Following an abrupt decision by the National Association of Former Foster Care Children of America (NAFFCCA) to stop doing business with the DC Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA) as of September 30, 2007, District child welfare officials, with help from other local providers, have rapidly arranged alternative safe living situations for all 37 youth currently residing in NAFFCCA-administered facilities.

“With so many dire rumors in play about what might happen to these young people, I want to ensure our many partners and the public that every young person affected by NAFFCCA’s decision will continue to have a safe placement,” said Sharlynn Bobo, CFSA acting director. “We are directly working with and supporting each of the affected youth in care.” CFSA officials have identified new placement settings for all 37 affected youth, while social workers are keeping the young people informed and helping them to move and re-stabilize as quickly as possible. CFSA is also assuming direct responsibility for NAFFCCAprovided services such as weekly allowance payments to the foster youth.

For nearly a decade, local provider NAFFCCA operated programs to provide placements for older youth, ages 16 to 21, in foster care. Two of three current CFSA contracts with NAFFCCA expired September 30, and included:

• An Independent Living Program supporting 22 foster youth in leased apartments in the District and Maryland.
•  A NAFFCCA-owned group home and leased apartments serving 11 young mothers (including mothers-to-be) with 10 children.

CFSA made diligent efforts to engage NAFFCCA in negotiating 61-day emergency closeout contracts that would have allowed a gradual transition of youth to new placements by the end of November 2007. However, CFSA and NAFFCCA could not reach agreement on terms within the necessary time frame.

The third CFSA contract with NAFFCCA, which currently serves four youth in a NAFFCCA-owned group home, is set to expire on June 30, 2008. However, CFSA is also moving those youth to other safe settings this week and will follow procedures to terminate that contract.

Other local providers have stepped forward to provide immediate safe settings for all the affected young people in foster care including:

• High-quality apartments or foster homes for the 22 youth in NAFFCCA’s Independent Living program. Rapid response from these providers is helping to minimize disruption by allowing most youth to move to new placements close to where they have been living in the District or Maryland. For six of these youth who will age out of the foster care system over the next three months, CFSA is identifying permanent housing they can move to now and retain after leaving the system.
• Alternative apartment, foster home, or group home placements for the 11 young mothers and four group-home residents NAFFCCA was serving.