U.S. government announces initiatives to improve outcomes for older foster youth

From the Imprint–In what some observers called the most high-profile child welfare event in recent memory, President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump announced an expansive set of initiatives on Thursday, aimed at boosting support for older foster youth, expanding partnerships with faith-based organizations, and modernizing technology used by the nation’s state-managed child welfare systems.

After brief remarks before an audience in the White House’s East Room that included Vice President JD Vance, top administration officials and congressional Republicans, President Trump signed an executive order titled “Fostering the Future for American Children and Families.” It requires key federal agencies to “harness federal support, technology, and strategic partnerships to provide young Americans in or transitioning out of the foster care system with the tools they need to become successful adults.”

Under the order, the Department of Health and Human Services must work with the First Lady’s office to launch a “Fostering the Future” program next year that will link transition-age current and former foster youth to jobs and educational opportunities with “leading private sector organizations, academic institutions, and non-profit entities.”

The order also calls for new strategies to reallocate unspent child welfare funds and more flexibility in using education and training vouchers reserved for transition-age youth.

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