Nearly 16 thousand Ohio children are in the custody of county children's service agencies.
Governor Mike DeWine wants to increase the number of foster families available to meet the growing need, and has launched a recruiting effort. Ohio Public Radio's Jo Ingles reports.
The state has a new foster care and adoption website that gives Ohioans information on requirements and responsibilities for would-be foster parents. But Bret Crow with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services says it is part of a larger public awareness campaign.
“That involves display ads, it involves social media hits, it involves key word searches.”
The number of kids in foster care has soared 28 percent in the last five years, in nearly all cases because of the opioid crisis. One of DeWine’s first executive orders was to elevate foster care priorities within the job and family services agency.