Concurrent Planning for Youth Aging Out of Foster Care as a Protective Measure in The State of Illinois, Written by Dr. Susan A. McConnell
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- May 14, 2025
Concurrent planning for youth in Illinois preparing to age out of foster care is seen as a protective measure. Each year, approximately 20,000 youth age out of the U.S. foster care system without achieving permanency through reunification, guardianship, or adoption. These young people often face significant challenges, including higher risks of homelessness, unemployment, early pregnancy, and mental health issues. To mitigate these outcomes, concurrent planning—simultaneously preparing for both independence and alternative permanency options (guardianship, adoption) — has emerged as a critical strategy. This approach, when combined with life skills training, offers a comprehensive framework to support youth transitioning out of foster care.
Understanding Concurrent Planning
Concurrent planning involves developing multiple permanency options for children and teens in foster care, rather than sequentially pursuing one plan after another. This method ensures that if reunification with biological families is not feasible, alternative plans such as adoption or guardianship are already in place, reducing the time children spend in foster care.
The Necessity of Life Skills Training
Beyond securing permanent homes, preparing youth for independent living is paramount. Life skills training encompasses education on financial literacy, employment readiness, health care navigation, and daily living tasks. Such training is essential, as studies indicate that former foster youth often lack these critical skills, leading to adverse outcomes.
Statistical Insights
- Approximately 20% of youth become homeless immediately after aging out of foster care.
- Only about 50% of former foster youth are employed by age 24.
- Less than 3% of youth who age out of foster care earn a college degree.
These statistics underscore the urgent need for comprehensive planning that addresses both permanency and independent living skills.
Benefits of Integrated Concurrent Planning
Implementing concurrent planning alongside life skills training offers several advantages:
- Timely Permanency: Children and teens achieve stable, permanent homes more quickly, reducing the negative impacts of prolonged foster care placements.
- Enhanced Preparedness: Youth develop essential skills for adulthood, increasing their chances of successful independent living.
- Reduced System Strain: Efficient planning alleviates the burden on the foster care system by decreasing the number of youth aging out without support.
The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and Wendy’s Wonderful Kids
The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption has significantly increased adoption opportunities for teenagers in foster care through its signature program, Wendy’s Wonderful Kids®. This initiative employs an evidence-based, child-focused recruitment model that prioritizes finding permanent families for children who are often overlooked, including teenagers, sibling groups, and those with special needs.
A rigorous five-year national evaluation revealed that children referred to the Wendy’s Wonderful Kids program are up to three times more likely to be adopted compared to those not in the program. As of June 2024, over 14,000 adoptions have been finalized through this program, demonstrating its effectiveness in securing permanent homes for youth who might otherwise age out of the foster care system without a family.
The Foundation’s commitment extends beyond recruitment. It actively works with states, agencies, and policymakers to scale the Wendy’s Wonderful Kids program nationwide. By 2024, the program has expanded to 20 states and the province of Ontario, with plans to reach all 50 states and Washington, D.C., by 2028.
Through these concerted efforts, the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption continues to transform the landscape of foster care adoption, ensuring that more teenagers find the permanent, loving families they deserve.
Locating Adoptive Resources
In the State of Illinois, Let It Be Us serves a critical statewide role in advancing foster care adoption through its leadership of the Adoption Listing Service of Illinois. As the agency designated to manage and operate this essential service, Let It Be Us plays a pivotal role in connecting waiting children—particularly adolescents—with permanent, loving families. The organization is uniquely focused on addressing the urgent and complex needs of older youth in foster care, who face the greatest barriers to permanency and are disproportionately at risk of aging out without stable family connections.
A cornerstone of Let It Be Us’s effectiveness lies in its strategic and data-driven approach to recruitment. The organization actively identifies, engages, and supports prospective adoptive parents who are specifically open to fostering and adopting teens, and those with special needs. To support this mission, Let It Be Us has designed and maintains a proprietary, statewide database of over 1,100 licensed Illinois foster homes. This highly curated and dynamic tool includes individualized data points that allow recruiters to identify families based on readiness, experience, and openness to teen adoption. The database enables precise and timely matching, ensuring that youth are connected with families whose capabilities align with their unique developmental, emotional, and relational needs.
