CONFERENCE OVERVIEW

Building Partnerships to Serve African American Children and Families
"When we walk to the edge of all the light we have and take the step into the darkness of the unknown, we must believe one of two things will happen. There will be something solid for us to stand on, or we will be taught how to fly." Claire Morris

Fact: 195,000 African American children are in our Nation's child welfare system. Our children make up 15% of the Nation's youth, however they comprise 37% of the foster care system.

Fact: African American children and families are disproportionately represented in almost every system in this country.

BACW is committed to strengthening and supporting the healthy development of African American children, families and communities by advocating for culturally appropriate services and promoting the development and support of African American leaders in the field. If we are to successfully reach this goal we must ensure that when our children and families have stepped into the darkness of the system there is a solid foundation for them to stand upon.

BACW seeks to fortify and strengthen the strong foundation of our covenant by building solid partnerships with a multitude of organizations, foundations, support systems and communities that touch our families. Many African American families are affected by poverty, poor education, inadequate support systems, single and teen-parent households as well as social problems such as substance abuse, violence, and parent incarceration. As a result, we seek to not only increase awareness, but develop strategies to combat this pervasive problem that threatens to impact the quality of life for families and affect the future of our children.

The focus of the 2006 BACW conference was on building partnerships to serve African American Children and Families and move beyond raising awareness of what our young people need to become successful adults and also create a space that will move us to action. We propose to expand our network of participants and increase our efforts to reduce and ultimately prevent further placement of African American children in the foster care system. Business and civic leaders are beginning to recognize that the cost of non-involvement is far greater on the economic viability of the community at-large. Therefore, we must foster opportunities for partnership and address the pressing needs of our children and families now or face the consequences for generations to come.