Public invited to discuss improving foster care system at virtual town hall meetings this month

The meeting for Trimble Co will take place this Wednesday beginning at 11am

FRANKFORT, Ky., Sept. 16, 2022 – The public is invited to virtual town hall meetings this month to discuss improving outcomes for Kentucky children and families involved in the state foster care system. Anyone with concerns about the system and/or ideas on how communities can better support families is encouraged to attend one of the regional meetings that will take place Sept. 19, 21, 27 and 30. Registration is required.

Due to confidentiality, specific cases will not be discussed.

Citizen Foster Care Review Boards statewide are hosting the regional town halls. The meetings are among the reforms called for in House Bill 1, which was passed in 2018 to address issues with foster care and adoption processes. The legislation requires CFCRBs to offer regional meetings at least twice a year to get public input on the foster care system.

The September town hall meetings will focus on support for relatives and fictive kin caregivers for children who would otherwise be in foster homes unfamiliar to them. Fictive kin is someone who isn’t related to the child by birth, adoption or marriage but has strong ties to the child or the child’s biological parent(s), siblings or half-siblings. Placements with relatives and fictive kin can reduce the trauma of out-of-home placement for children and reinforce their cultural identities. Previously, fictive kin had to have a direct connection to the child. The Kentucky General Assembly passed legislation this year to include a connection to the child’s family.

Findings from the meetings will be reported to the state CFCRB and included in its annual recommendations to the Supreme Court of Kentucky, governor and legislature.

For more information, email cfcrb@kycourts.net. 

Town Hall Schedule

Sept. 19, 2022
11 a.m.-noon CT/noon-1 p.m. ET

Registration required. Register here. Registrants will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link before the meeting.

For citizens residing in these counties: Bullitt, Fayette and Jefferson

Sept.. 21, 2022
11 a.m.-noon CT/noon-1 p.m. ET

Registration required. Register here. Registrants will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link before the meeting.

For citizens residing in these counties: Anderson, Boone, Bourbon, Boyle, Bracken, Campbell, Carroll, Clark, Estill, Fleming, Franklin, Gallatin, Garrard, Grant, Harrison, Henry, Jessamine, Kenton, Lee, Lincoln, Madison, Mason, Mercer, Nicholas, Oldham, Owen, Owsley, Pendleton, Robertson, Scott, Shelby, Spencer, Trimble and Woodford

Sept. 27, 2022
11 a.m.-noon CT/noon-1 p.m. ET

Registration required. Register here. Registrants will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link before the meeting.

For citizens residing in these counties: Allen, Ballard, Barren, Breckinridge, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Crittenden, Daviess, Edmonson, Fulton, Graves, Grayson, Hancock, Hardin, Hart, Henderson, Hickman, Hopkins, LaRue, Livingston, Logan, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, McLean, Meade, Metcalfe, Muhlenberg, Nelson, Ohio, Simpson, Todd, Trigg, Union, Warren and Webster

Sept. 30, 2022
11 a.m.-noon CT/noon-1 p.m. ET

Registration required. Register here. Registrants will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link before the meeting.

For citizens in these counties: Adair, Bath, Bell, Boyd, Breathitt, Carter, Casey, Clay, Clinton, Cumberland, Elliott, Floyd, Green, Greenup, Harlan, Jackson, Johnson, Knott, Knox, Laurel, Lawrence, Leslie, Letcher, Lewis, Magoffin, Marion, Martin, McCreary, Menifee, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Perry, Pike, Powell, Pulaski, Rockcastle, Rowan, Russell, Taylor, Washington, Wayne, Whitley and Wolfe

Citizen Foster Care Review Boards
CFCRBs are teams of court-appointed volunteers who make a difference in the lives of local children in foster care in Kentucky. The children are in care due to dependency, neglect or abuse. The 700-plus volunteers review cases and make recommendations to state courts and the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services on behalf of the children. The volunteers work to ensure that children’s needs are met while in care and that they are placed in safe, permanent homes as quickly as possible. The CHFS administers the state foster care program.  

The Kentucky General Assembly created the Kentucky CFCRB in 1982 to decrease the time children spend in out-of-home care. In Fiscal Year 2021, volunteers reviewed 19,140 cases involving 11,278 children in out-of-home care. View the latest CFCRB Annual Report.

Volunteer with a CFCRB
Make a difference for the children in your community by serving as a CFCRB volunteer. CFCRBs throughout Kentucky need volunteers. Get more information and apply here.

Administrative Office of the Courts
The Administrative Office of the Courts provides support services to the CFCRB program. The AOC is the operations arm for the state court system and supports the activities of nearly 3,300 employees and 406 elected justices, judges and circuit court clerks. The AOC also executes the Judicial Branch budget.