The Adoption Recruiters working within the Adoption Listing Service at Let It Be us are trained professionals who specialize in permanency planning for older youth. Their work is grounded in trauma-informed practices, family systems theory, and a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by adolescents in care. Through careful assessment and relationship building, these recruiters facilitate matches between youth and families who possess the stability, parenting capacity, and long-term commitment needed to support teens in achieving successful, permanent outcomes. By focusing on the alignment of strengths, needs, and long-term goals, Let It Be Us is driving a significant shift in how Illinois approaches teen adoption.
Let It Be Us operates the Heart Gallery of Illinois, a dynamic, child-specific recruitment tool designed to elevate the visibility of children and teens in foster care who are awaiting adoptive families. By featuring compelling portraits and carefully crafted narratives, the Heart Gallery plays a critical role in increasing a youth’s chances of being adopted—particularly for adolescents, who are statistically less likely to achieve permanency. This powerful tool is especially effective in recruiting families open to adopting teens and is continually updated to reflect current availability and evolving recruitment needs, ensuring that it remains a responsive and impactful resource in the statewide effort to secure permanent homes for waiting youth.
Through its leadership of the Adoption Listing Service, Let It Be Us is not only increasing adoption opportunities for teens but also reshaping the infrastructure and mindset around permanency statewide—demonstrating that with innovation, intentionality, and compassion, every youth in foster care can be given the opportunity to grow up in a permanent and supportive family.
Conclusion
Concurrent planning, when effectively combined with life skills training, provides a robust framework to support youth transitioning out of foster care. By proactively addressing both permanency and independent living needs, this integrated approach can significantly improve outcomes for these vulnerable young adults.
Resources
Olive Crest – Strong Families, Safe Kids
Wellpoint Care Network+1Reddit+1
ASPE+2Wellpoint Care Network+2Penny Lane Centers+2
NFYI – National Foster Youth Institute+1Wellpoint Care Network+1
Urban Institute+14irwendys.com+14Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption+14CSG Midwest+3Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption+3Wendy’s+3
Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption+2Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption+2irwendys.com+2CSG Midwest
Wendy’s+2Ohio CASA+2focusonyouth+2Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption+3Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption+3Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption+3
The Imprint+3irwendys.com+3Wendy’s+3
About Let It Be Us:
Let It Be Us is a nonprofit organization dedicated to recruitment, matching and placement within foster care and adoption across the State of Illinois. Through innovative programming and strategic partnerships, Let It Be Us aims to improve outcomes for children in the child welfare system. Learn more at www.letitbeus.org.
Dr. Susan A. McConnell is the Founder and Executive Director of Let It Be Us, an Illinois licensed child welfare agency with the mission of providing collaborative, innovative solutions of effective recruitment and placement within Illinois foster care and adoption. Susan has an MBA from DePaul University and a Doctorate Degree in Social Work from the University of Southern California, where her work focused on permanency within child welfare. She is the Chair of the Permanency Committee of the Illinois Statewide Foster Care Advisory Council, appointed by the Director of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) in 2017. She is also an adoptive parent with over 30 years of open adoption experience. She can be reached at susanmcconnell@letitbeus.org.
Let It Be Us is an Illinois 501(c)3 and licensed child welfare agency. The mission of Let It Be Us is to provide collaborative, innovative solutions of effective recruitment and placement within Illinois foster care and adoption. The Let It Be Us platform manages the Adoption Listing Service of Illinois and the Heart Gallery of Illinois, engines of success for Illinois foster care adoptions. The Let It Be Us vision is for all children in the Illinois child welfare system to achieve educational equity, employment equity, and overall well being through the incorporation of Let It Be Us Programming into statewide advancements in foster care and adoption recruitment and placement. For more information about Let It Be Us, visit www.letitbeus.org.
