Who We Are

The Ohio Family Care Association's Mission is to Connect, Advocate, Educate and Support Ohio Families impacted by the child welfare system.

Who We Are

Ohio Family Care Association (OFCA) is a family oriented, non-profit organization that was incorporated in 1975. Our motto, “The Voice of Ohio Resource Families”, emphasizes a focus on serving both as a voice for and as a partner for Ohio families impacted by the child welfare system.

Since our inception, OFCA has attempted to improve Ohio’s child protection system and bridge gaps in support and communication. We operate the only statewide program that serves all resources (adoptive, foster, kinship, respite) and primary birth families under one umbrella.

Our work allows us to uniquely understand the dynamics of each family structure and creates a foundation to overcome barriers between families, schools, medical practitioners, the courts, the community and key stakeholders in child welfare policy and legislation. We do this to obtain concrete, measurable, and sustainable public goals, for the safety and protection of children and to demonstrate how good partnerships with families have a long lasting positive impact in the lives of children.

Who We Serve

The goal of OFCA (Ohio Family Care Association) is to strengthen and support resource families on their journey in parenting by adoption, foster, kinship, primary families that have been reunified with their children or respite care.

Primary Parent

Permanent parent of a child prior to them being removed and a case opened, often referred to as birth parent

Kinship Caregiver

Informal or formal caregiver temporarily caring for a child who has been removed from their primary home and who had a prior relationship to the child before placement

Foster Caregiver

Licensed, temporary caregiver for a child who has been removed from their primary parent

Adoptive Parent

Legal parent of a child not by birth

Respite Caregiver

A caregiver who provides short term placements for children in foster care

Mission, Vision, & Core Values

The Ohio Family Care Association’s Mission is to Connect, Advocate, Educate and Support Ohio Families impacted by the child welfare system.

OFCA seeks to bring together Ohio resource families (adoptive, foster, kinship, and respite), primary families, child welfare agency personnel, and interested others to promote the best interests of children, youth, and families who have been in touch with Ohio’s child protection placement systems.

OFCA’s vision is to be a voice for resource and primary families in order to:

Promote equity and diversity in the child protection system and its treatment of families

Strengthen the public image, status and rights of families;

Encourage meaningful recruitment and retention of resource families;
Conduct educational and informational activities for families;
Assist local family associations;
Advance communication, coordination, and collaboration among resource families, primary families, and public and private child welfare agencies;
Increase supports to families including sufficient reimbursements or subsidies for the care of children and youth placed in resource families;
Advocate on behalf of all families touched by Ohio’s child welfare system

Family-driven, family-centered, child-oriented principles guide the work of OFCA:

Children belong in families.
Families succeed and prosper in communities of care.
Families achieve positive outcomes when child placement agencies collaborate with them.
Cultural competence is paramount.

Our mission centers on connecting, empowering and serving families in six service areas:

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EDUCATION

OFCA strengthens and supports the development of strong, successful resource and primary families through education. Educational goals include improving the well-being of children, stabilizing families, understanding the impact of trauma, implementing tools and resources that stabilize and empower families and supporting connections between all parties by emphasizing the reality that relationships established during the period of time families are served by the child welfare system have a lifelong impact with tremendous opportunities for personal growth, healing and strength.
COMMUNITY AWARENESS

OFCA seeks to promote community engagement and awareness of issues and needs of Ohio foster, adoption, kinship, primary family and respite caregivers. It is the association’s intention to get the word out that children grow best in families, that there are needs within the child welfare system, and that empowering and supporting caregivers and parents to become effective, caring parents for their children is a top priority. OFCA writes and distributes a enews that speaks to the issues present for families affected by the child protection system.
ADVOCACY

OFCA advocacy goals include the discussion of current and proposed changes in child protection policy and legislation, staying connected to what is happening at the state level in the development of laws and rules, ensure the family voice is included in all policy developed for the child protective system and speak as a united voice for Ohio families in rule development, legislation and practice issues. We believe rules and practices set to benefit one family group must not have unintended consequences for another.
ONGOING POST-PLACEMENT SERVICES

Education and the need for support does not end once a child is in their permanent home. OFCA recognizes that families need ongoing support and services. OFCA provides guidance, answers and resources to support families and transitioning youth by advocating for ongoing post placement services for adoptive, kinship, primary parents and transitioning youth.
FAMILY SUPPORT

OFCA provides a warm line for resource families who are experiencing difficulties or desiring to share joys related to providing care for children that have been removed from their primary home by the child welfare system or who have been reunified with their primary parents. OFCA helps build, train and sustain Ohio peer-led family support groups. and empowers Ohio resource and primary families to use their collective experiences, talents and time to help children and families who have come to the attention of child protective services do the best job possible in caring for their children.
BUILDING CONNECTIONS

OFCA works to connect families to support groups in their area, connect support groups to each other, connect regional and advocacy groups and provide referrals to local agencies and peer mentors. OFCA works to provide connections between statewide groups, both public and private, that advocate for a specific family group or agency serving that family.