A Few Ways to Make an Impact in 2025
How You Can Help Foster Youth and Vulnerable Families
Is there anything I can do to contribute?
If I had a dollar for every time I was asked this question, I’d personally be able to fund the foster care system for several years. Not really, of course, but I have been asked this question a ton of times. And guess what?: I love this question! I especially love this question when I see folks actually following up on my answer. So, in this spirit, I thought I’d kick off 2025 with a list of ways that you — yes, you — can help incrementally boost the welfare of foster youth and vulnerable families. This list is by no means comprehensive, but it contains some of the most accessible ways that folks can chip in their passion, intellect, and resources.
If you resolved to be more charitable with your time or money this year, look no further than this newsletter!
(As a note to my non-US subscribers, this list is exclusively focused on opportunities within the United States.)
Boots on the Ground: Face to Face Volunteer Opportunities
I’ve always believed the best way to make a big impact is to work directly with people. This is especially the case when the people in question are children navigating one of the most confusing, traumatic, and lonely experiences a kid can confront: being bounced around the foster care system. Fortunately, there are ample ways for good people to advocate for these kids. Below is just one of these opportunities, and an important one indeed:
Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA): I’ve long been an advocate for the CASA program, for I know exactly how it feels to not have access to a CASA. Before I tell you how that feels, let me first briefly tell you exactly what a CASA is, what a CASA does, and the impact a CASA can make:
What is a CASA?: Put simply, a CASA is a volunteer that is appointed by a judge to advocate for a system-involved child’s best interests.
What does this advocacy entail?: CASA’s do a lot. They meet with teachers, social workers, foster parents, biological parents, health care professionals, and other stakeholders. They review all records pertaining to the child, from report cards to caseworkers reports. Through this process, they gather all the information they possibly can about a child (or children), their case, and their life.
Most importantly, they meet with the child themselves! While expectations vary on how many times a volunteer is expected to meet with their child, a general rule of thumb is at least once a month. During these meetings, they learn as much as they can about the child, such that (in conjunction with the aforementioned research) when a CASA walks into the courtroom, they could serve as a vehicle for that kid’s voice.
Typically, every six months CASAs submit a report to the court, detailing what they learned and offering recommendations about what they perceive to be the best interests of the child. This becomes a vital source of information for the judge, who reviews the report as they prepare for hearings or make decisions about a child’s welfare.
This sounds like a ton of work, but most CASA websites recommend that volunteers dedicate 10-15 hours a month to their case, which boils down to 2-3 hours a week. Below is a nifty little image I pulled from a CASA website that explains all that goes into being a CASA:
Outsized Impact: Several studies have sought to measure the impact a CASA has, and many of them have shown that CASAs do indeed make a difference. One study found that young people appointed a CASA spent less time in foster care, were less likely to re-enter foster care following discharge, were more likely to find a permanent placement, and were more likely to be reunified with their family.
Another study found that compared to children without a CASA, those who had one performed better in school, both academically and behaviorally. Yet another found that children with CASAs experience more placement stability than children without one.
In their capacity, CASAs can not only ensure that a child’s interests are represented, but that their biological parents can have concerns brought before the court. One study found that low-income parents with children in foster care benefited from CASAs who highlighted the challenge that a lack of transportation has on complying with court-ordered service plans. All together, those few hours a week can dramatically impact a child’s life.
Aside from these studies, I can trot out dozens of anecdotes that support their findings. I know former foster youth who sing high praises of their childhood CASA, many of whom still keep in touch with them years after they’ve left the system. I’ve heard story after story of a seemingly intractable problem being solved by a CASA. In 2025, you (yes, you!) can start featuring in some of these stories.
How do I become a CASA?: It isn’t terribly difficult to become a CASA. Here’s what you need to do:
Step One: Find Your Local Program: This is the easiest part. Go to this website, click on your state, and find the program near you. Most CASA programs, as far as I’m aware, are organized by counties, so there’s a fairly good chance yours will be as well. There are some areas, I should note, that don’t have a CASA program (for example, the website states that there are no programs available in North Dakota), so keep that in mind.
Step Two: Apply: Fill out an online application, consent to a background check, and conduct an interview. Fairly straightforward.
Step Three: Get Trained: Training (which is offered free of charge) consists of approximately 35 hours of online and in-person instruction, spread over the course of several weeks. This training is designed for folks who know next to nothing about the system, and covers a range of subjects, such as childhood development and the nuts-and-bolts of the child welfare system.
Step Four: Get Sworn In and Select A Case: Once the training concludes, you meet up with a judge, raise your right hand, and swear in as an officer of the court. Then, working in conjunction with a CASA staff member, you select a case and start your advocacy!
