What is kinship care?

Kinship care, or family caring for family, is a natural, out-of-home placement option for children that successfully meets their need for safety, permanency and well-being. 

Impact

Better Outcomes for Children

Children in care have already experienced the trauma of being removed from their homes and families. Placing them with strangers only compounds that trauma. Placing them in the homes of relatives or fictive kin reduces the chance for further trauma, while at the same time maintains their connection to their communities and cultures.

Model

A Value for Family

As the only agency in the country that exclusively delivers services to the entire kinship triad (child, caregiver and birth family), our approach is pure kinship. We provide strengths-based, trauma-informed, culturally competent kinship care services that support stability and continuity and maintain a child's cultural identity and contact with their birth family.

Values

What Is Important to Us?

As a nationally recognized leader in kinship care services, A Second Chance, Inc., is dedicated to upholding the highest professional standards. In the service of children, we respect the families and communities we serve, as well as our own staff. This has been a priority since our inception.

How We Have Helped


ASCI has served approximately 31,000 children, 10,000 kinship caregivers and 30,000 birth parents since its founding.

Reunification

70% of our children reach reunification within the first year of service.

70%

Education

98% of our youth graduate high school, compared to the national average of 50%.

98%

Adoption

78% of our children have closed to adoption.

78%
Staff Appreciation
ASCI Attends the African American Strategic Partnership Conference

ASCI had the opportunity to attend this year’s African American Strategic Partnership (AASP) Conference, a professional development event focused on employee wellness, sustainable leadership, workplace culture, and organizational effectiveness. The…

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ASCI Youth
Informal vs. Formal Kinship Care: What You Need to Know

When a child enters your home unexpected or through a planned family agreement, your immediate priority is providing a safe, loving place to land. As a relative—whether you are a…

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Education
Medical & Educational Consent: A Practical Guide to Enrolling a Child in School and Accessing Medical Care

When a child enters into care, one priority is making sure they can attend school, receive medical care, and access the services they need. For kinship caregivers, however, questions about…

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ASCI Youth
How to Talk to Your Kinship Child About Their Parents

Compassionate conversations that build trust, preserve identity, and strengthen family bonds. “Why can’t I live with my mom?”“Does my dad still love me?” These are some of the hardest questions…

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