Faith-based organizations have been integral to the child welfare system for decades, with many agencies today tracing their origins back over a century. While government involvement in the care of vulnerable children has grown, states still depend significantly on faith-based agencies (FBAs). These agencies often contract with states to provide essential services like foster care and adoption, leveraging faith networks to recruit foster and adoptive families.
While pinpointing an exact number of religiously affiliated foster care programs is challenging due to data limitations, their substantial presence and impact are undeniable. Faith communities and FBAs play a vital role in the child welfare system, offering unique strengths and resources. Understanding the extent of their involvement is crucial in ongoing discussions about child welfare policy and practice.
The Historical and Current Landscape of Faith-Based Foster Care
The involvement of faith-based groups in child welfare is not a recent development. In fact, the roots of foster care and child protection services in the U.S. are deeply intertwined with private and religious initiatives, dating back to the early 1800s. Initially, these services were primarily managed and funded by private organizations, many of which were religiously affiliated. Government funding was limited, and it wasn’t until the early to mid-1900s that the public sector began to play a more prominent role in establishing formal child welfare systems.
However, starting in the 1990s, a trend emerged towards increased reliance on private providers, including FBAs, by state governments. This shift was driven by various factors, including the pursuit of cost-effective and high-quality services. Many states adopted performance-based contracts with private agencies to manage aspects of their child welfare systems. States like Florida, Kansas, and Illinois are examples of those that have significantly privatized these services. Despite the diverse partnerships between public and private entities, states retain ultimate oversight in child welfare cases.
Alt text: Table showing state-level data on child welfare and substance abuse, highlighting variations in foster care placements and drug-related removals.
Faith-based agencies bring unique advantages to their partnerships with state child welfare agencies. A key benefit is their ability to tap into established faith communities, which can be a rich source of potential foster and adoptive parents. These networks often extend beyond typical recruitment pools, reaching individuals and families motivated by their faith to care for vulnerable children. Moreover, FBAs sometimes supplement state funding with private donations, enhancing the resources available for foster children. Randy Daniels from Buckner International, a Texas-based FBA, noted that private donations allow them to add about 35 percent beyond state payments to improve the quality of care, covering expenses like school events, clothing, and specialized trauma-informed training.
Furthermore, many FBAs have demonstrated success in placing children who may face greater challenges in finding permanent homes. This includes older children, sibling groups who need to stay together, and children with special needs. Catholic Charities, for example, reported that 45 percent of their adoptions in 2016 involved children with special needs. St. Vincent Catholic Charities in Michigan is another example, known for their expertise in placing large sibling groups and teenagers. These partnerships are invaluable for states, helping to ensure that more children find permanent families and avoid prolonged stays in foster care or aging out of the system without a stable home.
While large networks of FBAs exist, such as Lutheran Services, Catholic Charities, and Bethany Christian Services, many smaller, independent FBAs also operate at the local level. This decentralized nature makes it more difficult to aggregate comprehensive data on their collective performance and compare them uniformly to other types of agencies.
Quantifying the Impact: Data and Estimates
While precise figures on “How Many Foster Care Programs Are Religious” are elusive, the available data suggests a significant footprint. As Stephen Monsma observes, FBAs are not the dominant force in child welfare, but they are a “substantial and active part of it.” Catholic Charities alone facilitated adoptions for over 82,000 children between 2006 and 2016. In 2016 alone, Catholic Charities agencies served approximately 10,500 children through foster care and adoption services across the nation. When considering other major faith-based networks and numerous independent agencies, the total number of children served by religious foster care programs becomes considerably large.
To understand the scale, consider specific state examples. In Michigan, Bethany Christian Services and Catholic Charities are estimated to handle 25 to 30 percent of foster care adoptions. Bethany Christian Services alone had over 730 licensed foster homes in Michigan in 2016. In Arkansas, The CALL, a Christian organization, has been instrumental in recruiting nearly half of the state’s foster families. These examples, although not providing a nationwide percentage, illustrate the significant contribution of religious foster care programs at both state and national levels.
Recent research highlights the growing need for foster care services, partly driven by the opioid crisis and its impact on families. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty have both noted the correlation between the rise in substance abuse and the increasing number of children entering foster care. HHS reports that caseworkers and judges in areas heavily affected by the opioid epidemic are finding it increasingly difficult to place children with relatives, as substance misuse often affects multiple family members. This situation amplifies the demand for non-relative foster homes and underscores the importance of all available resources, including FBAs. Nationwide, parental drug abuse led to approximately 92,000 children entering foster care in fiscal year 2016.
State Reliance and Examples
The degree to which states collaborate with and support faith-based agencies varies significantly. Some states actively embrace and protect FBAs, recognizing their value in addressing the growing need for foster care. Others have taken steps that have reduced or may reduce the involvement of these agencies.