This is, of course, a simplified overview of the process. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out. I’d guess that roughly 45% of my subscribers are CASAs, located all around the US, and I’m sure one of them would be more than happy to share their insight with you. I briefly served as a CASA myself, so I can also share my thoughts if need be.
(To the actual CASAs reading this, if I got any of the above egregiously wrong, feel free to reach out! I compiled this section using information found on several CASA websites, and thus I tried to keep it as general as possible.)
My Two-Cents: I’ve talked about this before, but I didn’t have a CASA during my decade in the system. As a matter of fact, I didn’t even know about the program until I was 26, eight years after emancipating from foster care. And boy, would a CASA have come in handy during that time.
I had dozens of social workers during that decade, some of whom oversaw my case for less than a month. There were several times I arrived at court, read my case worker’s report, and discovered it was riddled with inaccuracies, some so severe that they could almost be mistaken for outright fabrications. There were times — too many to count — where I was experiencing maltreatment, sometimes severe maltreatment, and I kept my mouth shut. There were multiple reasons for this, but one large one was that I had nobody I could trust on a day-to-day basis to advocate on my behalf.
I could go on, but the bottom line is that a CASA could’ve been an exceptional advocate of mine as I bounced around the system. As volunteers, they are the only people a child might meet who aren't being paid to be there, a dynamic that means a lot when a child experiences constant change and instability.
Many of the CASAs I’ve met over the years pride themselves on how many feathers they can ruffle. With their focus strictly on the best interests of a child, sometimes they’re advocacy will brush up against a social worker’s or foster family’s perspective. So, if you consider yourself a ruffler of feathers, consider doing so in pursuit of child welfare.
As a final note: people often ask me whether they should consider becoming a foster parent. I have a lot of thoughts on this subject, some of which are not fully formed. My go-to advice on this front, however, is that folks with no previous experience with foster children should consider being a CASA first, which would allow them to develop an understanding of the complex needs that foster youth have.
This is just one example of how you can spend your time in 2025. There are innumerable others. You could, for example, volunteer with the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America, an organization that isn’t explicitly for foster youth but still makes a meaningful difference in the lives of the kids involved. Some studies have shown that youth participating in this program were less likely to start using drugs, more likely to do better in school, and less likely to get in trouble with the law.
You can also just volunteer with any number of causes that help foster youth and vulnerable families. From toy drives to clothing drives and everything in between, there are always opportunities for good people to step up and do what they do best: good.
Dollars and Cents: Some Organizations and Causes You Can Donate To
If you are feeling so inclined (and importantly, if you have the means), you can donate money to organizations that are helping foster youth and vulnerable families. However, when it comes to cash, I’m always a bit hesitant with my advice. There are just so many organizations out there, and I don’t know nearly enough about them all to put together a comprehensive list of places that do the best work and that have the biggest impact. So, the following advice is offered very cautiously. As an additional note, this is not a comprehensive list, and so if I omitted your organization or cause, just know it wasn’t because I think they weren’t worthy of being included. Even better, if you have an organization in mind, drop a comment so other subscribers can see! With all that said, here are some places you can send some money to in 2025:
GiveDirectly: More known for its work overseas, GiveDirectly also has a US operation. Put simply, GiveDirectly is exactly what it sounds like: it sends money directly to poor households. I am a fan of this approach, in general, and here’s why:
First, for me, when it comes to volunteering or donations, the closer you get to the people, the better. I trust low-income families to make the right decision for themselves, so instead of having them jump through hoop after hoop to get help, we can just empower families with the resources to make these decisions.
Second, this approach is effective. One of my favorite studies dropped in 2023, and it looked at the impact that Alaska’s Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD) has on child abuse and neglect. This study found that, on average, an additional $1,000 in early childhood reduces referrals for “child neglect and physical abuse by age 3 by 10 to 30 percent.” It also drops the likelihood of a child death by age 5 by about 30 percent.
GiveDirectly’s US operation works in conjunction with governments to help fund various guaranteed income programs, from Chicago to Georgia. Overall, for every $10 donated, about $8 goes to its intended recipients: poor families (importantly, this includes its overseas operations as well, so the numbers might be different for the US-specific wing of the organization).
As far as I know (and please enlighten me if I’m wrong), there are no mutual aid funds for former foster youth, else I’d include it in this list. I’d encourage folks to look at organizations in their states and counties that do similar work. For example, one of my favorite organizations is based in Michigan: Rx Kids. Rx Kids “provides all pregnant moms with no-strings attached cash of $1,500 during pregnancy and $500 each month throughout the baby's first year.” A great cause if I ever saw one, and a program that I would love to replicate myself back in California (but that’s neither here nor there).
All told, if you have the opportunity to give money directly to the folks who need it, do so!
CASA: Yes, CASA earns a second mention in this newsletter! Local programs need money to help recruit, train, and manage their army of volunteers. If this is a cause that calls to you, much of the funding can be directed towards your local program, which can be found on the website I mentioned earlier.
