The Arizona Department of Child Safety emphasizes the vital role that kinship care plays in providing more stable and nurturing placement options for children in foster care. DCS highlights that “when children are with kinship caregivers, there is reduced trauma and children are able to thrive.”

Earlier this year, DCS launched the Kinship Support Services (KSS) contract, which is dedicated to, “to further increase the number of children in kinship homes, improve the supports required to stabilize living arrangements and assist families in navigating the child welfare system while caring for children placed in their homes.”

At the program’s inception, DCS representatives met with CASA volunteers at the VOICES office to discuss the KSS program and explore how volunteers can assist families by connecting them with these crucial services. The training participants were enthusiastic about the initiative and fully supportive of the mission to empower kinship families. As the KSS program evolves, VOICES will continue to inform CASA volunteers about how these services can best support the youth they serve.

Learn more about the KISS Program.

Arizona Department of Child Safety. Service Guide: Kinship Support Services. Arizona Department of Child Safety, 26 Feb. 2024