States Embracing Faith-Based Agencies:
Several states demonstrate strong partnerships with FBAs and faith communities. Arkansas and Kentucky, while not having specific FBA protection legislation, heavily rely on their faith communities. In Arkansas, The CALL has been remarkably successful in recruiting foster families by working through churches. Kentucky’s “Open Hearts/Open Home” initiative directly engages churches and nonprofits to find permanent homes for children in foster care with a goal of adoption. Georgia has also actively sought to increase faith community involvement as its foster care numbers have risen, partnering with Promise 686 to recruit foster families from churches statewide.
States like Michigan, Texas, and Oklahoma have gone further by enacting legislation to protect FBAs from being compelled to violate their religious beliefs. These laws ensure that FBAs can continue to contract with the state without compromising their faith, preserving a diverse network of agencies to serve a diverse population. Kansas and Mississippi have also passed similar protections. These states recognize that supporting FBAs helps maximize the availability of foster and adoptive families, particularly crucial given the nationwide increase in children in foster care.
States Less Open to Faith-Based Agencies:
Conversely, some states have policies that have led to a reduction in collaboration with FBAs. Illinois stands out as a prominent example. In 2011, the state mandated that all child welfare providers, including FBAs, must be willing to place children with same-sex couples, regardless of religious objections. This policy led Catholic Charities, after decades of service, to end their foster and adoption contracts with the state, displacing thousands of children. Similar situations have occurred in cities like Boston, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.
Ohio, facing a severe opioid crisis, has also signaled a potential shift away from FBAs with the introduction of the Ohio Fairness Act, mirroring the precedent set by cities that have discontinued contracts with FBAs. Philadelphia recently suspended placements with Catholic Social Services and Bethany Christian Services while investigating potential violations of the city’s Fair Practices Ordinance. This decision came as Philadelphia urgently needed 300 new foster families, highlighting the potential conflict between non-discrimination policies and the need for foster homes.
The Implications of Religious Freedom Regulations
The core issue arises when regulations conflict with the sincerely held religious beliefs of FBAs, particularly concerning same-sex couple placements. These conflicts force FBAs to make a difficult choice: violate their religious principles to comply with regulations or discontinue essential foster care and adoption services.
The consequences of FBAs ceasing operations can be significant. In Illinois, the withdrawal of Catholic Charities resulted in the displacement of an estimated 2,000–3,000 children. These children had to be transferred to other agencies, causing disruption and potential trauma. Steve Roach, Executive Director of Catholic Charities of Springfield, emphasized that their agency had a strong performance record and prioritized family connections for children in care, yet they were compelled to end state contracts due to the placement mandate.
Losing FBAs can strain the capacity of remaining agencies and reduce the overall number of available foster homes. In states already struggling with rising foster care populations due to factors like the opioid crisis, reducing the pool of providers is counterproductive. It can lead to increased reliance on group homes, which are often less desirable environments for children compared to family foster care. Furthermore, disrupted placements, which can occur when there is a shortage of suitable foster homes, are detrimental to children’s well-being and can contribute to attachment and behavioral issues.
Why Faith-Based Programs Matter
Faith-based agencies are valuable assets in the child welfare system for several reasons. As previously mentioned, they effectively recruit foster and adoptive families from faith communities, expanding the pool of available homes. Research indicates that practicing Christians, particularly Catholics and Evangelicals, are significantly more likely to adopt or foster compared to the general population. FBAs are uniquely positioned to engage these populations and increase the number of foster families.
Some argue that allowing FBAs to operate according to their religious beliefs limits opportunities for LGBT individuals and couples to foster, thereby reducing the number of available homes. However, this argument overlooks the fact that numerous public and private agencies in every state actively welcome LGBT foster parents. The presence of FBAs does not preclude LGBT individuals from fostering; instead, it provides options for those who prefer to work with agencies aligned with their faith. Restricting FBAs ultimately reduces the diversity of available agencies and the overall capacity of the system.
In a time of increasing demand for foster care services, driven by complex issues like substance abuse, states need to maximize, not diminish, the resources available to support vulnerable children. Faith-based agencies are crucial partners in this effort, offering not only placement services but also community support and additional resources for foster families.
Conclusion
Preventing faith-based agencies from serving their communities due to conflicts over religious beliefs is detrimental to the child welfare system and, most importantly, to the children in foster care. Forcing FBAs to close or reduce their services places a greater burden on other agencies and diminishes the diverse network of support needed to address the growing needs of vulnerable children.
As Chuck Johnson, President of the National Council for Adoption, aptly stated, a diverse set of agencies, including public, secular private, and faith-based, is essential to meet the diverse needs of children and families. States aiming to maximize the number of loving homes for children in foster care should embrace faith-based agencies and networks as valuable partners, ensuring they can continue to serve in accordance with their sincerely held religious convictions. Supporting FBAs is not just about religious freedom; it is about prioritizing the well-being of children and strengthening the child welfare system as a whole.
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