Let It Be Us partners with Shetler, Inc. in recruiting homes for Emergency Foster Care covering all of Chicago and the Northern Region of Illinois.

Let It Be Us partners with Shetler, Inc. in recruiting homes for Emergency Foster Care covering all of Chicago and the Northern Region of Illinois. We are in search of homes already holding an Illinois foster care license as well as those interested in obtaining a foster care license. The Emergency Foster Care Program provides training, offers significant support, and offers an increased stipend.  The care will be for children of all ages who are in emergent need, although most are expected to be older. The time frame is for stays up to 21 days. 

Let It Be Us and Shelter, Inc. are hosting an Emergency Foster Care Fireside Chat in Barrington, Illinois on Wednesday, June 8, at 6:30 pm. At this event, you will meet representatives from Let It Be Us and Shelter, Inc. who will present more information about Emergency Foster Care. This event is limited to 35 individuals so please register soon as we expect the event to fill up quickly. Please register here. 

For those who are interested but are not able to attend this event, please complete this form and you will be contacted within one week. 

Questions may be directed to Susan McConnell at susanmcconnell@letitbeus.org. 

Quick Information About Let It Be Us

Let It Be Us is determined to help children in foster care by improving permanency outcomes. We are proud to do that by transforming child welfare with the help of passionate people, experienced in how child welfare works today but with a bold new vision of how child welfare could look tomorrow.

An introduction to Let It Be Us

• • An Illinois licensed child welfare agency licensed by Illinois DCFS
  • Licensed 501(c)3 
  • Founded in 2014
  • Specialize in recruitment, matching, placement  
  • All programs 
    • Alleviates strain on child welfare workers and the child welfare system
    • Creates faster placements 
    • Creates stronger placements the first time
    • Reduces placement disruptions 
    • Alleviates shelter capacity
    • Alleviates congregate care capacity
    • Reduces placement disruptions 

Our Metrics for 2021 

• • Placement Support worked on finding homes for 350 cases 
  • Held 40+ recruitment webinars on zoom open to the public 
  • Over 700+ new homes attended foster parent recruitment webinars
  • Over 200 worked with Let It Be Us Licensing Coaches 

An Overview of Our Programs

• • Placement Support Program – Open Home Navigator – Finds licensed and appropriate foster homes for children in emergent need and those who are challenging to place

• • • Through our proprietary database 750+ licensed homes
    • Targeted search capabilities based on demographics 
    • Geo-mapping technology used to locate homes within zip code radius
    • Publication – Wednesday’s Waiting Children to 5,000+ emails
      

• • Placement Support Program for Special Needs – Special Families Program – focused on placement of children with Down Syndrome, Autism, Cerebral Palsey, etc. 
    • Focuses on the most challenging to place children
    • Teens, special needs, siblings, and new funding to focus on Down Syndrome, Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Deafness, and more
    • Wrap-around programming for retention in our smaller programs
    • Point of entry and continual parent coaching 
    • Child/family services navigation 
    • Northwestern’s Family Care Parenting Lab Partnership
    • Multiple child/family counseling services
    • Child/family services navigation model  
      
  • Foster Parent Recruitment Program

• • • Live events in strategic locations (restarting in 2022)
    •  Zoom webinars – unlimited attendance – great pandemic solution 
    • Recruitment through the education model
      

• • Foster Care Licensing Support Program

• • • Assign each new family to a foster care licensing coach to aid in the process
    • Refer directly to the right agency the first time
    • Hold hands to ensure licensure
    • Excellent customer service and engagement 
      

• • Springboard to Adulthood Program – Recruitment and Placement 

• • • Young people ages 15 and up 
    • Young people who are at risk of aging out without anyone 
    • Provides a family as a permanent support system 
    • Provides wrap-around services focusing on employment and education
      

The strength of our connection to the foster care and adoption community is key to our success

• • Social media subscribers (11,000+)
  • Email subscribers (5,000+)
  • Database of Illinois licensed foster homes (700+)
  • Messaging solution subscribers (700+) (new)