Advocacy Organizations: There are tons of organizations that advocate on the state and local level for foster youth. Many of these organizations advise lawmakers on child welfare legislation, administer programs, educate the public, and so much more. There are far too many of these organizations to list, but here are just a three national ones that are working on child welfare issues (there are a ton of state level organizations as well):
Children’s Defense Fund: CDF does a ton of work. Founded by Marian Wright Edelman (who worked with both Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.) in 1973, CDF focuses on reducing child poverty, protecting children's health and education, and reforming the child welfare system, among many other things. (Disclosure: I interned for CDF in 2020.)
Think of Us: An organization that describes itself as a research and design lab, Think of Us’ work is informed by those with lived experience and seeks to equip decision makers with access to “data and evidence that reflects the ‘on-the-ground’ reality of those impacted by the system.”
National Foster Youth Institute: NFYI builds “pipelines of leadership” that connect current and former foster youth with decision makers. NFYI’s “Congressional Leadership Academy” provides former foster youth with skill-building training and workshops, allowing participants to use their “personal experiences to raise awareness of the challenges the child welfare system faces.
These brief little descriptions are woefully insufficient to describe what these organizations do, and there are dozens more that I didn’t mention. If you want your dollars going towards system change, I suggest you do some research and make a contribution to an organization that best aligns with your values.
There are also so many local organizations that work directly with impacted communities, and these organizations are in constant need of resources. Don’t hesitate to send your money to these places as well, if you feel so inclined!
Get Informed and Get Involved: Use this Year To Elevate Your Knowledge on the Issues
Some folks might not have the time nor money to volunteer and donate, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make an impact. You can spend this year learning more about the system — and all the policy issues that surround it — and applying what you learned. Here are some ways you can do just that:
Read A Book: Last year, I published a newsletter with 36 book recommendations. If you just wanted to learn a bit more about the system, this list is a fantastic place to start. As the husband of a librarian, I’d be remiss if I didn’t recommend that you visit your local library to see if they have any of these titles. Some of the books on that list are a bit more academic in nature, so if you’re looking for more of an introduction to the system, here are a three titles you can start with:
To the End of June: The Intimate Life of American Foster Care by Cris Beam
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (a work of fiction, but in my humble opinion, it was a very accurate portrayal of what it feels like to be in foster care).
Shattered Bonds: The Color of Child Welfare by Dorothy Roberts
Dive Deep With Newsletters, Podcasts, and Other Media: There are several newsletters, blogs, and podcasts about the child welfare system, several of which are written and produced by former foster youth. In my upcoming Lived Experience Ledger, I will be highlighting some of the folks who are behind these platforms. For now, here are some ways you can learn more about the system:
Read and Share The Legacy Project: …and if you feel so inclined, pledge to become a paying subscriber. In all seriousness, if you support my work, I’d be eternally grateful if you’d share my newsletter with friends, family, and colleagues. As far as I can ascertain, there are vanishingly few Substacks devoted to this subject, and even less written by former foster youth.
Listen to Some Podcasts: I’m a big podcast person, and I know many of you are as well, judging by the survey results indicating that I should start an audio version of this newsletter. Here are some podcasts you can listen to in the upcoming year:
Self-Taught: Former Foster Youth on Sex, Health, and Life: A podcast “by and for” foster youth that purports to help those in the system learn about things that most folks won’t bother to teach them. It appears their last episode was published February 2024, but you can learn a bit from their archive of episodes.
Reveal News: While not explicitly dedicated to child welfare, Reveal News has dropped a ton of very good podcasts on the foster care system. Here are just some of the most recent ones:
This Land (specifically Season 2): The Indian Child Welfare Act has been under assault since it was first passed in 1978. This podcast does a deep dive on the bill itself, as well as the repeated efforts to undermine it.
Read Relevant News: I provide a roundup of news in each newsletter, but if you don’t like to wait every two weeks to find out what’s happening, you can do what I do: daily Google searches and Google alerts. If you’d like some more specific recommendations, ProPublica does some tremendous reporting on the child welfare system. The Imprint is geared more toward those working in the field, but it still has some great articles that regular folks can learn from. You can even browse your state legislature’s website, seeing if there are any bills that focus on the child welfare system.
Make Your Voice Heard: Now, let’s say you got educated and you are abreast on all current child welfare developments in your state. What next? Well, you can use this knowledge to move the needle on the issues you care most about. Here’s how:
Contact Your Representative: Email, tweet, call, or write your representative to let them know that you care about the child welfare system, and as result, they should as well. This is especially the case if there’s a crisis roiling the system in your state (hint: there is almost always a crisis going on). If your state, for example, is housing children in hotels or agency offices, you should contact your legislator and give them a piece of your mind. If your state isn’t even attempting to keep families together, you should let them know that you won’t stand for it.
