Page 8 - Samaritas Fall/Winter Our Hands 2022

FOSTER CARE

Samaritas and State of Michigan Leaders Work to Solve Racial Disparities in the Foster Care System

n May, Samaritas leaders and the state’s foster care • Brenda Baker-Mbacke, CASA Director, CARE
leaders participated in a frank discussion about House of Oakland County
Iwhat’s causing so many kids of color to go into the We held a secondary town hall about Kinship Care to
foster care system.
discuss the process whereby relatives, or other adults,
Director, Demetrius Starling of the Michigan can step in to care for beloved foster kids.
Department of Health and Human Services' (MDHHS)
Children’s Services Agency (CSA) highlighted key Kinship care refers to the care of children by relatives
or, in some jurisdictions, close family friends (often
findings from Michigan's Child Welfare Improvement
Task Force Report. It revealed that children of color referred to as fictive kin). Relatives are the preferred
enter foster care at higher rates and stay in care resource for children who must be removed from
longer than their white peers. The full report from their parents because it helps maintain the children's
michigancwtf.org is available for your review. connections with their families, increases stability, and
overall minimizes the trauma of family separation.
Emmy-Award-winning media personality, Christy
McDonald, moderated the 2022 Samaritas Foster Care It was a stimulating conversation led by Matt Friedman,
Town Hall conversation with the following experts. Trustee & Past Chair of The Children’s Foundation.

• Trisha Sverns, Director, Samaritas Foster Care The town hall explored some of the reasons why
relatives aren't considered viable foster parents,
• Demetrius Starling, Executive Director, Michigan disparities among families of color, and what can be
Department of Health and Human Services done to solve this issue. Visit our Samaritas YouTube
(MDHHS) Children’s Services Agency (CSA) channel to view the May 2022 Town Hall.

• Kim Reese, Director, Michigan Race Equity
Diversity Inclusion (REDI) office

What is kinship care?

Samaritas is one of the best agencies to work with if you're thinking about being a foster parent. We'll help you at every step
of the process until the foster child is ready to be reunited with their birth parents after their family's conflicts are resolved.

New foster parents, especially those of diverse ethnic backgrounds, are desperately needed. In 2021, Samaritas could only
place 13% of the children referred to us by the State of Michigan. Help us change this figure by learning and talking about
the joy of fostering children who need respite from troubled homes. #SayYestoFosterCare

Contact Trina Kent at trina.kent@samaritas.org or visit www.samaritas.org/fostercare if you are interested in becoming a
foster parent or, if you would like to join our team of professionals and work in this rewarding field of social work, email us at
recruiting@samaritas.org.

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