Utah Foster Care - Southwest Utah Chapter

Mission: We serve Utah's children by finding, educating, and nurturing families to meet the needs of children in foster care.

Description:
The Utah Foster Care Foundation is a private non-profit 501(c)3 organization. The Foundation’s vision is grounded in the belief that stable and caring families are the best possible place for children in out-of-home-care until they can be reunified with their families or placed in a permanent adoptive home.

Our goals include:

Finding

The Utah Foster Care Foundation believes the very best place for a young person to be is in a family. The Utah Foster Care Foundation develops recruitment efforts to meet the unique needs of specific communities and the children in foster care in those communities.

Educating

The Utah Foster Care Foundation provides the pre-service training classes required to obtain a foster care license. The Foundation also provides in-service training in order for licensed families to
maintain their licensure.

Nurturing

When foster/adoptive families need additional support, the Utah Foster Care Foundation will be there. Families are the most important part of the foster care team. Foundation staff and volunteers are dedicated to creating strong bonds and stability by providing families respite care, increasing the number of community support opportunities, and acting as an information resource.

History:
Statewide Facts: Children in Foster Care
• The Utah Foster Care Foundation is a private, non-profit organization that contracts with the
Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS) to find, educate and support foster and adoptive
families to care for the children in Utah’s foster care system.
• There are about 2300 children in foster care in Utah at any given time. Nearly half of these
children are from the Salt Lake Valley area. There are approximately 1200 licensed
foster/adoptive families in Utah.
• Children entering the foster care system may have special needs due to neglect, abuse or
separation.
• In Utah, children are in foster care for an average of one year. The length of time may vary
depending on their family’s individual circumstances.
• Around 63% of children in foster care return to live with their birth parents or relatives. Foster
families have the opportunity to mentor and support parents who are working to have their
children returned to them.
• Many children are adopted from foster care in Utah. Last year 300 children were adopted
from the foster care system. 85% of children adopted from foster care, are adopted by their
foster parents.
• There are children in foster care between the ages of 0-19. There is a particular need for
families who are able and willing to care for children over age 8.
• Many children enter foster care with brothers and sisters and need foster families who can help
them stay together. Foster families who can accommodate sibling groups are needed in all
areas of the state.
• The children in foster care come from all ethnic and cultural backgrounds and they need
families who are able to help them maintain their cultural identities.
• 24% of the children in foster care in Utah are Latino/Hispanic so there is a particular need for
Latino/Hispanic and Spanish-speaking families. All foster families must be legal residents.
• Foster parents can be married or single. They can own or rent their homes.
• It takes 32 hours of training and the ability to pass a criminal background check to become a
foster parent in Utah. The Utah Foster Care Foundation and Division of Child and Family
Services provide ongoing training to foster and adoptive parents throughout the state.

Contact person: Diane Callister, Program Specialist, (phone), (email)

Office fax number: (435) 656-8071

Address:

321 N Mall Dr. #B102 St. George, UT 84790 (See a map)

Web Site: http://www.utahfostercare.org

Directions:

We are located near the Red Cliffs Mall.

Last updated on May 11, 2009