North American Council on Adoptable Children ~ www.nacac.org ~ 651-644-3036
Community Champions Network:
A Post-Adoption Advocacy &
Support Coalition Project
The Need
The needs of adopted children and their families do not end when the adoption is legally finalized. Many
families, especially those who adopt older children from the foster care system, face extra challenges.
Post-adoption services provide families with critical resources necessary to strengthen their bonds,
stabilize their families, and continue to provide a secure and loving permanent home for their children.
These services are often provided through community-based organizations and can include parent
support groups, respite care, education and training, lending libraries, mentoring and buddy systems,
warm lines, plus mental health and other medical services. Due to a lack of awareness and limited
funding at the state, provincial, and county levels, however, many adoptive families have no access to
these services.
The Goal
The ultimate goal of the Community Champions Network is to provide thousands of families with
increased stability and preserved adoptions as a result of increased access to quality post-adoption
services. The project will work toward this goal by empowering leaders to build community coalitions that
work to create sustainable post-adoption services through a combination of grassroots organizing, public
awareness campaigns, and advocacy efforts. To date, we have assisted in legislative changes, new
funding, pilot and ongoing programs, and more.
What is the Community Champions Network?
In 2006, Jockey began partnering with the North American Council for Adoptable Children (NACAC), a
nationally recognized leader in post-adoption services, to develop the NACAC Community Champions
Network. Now in its sixth year, the network of community-based coalitions has helped train and
empower more than 2,000 informed and inspired advocates for post-adoption services for foster and
adoptive families in communities across North America.
Community Champions Network Program Overview
Through its North American network of adoptive parents, child welfare professionals, and parent groups,
NACAC identifies communities with limited adoption services, significant numbers of foster children who
have been adopted, as well as programs that are successfully serving families raising adopted children
with special needs. We are currently working in 21 communities across the US and Canada.
In each site, NACAC has identified a growing team of adoptive parents, professionals, youth and
community providers to participate in the community coalition. NACAC, together with the top experts in
the field, trains and supports these teams in advocating for effective post-adoption service models in their
communities. Each team will develop an action plan to guide its local efforts, and will work to build a
coalition in their community by enlisting organizations, individuals, parents and professionals to join the
advocacy effort.
The Community Champions Network was founded with ongoing financial support from Jockey Being
Family™, Jockey International’s corporate citizenship initiative to strengthen adoptive families for
successful futures. Through Jockey Being Family™, Jockey provides funding, employee volunteers and inkind donations to its nonprofit partners to enhance their post-adoption services capabilities for families in
Wisconsin and throughout North America.
Contact: Kim Stevens, Program Manager ~ kimstevens@nacac.org ~ 508-254-2200