A Foster Care System That Works for Children, Families and Caregivers

Baltimore County carries a high-volume share of Maryland’s foster care responsibility. Every year, over a hundred children enter care through no fault of their own, often in the midst of family crisis, trauma or instability.

Foster care is a public safety, public health and equity issue. While some decisions – such as foster parent board rates – are set at the state and federal level, Baltimore County does have meaningful authority to modernize, improve oversight and coordinate services so that the system works better for children, caregivers and families. Our community demands a system that is safe, modern, transparent and accountable.

In truth, Baltimore County manages one of the larger foster care caseloads in Maryland. Like other large jurisdictions in the region, the County faces persistent challenges including placement shortages for children of all ages, increasing behavioral health needs among youth in care, complex coordination across courts, agencies and providers and high caseloads which stain our workforce and systems. 

A Vision of Modernization, Transparency and Equity

Nick Stewart believes the County must apply the same standards of accountability and continuous improvement to our foster care system that we expect in public safety, education and economic development. We will focus on measurable progress that protects children and supports families.

Conduct a Comprehensive System Audit: Baltimore County must understand how its foster care management systems and procedures are working in practice by identifying gaps, clarifying expectations and setting a baseline for improvements across:

• Case management systems and tools
• Operational workflows and staff support
• How families, caregivers, children, and stakeholders navigate the system
• Alignment with national best practices

Build FosterStat: a public-facing, anonymized dashboard that reports key performance indicators in real time, such as placement types and stability,time to permanency, use of treatment and congregate care and service access and gaps helping policymakers, advocates, providers and communities understand where the system is succeeding—and where it needs attention.

Expand Youth Mental Health Services: Many children in foster care have experienced trauma prior to entering the system. Untreated behavioral health needs increase the risk of placement disruptions and long-term negative outcomes. Therefore we will:

• Increase funding and staffing for youth mental health service
• Partner with County agencies and local organizations to expand access
• Prioritize care for disadvantaged and high-need youth
  

Strengthen Placement Safety Through Interagency Partnership: Today, coordination between Social Services and law enforcement primarily occurs during investigations and emergencies. We will strengthen that coordination by establishing a formal, proactive partnership focused on ongoing placement safety and prevention.

Ensure a Smooth Transition: We must ensure that we have a pipeline of support for teenager who age out of the foster care system. They are at a disproportionate risk for homelessness, substance abuse, poor health, and incarceration. Many age out and become homeless immediately. There are specific actions that we can take: 

• Create a digital-first system that connects teenage foster youth and their families to county resources, education institutions and non-profits who can provide critical support services for the transition to adulthood. 
• Through the new jobs department, teenage foster youth will have access to social workers and counselling services that help them make effective career transitions. (See more here)

A System That Reflects Our Values

Foster care is not a peripheral issue. It is a core responsibility of the County government to ensure children are safe, families are supported and professionals have the tools they need to perform their jobs well.

Nick Stewart will lead with accountability, transparency and compassion to strengthening Baltimore County’s foster care system through data, partnership and rigorous oversight. Our children deserve no less.