Governor DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted have declared November as Adoption Recognition and Recruitment Month.
While the ODJFS encourages adoption and permanent guardianship throughout the year, this month is an opportunity to focus special attention to the continued need for more foster and adoptive families for teens and sibling groups.
According to Governor DeWine, there are currently nearly 16,000 children in Ohio who live in foster homes or other out-of-home settings. Of those 16,000, 3,000 children in foster care are waiting to be adopted and more than 1,200 of the children are 13 years old or older.
DeWine said 247 of those children will turn 18 years old in the next year. This puts them at risk of transitioning out of the children services system without a forever family.
One resource is Ohio’s newly re-launched Adoption Profiles, website. Agencies are encouraged to include youth in creating their own profiles and hope this change brings focus to their unique personalities. The profiles illustrate the youth’s strengths, interests and talents, and can be found at FosterAndAdopt.jfs.ohio.gov/profiles.
For more resources, you can find the National Adoption Month website here.