November is National Adoption Awareness Month

November is National Adoption Awareness Month, and the Saturday before Thanksgiving, November 23rd is National Adoption Day.  While all types of adoption are important, these two national events highlight the needs to get children out of the foster care system and into permanent families.

In 2018, 4,000 adoptions were finalized on National Adoption Day. Currently, events are being planned nationwide. Use hashtag: #nationaladoptionday to participate in rallies, exhibits, seminars and adoption drives or to find out about volunteer opportunities.

Here’s some Adoption Awareness history:

In 1976, Massachusetts Governor, Michael Dukakis announced, Adoption Week, to promote awareness of the need for families to adopt foster care children. The movement spread and other states instituted similar programs.                  .

In 1984, 

President Reagan proclaimed the first National Adoption Week. 

In 1995

, President Clinton expanded the awareness week to the entire month of November.

In 1998

, President Clinton directed the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a plan to expand the use of the internet as a tool to find homes for children waiting to be adopted from foster care.

In 2000, a coalition of groups formed to make National Adoption Awareness Day a reality. Members include the Children’s Action Network, The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, The Alliance for Children’s Rights and the Freddie Mac Foundation, and the Children’s Bureau. Sponsors work with state foster care agencies, law firms, courts and child advocates to complete adoption applications.

(Sources:  childwelfare.gov, Wikipedia, heartbeatinternational.org, nationaltoday.com)

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This year’s National Adoption Awareness Month theme is “Youth Voices: Why Family Matters.” Teenagers are less likely to be adopted from foster care than younger children. Highlighting their needs of permanence as it relates to well-being and life planning is a major goal in pushing for adoption.

If you are looking for other adoption-related information, you can explore the adoption section on Child Welfare Information Gateway. If you are interested in adopting from foster care, please visit the resources and national photo listing available from AdoptUSKids.

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