There's no Place like Home: The Youth Acceptance Project

VIDA KHAVAR, LMFT, Family Builders

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or questioning, queer (LGBTQ+) and gender expansive children and youth are among the most vulnerable, overrepresented populations in foster care.

Family rejection of a child's sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression (SOGIE) is a significant contributing factor to the disproportionate number of LGBTQ+ and gender expansive and intersex youth in child welfare and juvenile justice systems.

The Youth Acceptance Project uses a trauma-informed psycho-educational model to address the misinformation, resistance, fear, and grief with which families often struggle, reducing the time that children spend in foster care, reuniting children with their families and, in many cases, preventing separation in the first place.