Nearly 2.7 million children across the U.S. are currently in the care of relatives. Perhaps nowhere is the reliance on kinship care more prevalent than in Kentucky. Recent data suggest that kinship rates throughout the Commonwealth are among the highest in the country. Moreover, whilst the benefits of kinship arrangements are well-known, emerging research documents the challenges and struggles relatives often face in caring for young ones. The overarching goal of the Kentucky Kinship Resource Center (KKRC) is to prevent or allay these challenges.
KKRC provides a continuum of services to meet the unique needs of kinship providers across the Commonwealth. Through comprehensive and creative training and education programs, innovative peer support and mentoring initiatives, and broad-based advocacy, KKRC provides the support, resources, and services needed for kinship providers to safeguard the well-being of the children in their care. KKRC also leads efforts to promote and provide evidence-based approaches for kinship provision through expansive research and evaluation efforts in the field. Through each of these efforts, both singularly and collectively, KKRC is devoted to improving the experiences and outcomes of kinship care in Kentucky.