CHARLESTON, W.Va. –West Virginia is joining a national initiative aimed at improving outcomes for children and strengthening the foster care system across the nation.
Governor Patrick Morrisey joined Administration for Children and Families Assistant Secretary Alex Adams on Wednesday to announce the state’s participation in the “A Home for Every Child” initiative.
The announcement was made during an event highlighting the state’s ongoing efforts to improve the child welfare system.
The goal of the collaborative effort is to increase the ratio of foster homes to children in foster care, which currently stands at about 57 homes for every 100 children.
“If we do this right, if we execute on this, we will have homes waiting on children, not children waiting on homes,” Adams said.
The initiative launched in late 2025, and so far, 15 states, including West Virginia, along with the District of Columbia, have joined. Participating states include Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Rhode Island.
Morrisey said that by joining the effort, the state is taking another step toward addressing child welfare issues in West Virginia.
“I am optimistic that we are going to continue slowly but surely make progress to make sure that our kids needs are addressed,” he said.
The initiative will also give states greater flexibility to modernize child welfare systems, reduce unnecessary bureaucracy, and focus on measurable outcomes for children and families.
Adam said the current condition of the foster care system is not good, particularly when there are more children in the system than available foster homes.
“It’s a real child welfare problem, because when we don’t have enough homes for kids they end up in non-traditional settings, group homes, Air BnB’s, government offices and hotels, we can do better and we must do better,” he said.
The initiative is part of President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump’s broader effort to improve outcomes for children and families through prevention-focused reforms, stronger permanency efforts, and increased state flexibility within the child welfare system.
Morrisey said there is no easy answer to child welfare issues; however, he said the state must continue working to address them.
“We’re working on many things, but we also know that this is not easy, it requires sacrifice, patience, compassion, and we know that there’s going to be pain involved, very difficult area,” he said.
Now that West Virginia is part of the initiative, the state will work with other participating states and the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) to improve foster home availability, strengthen kinship care, reduce unnecessary administrative burdens, and modernize child welfare accountability systems.
To learn more about the initiative you can visit their website here.