Central Florida
Proof of Concept
Between 2016 and 2018, Fostering Our Future completed a two-year, two-county proof of concept phase with Grace Landing, Inc. in Orange and Osceola Counties in Florida. The proof of concept phase showed that Fostering Our Future can attract and retain quality foster families at a fraction of the cost of professionally run child placement agencies and/or case management companies with its professionally-managed, volunteer-driven, community-based family wrap-around programs.
Over the course of the two years, Fostering Our Future:
Engaged 12 churches
Certified 75 dedicated family wraparound volunteers
Added 17 public/private quality foster homes
Served 52 foster and aged-out children, 4 of which were adopted.
Since its inception, there is still a 100% foster parent retention rate with zero cases of substantiated child maltreatment. All of this was achieved at no cost to the state of Florida nor the local Lead Agency of the time, Community Based Care of Central Florida.
The entire proof of concept period was implemented with a staff of two full-time employees: one full-time career child welfare professional and a local social impact entrepreneur serving as founder and executive director.