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While there are many serious issues surrounding the foster care problem, it is still a viable solution for the over 500,000 children in foster care homes. Yet one of the major challenges is the insufficiency of qualified homes for children to be placed in.

The experts discuss the three biggest issues impacting the foster care problem: as mentioned, lack of good homes, limited budgets the system works with, which in turn does not pay a care giver very much, and government ineffectiveness.

Joining Dennis McCuistion to discuss the complexity of this issue and potential solutions are:

Children placed in homes often exhibit antisocial behaviors, low self-esteem, post traumatic stress disorders and depression.

Jan Tennyson helps young people build their self-esteem and provides quality life experiences to children and young people who have been victimized. She is a product of foster care. She believes that with the right care a child can flourish, and sometimes foster care may be the only solution.

Scott McCowan and Evy Ritzen discuss the need for strengthening foster care programs, and the best of all solutions, keeping a child in their own homes or placed with a relative in a nurturing family environment.  They address the need for more caring, committed people becoming foster care givers and the necessity for the community to provide help for families, especially in challenging times. A key issue is the case worker, often an area of need as time and funds are issues. The team addresses adoption and its challenges, especially as it relates to older children and the need for encouraging education.

Join in for more information on the foster care problem, what is needed and how an individual can be a part of the solution.

And as always, thanks for watching as we talk about things that matter with people who care.

Niki Nicastro McCuistion
Executive producer/ producer

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Freedom Fest: Michael Shermer on Evolution, Darwin and Intelligent Design
How America Is Seen in the Arab and Muslim WorldHow America Is Seen in the Arab and Muslim World