days in offices while case workers search for placement, and others spend extended periods in group facilities because a family home is not immediately available. These are not mere statistics — they represent children waiting for the stability that only a family home can provide.

Many children entering foster care come from homes where family structures have broken down, including the absence of a father in the household. They are far more likely to come from single-parent households — often ten times more so than the general population — a pattern that spans racial, economic and geographic lines but hits children of color especially hard. This fatherlessness crisis fuels higher rates of foster placements, juvenile delinquency, mental health crises and teen isolation.

In a nation already short on foster families, any policy that excludes qualified homes is not protective — it is a failure. Our mission in child protection is straightforward: strengthen families whenever possible and, when a child cannot safely live with parents, ensure placement in a stable family environment.

Every regulation, decision and dollar spent should be judged by whether it expands the number of families able and willing to care for vulnerable children. If it discourages those families from stepping forward, the policy falls short.

The faith community is not just another group in the foster care landscape; it is one of the most important sources of foster and adoptive families. Research from the Bipartisan Policy Center and Barna Group shows that practicing Christians are twice as likely as non-Christians to pursue fostering or adoption. Nearly two-thirds of foster parents attend church weekly — a reflection not of coincidence, but of deep conviction. As ACF Assistant Secretary Alex Adams has observed, those most likely to volunteer are driven by profound faith commitments.

For faith-motivated families, fostering is not primarily a policy issue or social program. It reflects longstanding religious commitments to care for vulnerable children and support struggling families. Scripture describes this responsibility as caring for ‘orphans and widows in their distress’ (James 1:27). This biblical imperative has long motivated faith communities to open their homes to children in need.

Over the past 50 years, however, child protection has become increasingly centralized and bureaucratic, beginning with the passage of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974, which formalized government-based child protection systems and reduced the role of faith communities. As government expanded, churches and other community institutions were gradually pushed to the margins.

Our children can no longer afford to wait for a loving home. It’s time for government to remove the barriers that have sidelined families willing to care for vulnerable children.

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Mike Watkins is a Florida Faith & Community Council appointee and CEO of NWF Health Network based in Northwest Florida.