In this issue: A pair of new reports, an introduction to our newest team member...and the newsletter itself gets a refreshed look!

HB2914 requires the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services to submit an annual report regarding racial disproportionality for children involved in the Illinois child welfare system. The report, which is due on December 31 of each year,…

This is the executive summary of the FY2025 Report in Response to HB2914. This report examines racial disproportionality in the Illinois child welfare system in the following indicators: children and families involved in a safety plan, protective…

Public Act 102-1087, which became effective June 10, 2022, mandates that the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS, the Department) establish a 3-year Bias-Free Child Removal Pilot Program. The Act requires an evaluation that…

Many offenders against children use religion to facilitate abuse, which causes children spiritual harm. Moreover, child victims may generally suffer spiritual harm because abuse shakes their belief in a just and loving God. The spiritual harm is…

The Kinship in Demand (KIND) Act, which went into effect on July 1, 2025, requires the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services to implement numerous policy and practice changes to promote the use of relative foster care for youth placed…