Write A Letter of Support: If there’s legislation pending in your state or locality that impacts the system, and if you support this legislation, write a letter to the relevant elected official. Importantly, if there’s legislation that you think would do grave damage to foster youth and vulnerable families, write a letter and let them know what you think. The internet is awash with templates you can use, but if you want any advice/guidance, don’t hesitate to reach out to me!
In short, there’s always something you can do, even if it is as little as reading a book or calling your state representative. You might feel like there’s more you can do, but heed this quote by Ernest Hemingway: “Now is no time to think of what you do not have. Think of what you can do with what there is.”
Let’s Move Some Mountains
Those who know me know I love to quote a famous Confucius saying: “The man who moves mountains begins by carrying away small stones.” Far be it from me to amend anything that Confucius has to say, but I’ll just say that potential mountain movers don’t have to move these mountains alone. If each person reading this engages in any of the activities above, then each of us are engaged in the act of carrying away small stones. Over time, all these stones add up, and before you know it, the mountains have been moved. Or, at the very least, our work lessens the burden on the next generation of mountain movers.
I hope this newsletter inspires some folks to get involved, because I promise you, the best remedy for hopelessness is serving others. If you feel like the system is too big to change, then focus on changing the life of just one kid by doing something radically simple: being there for them. If you feel like the world cares little about the foster care system, I promise you it would mean the world to show a kid that you care a lot about them.
Now, folks, let’s go forth and move some mountains together!
Current Read(s):
I kicked off 2025 with a biography of an under-discussed civil rights leader: Bayard Rustin. Rustin, for those who don’t know, was the chief architect of the March on Washington in 1963, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have A Dream.” He probably isn’t as underrated as I let on, as more and more people are recognizing his contributions, evident in a 2023 movie dedicated to the work he did bringing the March on Washington to life.
Lost Prophet: The Life and Times of Bayard Rustin by John D’Emilio has thus far been a very informative read. While I’m only a quarter of the way into the book, I’m learning how Rustin was part of a movement to bring Gandhi’s principles of non-violence first to pacifist movement and ultimately to the civil rights movement. Rustin — as an openly gay Black man in the mid-20th century — struggled considerably, but he kept the fight up, and by doing so, helped change our country’s trajectory for the better. He is truly an American icon, and we can learn much from his example.
Notes from Abroad:
For the inaugural Notes from Abroad entry, I’ll start with a brief description of the ‘inverse intervention law’ — a concept that is currently relevant in England. Put simply, this law stipulates that when “when comparing children living in neighborhoods with equivalent levels of deprivation, a child in a less deprived local authority (larger geographical municipality) is more likely to experience a child protection intervention than a child in a more deprived local authority.”
Translation: When two children live in equally poor neighborhoods but in different areas, the child living in the wealthier area (where the local government has more resources) is more likely to receive attention from child protection services than the child living in the poorer area. This means that a struggling family's chances of getting help from social services depends not just on their own circumstances, but on how wealthy their broader local authority is – even when comparing families facing the same level of hardship.
What’s going on in the world of child welfare?:
South Korean Adoptees and Families Rocked by Fraud Allegations (Associated Press) — A heartbreaking story about potential fraud underlying international adoptions from decades ago.
State Could Adopt ‘Kin-First’ Approach to Foster Care (Capitol News Illinois) — Illinois is working on making it easier for kids to be placed with relatives.
NYC Foster Kids Would Get Luggage For Belongings Instead of Trash Bags Under New Bill (Gothamist) — It is still insane that this is an issue in so many states. I was using trash bags to pack my belongs up over twenty years ago!
Troubled California Teens Gain Protections Under a New Law Championed by Paris Hilton (CalMatters) — Thanks to a new law, residential treatment centers will face more scrutiny, especially regarding the use of restraints and seclusion rooms.
Foster Youth Are at Great Risk for Suicide As They Prepare to Leave the System, California Study Finds (The Imprint) — The first sentence of this article speaks for itself: “Roughly one-quarter young adults in foster care in California have attempted suicide and their rate of suicidal behavior is nearly three times that of peers who aren’t in government care
The Final Tab to Taxpayers to Defend Oregon’s Troubled Child Welfare System? Possibly Upwards of $30 Million (Oregon Public Broadcasting) — Imagine if this money was spent fixing the system rather than defending how broken it is?
Historic Child Welfare Reforms and Family Supports Signed into Law (House Ways and Means Committee) — A major piece of legislation was signed into law by President Biden, and it isn’t getting the coverage it deserves.
Really enjoyed this read, Ricky! Thank you for your tireless advocacy on this subject and for all of the knowledge you share. Coincidentally, one of our employer partners from the Shriver Center just left to work for Cook County CASA. I will add that to our internship leads for summer.