Facing Foster Care in Alaska

21/08/2026

Day 2 of the Housing Summit hosted by the Alaska Coalition on Housing and Homelesness and the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness ACEH

Strong housing solutions matter — especially for youth and families. 🏠💙
Stable homes create safety, belonging, and the foundation every young person needs to grow, learn, and thrive. When families have secure housing, entire communities become stronger.

20/08/2026

Day one 💙 of the Alaska Housing Summit hosted by the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness and the Alaska Coalition on Housing and Homelessness. ACEH

19/08/2026

Focused on strengthening housing support and child welfare for transition‑aged this week. 💙 Tonight we joined a reception hosted by the Rasmuson Foundation Foundation, co‑hosted by Facing Foster Care In Alaska Executive Director Amanda Metivier Hernandez and the Alaska Coalition on Housing & Homelessness AKCH2 Director Brian Wilson. Grateful for the meaningful conversations with community partners, funders, and those with who continue to drive this work forward.

06/08/2026

Most states temporarily house foster children in hotels, offices

Eight states, including Alaska, did not track their use of emergency temporary placements according to a new federal audit

More than 9,000 children in foster care had to temporarily stay in hotels, office buildings and other potentially unsafe settings when states couldn’t find suitable places for them, according to a new federal audit.

06/08/2026

Placement Needed!

OCS is looking for placement of a 9-year-old male who is nonverbal. He is very energetic, loves being around other children, and communicates by tablet.

Contact Dawn Nelson at 907-414-5947 for more information or to request placement.

31/07/2026

📣 Registration is now open for The Keeping Families Together Housing Summit, scheduled for August 21st, 2026 9 AM to 4 PM, in Anchorage, AK.

🏠 Purpose: The Alaska KFT Housing Summit is designed to bring together housing, child welfare, Tribal, state, local, philanthropic community partners and those with lived experience at a meaningful milestone in Alaska’s collective work to strengthen housing stability for children, families, and young adults involved with child welfare. Building on progress made through KFT, the summit will provide updates on accomplishments, data, lessons learned, supportive housing strategies, and community initiatives while creating space for participants to better understand one another’s systems, roles, and perspectives. Through shared learning, connection, and solution-focused discussion, the summit will help participants see themselves as part of this effort, deepen relationships across systems, identify practical opportunities for collaboration, and set a clear path toward the next milestone in ensuring safe, stable housing that supports family preservation, reunification, and young adult success and stability.

This event is Free, and follows Housing Summit offered by the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness and the Alaska Coalition on Housing and Homelessness Scheduled for August 19-20th in Anchorage.

Participants are encouraged to attend both events (please note the Alaska Housing Summit requires a separate registration and fee, scholarships may be available).

Participants will explore supportive housing ideas, learn from statewide efforts, and identify actionable ways to deepen collaboration across systems.

To REGISTER: https://uaa.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9nOLzrlVFgYMrSC

Travel stipends are available to eligible participants based on demonstrated need and available funding. Applicants may request financial assistance to help offset travel expenses. Submission of a request does not guarantee funding, and stipend awards are subject to the availability of funds.
To request a travel stipend: https://uaa.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3Dk0MNywzOTKNqm

A flyer is attached. Please register and share this opportunity.

Reach out to the Alaska Child Welfare Academy for more info!

25/07/2026

🎉 Last night we celebrated the passage of House Bill 36 alongside , alumni, state lawmakers and allies. 💙

We paid tribute to the incredible work of Rep. Andrew Gray with an award for his tireless efforts and commitment to foster children, youth and families.

We are profoundly grateful to Senator Forrest Dunbar, Senator Matt Claman, Senator Elvi Gray‑Jackson, Representative Zack Fields, Representative Alyse Galvin, for joining us in celebration and to all the legislators who cosponsored and supported this effort.

A heartfelt thank‑you to every foster youth and alumni who showed up to make this change for themselves and those who come after them. Youth voice matters! 🩵

A special thanks to Northern Justice Project, LLC & Jim Davis for standing up for youth, and catering this celebration.

— HB36 a is major victory powered by the voices, leadership, and lived expertise of foster youth. Their courage and advocacy shaped this law, which now requires
✨ timely hearings for youth placed in psychiatric care,
✨immediate appointment of an attorney,
✨ and 30‑day reviews to ensure their rights and well‑being are protected. 💙

This is what meaningful change looks like. 🎉

Barb Malchick Les Gara Amanda Metivier Hernandez Likilgnuk Jaime Shannon Smith Anna Redmon Sarah Lewis Starlin Maier Mary Jane Edwards Kxlo Malofou Taala Stone Prilynn Stone Jyasia Batts Mariana Clendenin Theresa Castillo Karol Eggerman Joseph Nielsen

Photocred Dolce Wolf Photography

22/07/2026

🚨 Big news in our fight for justice.

Today, the Judge heard oral arguments in our case to ensure foster youth have their basic cost of living covered when they aren’t placed in a foster home — a gap that has left too many young people struggling to survive.

✨ No youth should be left without the resources they need to survive.

✨ No youth should fall through the cracks because the system failed to plan for them.

20/07/2026

Opinion: Veto of House Bill 52 removes lifesaving protections for Alaska’s most vulnerable children

✨Governor Mike Dunleavy has repeatedly failed to prioritize the safety and well-being of children. By vetoing HB 52, the governor has left vulnerable youths exposed to the same dangerous conditions the DOJ already warned us about.

✨ Alaska’s youths cannot afford another year, another month, another day without protection. They deserve safety rather than a government that refuses to acknowledge longstanding, documented harm.

Facing Foster Care in Alaska Executive Director Amanda Metivier & Likilgnuk Jaime, longtime FFCA Member call out the harms House Bill 52 was meant to protect, especially for .

The evidence of harm inside psychiatric facilities is longstanding and well documented, yet Alaska’s children remain without basic protections.

14/07/2026