“In Minnesota, more than half of Fosters experience homelessness by age 24.” That was a shocking headline from a group advocating for legislative changes for Minnesota children caught up in an often-failing foster care system. A system that doesn’t have uniform standards in all 87 counties. A government-run system that cites as progress federal data that shows a drop in the numbers of children in foster care nationwide but doesn’t examine what becomes of these children after they “age out” of the system.
Ugly truths remain hard-to-face facts in Minnesota: “In Minnesota, more than half of Fosters experience homelessness by age 24, according to Wilder Research. And, according to the National Foster Youth Institute, over 90% of Fosters do not have even $500 in savings. Just 37% graduate high school on time in Minnesota.” And that’s just the tip of the failing foster care iceberg in Minnesota.
These children do deserve better – a whole lot better and many state legislatures are stepping up to make their lives better. But not here. And not today.
You can read a fantastic commentary by a leader in the Minnesota Foster movement (FosterAdvocates.org/MinnesotaPromise) about first steps to help these young men and women who are caught up in an often-continuous system of failure.
By Ariana Chamoun
Minnesota Reformer
Recently released federal data shows that the number of children and youth in foster care nationwide dropped by 6.9% in 2023.
Here in Minnesota, that might sound like good news at first glance. Fewer youth in care might suggest progress — a sign that our systems are getting better at supporting families and preventing unnecessary removals.
But for those of us who have lived through foster care, and who organize every day with young people navigating it now, the story is more complex.
At Foster Advocates, we are proud to be the only organization in Minnesota led by and for people with foster care experience — whom we call Fosters. We believe in a future where all young people, no matter how they enter the system, are met with safety, belonging and opportunity. Unfortunately, that future is still out of reach for most.
Despite this recent drop in the number of youth in care, the outcomes for those who remain paint a grim picture. In Minnesota, more than half of Fosters experience homelessness by age 24, according to Wilder Research. And according to the National Foster Youth Institute, over 90% of Fosters do not have even $500 in savings. Just 37% graduate high school on time in Minnesota.
That’s why we launched what we call the Minnesota Promise: a statewide campaign to ask Fosters directly what real justice and support would look like.
Over the past two years, we’ve hosted listening sessions with over 120 Fosters representing more than 50 counties. What they told us was clear: They want to be seen, heard and empowered; not simply managed by systems that too often ignore their needs and voices.
Through our community organizing work, Fosters shared that, for many, it was the first time they had been in a room with others who shared their experience — without feeling ashamed or needing to hide it. They were able to have honest, difficult conversations with people who understood them immediately and without judgment.
The Minnesota Promise is not a checklist of reforms. It is a vision for transformation, one rooted in healing, culture and the leadership of those most impacted. It demands that we stop measuring progress by the number of kids in care and start measuring it by the outcomes we create for them. Are they housed? Are they connected to community? Are they thriving?
A numerical decline in foster care placements is not a promise kept. It could reflect positive shifts in prevention and family support, or it could mask deeper issues, such as youth aging out without support, or families discouraged from engaging with systems that historically have not served them well.
If we want to turn this moment into real momentum, we must do more than celebrate numbers. We must invest in Foster-informed services and wellness, peer-led leadership, and system redesign led by Fosters themselves.
Minnesota has the opportunity to lead the nation, not just in reducing the number of children in care, but in building a world where they no longer fall through the cracks once they leave. A smaller system does not mean a better one — unless we change the experience of those still inside it.
The question now is not just how many children are in foster care. It’s whether, collectively as Minnesotans, we’re finally ready to keep our promise to them.