Youth voices essential in improving foster care adoption system nationwide, says expert

While we’ve made progress, experts say “there’s still a long way to go” when it comes to the adoption process, including protecting the safety of youth in foster care and those awaiting permanent, loving families.

The Selfless Love Foundation’s National Think Tank is a collective force of change makers dedicated to improving foster care adoption in this country. The annual conference, held in October, brings together youth with foster care experience as well as child welfare leaders and policymakers from more than 30 states.

National Think Tank is a strategic plan to influence federal policy and state action to transform the foster care adoption process to best serve children.

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Immediately following the October 2025 Think Tank, leading researchers at the University of Chicago Chapin Hall will create a road map and actionable next steps for each state.

For National Adoption Month in November, I spoke with Ashley Brown, founder and CEO of Selfless Love. She and her husband started their nonprofit 10 years ago, in 2015, and she said being adopted as a baby “changed the trajectory” of her life. He appeared on “America’s Newsroom” several times. Read on to hear his thoughtful answers to some important questions!

Question: How does the United States care for children in foster care and encourage adoption?

Ashley Brown: We have made progress as a nation, but we still have a long way to go. Many people will be surprised to learn that in most states, photos of children available for adoption are publicly posted on the Internet.

While this approach to adoption may have made sense before the advent of the internet, it can also put young people at risk.

In Florida, the Selfless Love Foundation worked with teens to help pass a law that would shield children’s artwork from public view. It also gives children ages 12 and over a say in the photos and information shared on adoption sites.

An entire day of the National Think Tank was devoted to this particular topic. Since the goal is not just child placement but also permanency, we also looked at adoption and post-adoption support for families.

Q: What are the biggest obstacles to making further progress?

Brown: One of the biggest obstacles to progress is the lack of a federal policy that would protect children’s privacy and give them a say in how they are represented.

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Each state is forced to make its own decisions, and young people generally lack concrete rights and protections. They are experts and should be included in the decisions that affect them most.

Q: What research or lessons from the National Think Tank could spur significant progress?

Brown: What really stood out was how little protection there was for children in the adoption process. There are no federal laws and very limited state laws that recognize the right of young people to choose how they are represented in the adoption process.

“Rights, recruitment, and post-adoption support are interconnected. We can’t fix one without strengthening the others.”

This gap shows how far we have to go and where we should start.

It also serves as a reminder that rights, recruitment, and post-adoption support are interconnected. We can’t fix one without strengthening the others.

“The most immediate and achievable step is to support legislation that gives young people the right to choose how they are represented in adoption,” said Ashley Brown (not pictured). (iStock)

Q: What can state legislatures do to affect change over the next 12 months?

Brown: The most immediate and achievable step is to support legislation that gives young people the right to choose how they are represented in adoption, protecting their privacy, dignity and safety.

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Researchers from Chapin Hall will produce a report on the National Think Tank’s key findings that will help state and federal leaders better understand the importance of youth rights in adoption.

Leaders from more than 30 states recently gathered at the Selfless Love Foundation’s National Think Tank to tackle some of the biggest challenges in foster care and adoption. (iStock)

Question: How can Americans best help children who are in foster care or aging out of the system?

Brown: One theme we heard over and over again at the National Think Tank was the power of community. Children in foster care and those outside the system need to know that they have support and that people care.

Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, the Selfless Love Foundation is able to offer this National Think Tank program at no cost to young people, including scholarships to cover travel and accommodation expenses.

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The best way people can help is to allow more young people to attend events like this, where their voices are heard, their experiences are valued and they are part of transforming the system.

In the absence of any national standards, we are depriving a vulnerable group of children of clear protections.

We already recognize a child’s right to choose adoption.

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Extending this principle to how they are depicted is a matter of policy compliance and fairness. Anyone can visit to help and learn more selflesslovefoundation.org.