ATLANTA, GA – On May 3, the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) along with key partners will officially launch a journey toward a State of Hope, an effort to ensure that all of Georgia’s children live in communities where they are safe and have the support they and their families need to thrive. 

The “listen, learn and launch” event, scheduled for 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Georgia Aquarium’s Arctic Room, will be attended by stakeholders from throughout the state who will be encouraged to actively join the journey to become the first State of Hope in the country. Becoming a State of Hope is the aim of DFCS’s Blueprint for Change, a three-pillar approach to reforming Georgia’s child welfare system that focuses on building and sustaining a robust workforce, strong practices, and purposeful engagement with DFCS staff and the community. 

DFCS is partnering with Casey Family Programs – the nation’s largest operating foundation focused on safely reducing the need for foster care and building Communities of Hope across America – to engage a broad base of community stakeholders to transform the lives of Georgia’s most vulnerable children. Leaders of nonprofits, philanthropies, government, businesses and communities are being called upon to collaborate closely to help achieve that vision. 

Building on the work of the Northwest Georgia System of Care Advisory Council (SOC) and the Northwest Georgia Region of Hope, the State of Hope movement will encompass the entire state from border to border, transcending geographical communities and zip code boundaries. The end result will be safe children, strengthened families and a stronger Georgia.