Focus on Youth

What Focus on Youth does

Focus on Youth, Inc. is a faith-based non-profit organization founded in 1992 and headquartered at 8904 Brookside Avenue in West Chester, Ohio. It serves vulnerable children, youth, and families in southwest Ohio who have experienced abuse, neglect, trauma, or behavioral issues, operating four core service lines: foster care and adoption placement, behavioral health services (including play therapy and trauma treatment by licensed counselors), the Training Institute (CEU-accredited education for foster parents, kinship providers, and professionals), and ancillary programs such as Bridges Provider and the Wendy's Wonderful Kids adoption recruitment program (in partnership with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption). The organization practices Trauma-Informed Care as a clinical and operational methodology, including Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) certification, and employs 41 staff and interns with 240 combined years of collective experience.

The business model combines government contracts (primarily Ohio Department of Job and Family Services for foster care, adoption, and behavioral health), individual and corporate donations (including a $20,000 fundraising campaign goal, Kroger Community Rewards, Amazon Wish List, and the Annual Gala & Silent Auction), and training fees (free for licensed FOY foster parents; $30-$75 for outside attendees; $40-$70 for CEU credits). Reach is community-led and event-driven, leveraging partnerships with Boys & Girls Club, Edge Teen Center, United Way, Northeast Church of Christ, the American Red Cross, Rhea Lana's, and others across southwest Ohio, with virtual training extending reach statewide via Zoom and GoTo Meeting.

Strategic positioning rests on regulatory accreditations (Council on Accreditation, ODJFS approval, CSWMFT Board CEU approval), staff with lived experience as adoptive parents and former foster youth, and 34 years of community presence. The organization has historically served 2,500 foster children, with the Behavioral Health Department reaching 1,043 children in the most recent year reported.

Name

Focus on Youth

Legal name

Focus on Youth, Inc.

Website

https://focusonyouth.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Focus on Youth is a faith-based, non-profit organization in southwest Ohio providing foster care, adoption, behavioral health, and trauma-informed training services to vulnerable children and families since 1992.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Child Welfare Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Child and Youth Services (624110), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Housing, Foster Care & Wraparound Support (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Youth Mental Health, Counseling & Wellbeing (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAK), Behavioral Health for Children & Adolescents (Youth Services) (HLAFACAL), Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

Keywords

• Foster care services
• Adoption services
• Behavioral health counseling
• Trauma-informed care
• Professional training services

Headquarters

HQ city

West Chester

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government Contracts and Grants: Funded through Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) contracts for foster care, adoption, and behavioral health services. Receives grant funding through Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption (Wendy's Wonderful Kids program).
2. Donations and Charitable Giving: Individual donations, corporate sponsorships for events, Kroger Community Rewards, Amazon Wish List contributions. Major annual fundraising through Gala & Silent Auction.
3. Training Services: Provides CEU-approved training through Training Institute. Free for FOY foster parents, fee-based for outside attendees and CEUs. Approved by CSWMFT Board of Ohio for Social Workers and Counselors.
4. Behavioral Health Services: Comprehensive mental health services for children and families including therapeutic interventions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Focus on Youth is a non-profit child welfare organization that recruits, trains, and supports foster and adoptive families and provides behavioral health services to children, biological parents, and families in southwest Ohio. It also operates a Training Institute that delivers trauma-informed care and TBRI curricula to external human services professionals, agencies, and foster/adoptive parents across Ohio and beyond.

Product overview

Focus on Youth is a faith-based, non-profit service organization offering an integrated portfolio of child welfare and family support services. The core offerings include foster care and adoption placement services, behavioral health/mental health counseling, and a Training Institute providing CEU-accredited education for caregivers and professionals. Key programs include the Wendy's Wonderful Kids adoption program (in partnership with the Dave Thomas Foundation) and Bridges Provider services. The Training Institute offers pre-placement training, caregiver training, professional development, and TBRI/TCC trauma-informed care certification. Annual events like the Gala & Silent Auction support fundraising efforts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Wendy's Wonderful Kids®: A program partnership with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption that helps youth find permanency through adoption, focusing on harder-to-place youth such as older youth, sibling groups, and youth with social, emotional, and behavioral needs.
• Training Institute

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,500 foster children served historically
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Rhea Lana's Shopping EventminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 May 2026Partnership providing free shopping event for foster care families at Butler County Fairgrounds. Foster families receive free access to children's consignment shopping event. Focus on Youth promotes the event to families served.
• Dave Thomas Foundation for AdoptioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption to help youth find permanency through adoption. Focus on Youth serves as a local partner for the Wendy's Wonderful Kids program, conducting child-specific recruitment for harder-to-place youth including older youth, sibling groups, and youth with social, emotional, and behavioral needs. Dave Thomas Foundation is a national nonprofit dedicated exclusively to finding permanent homes for children in foster care.
• United WaycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProud sponsor of Chill Out 2026, a free community mental health event. United Way supports community wellness and resilience initiatives through partnerships with local organizations serving youth and families.
• Boys & Girls Club of West Chester/LibertycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to host Chill Out 2026 mental health event and ongoing behavioral health services. Focus on Youth Behavioral Health Team works with youth at the West Chester Boys & Girls Club weekly. Collaboration for youth wellness and community programming.
• Edge Teen CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host of Chill Out 2026 community mental health event. Focus on Youth Behavioral Health Team works with youth at The Edge Teen Center weekly. Partnership supporting teen wellness and connection programs.
• KrogerminorGTM or Marketing PartnerKroger Community Rewards Program allows registered Kroger Plus Card users to donate to Focus on Youth (Organization ID RV068). Kroger donates money to the organization when cardholders shop at any Kroger store.
• AmazonminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAmazon Wish List program allows donors to purchase and ship items directly to Focus on Youth. Wish List includes items benefiting clients or office needs. Available at https://a.co/4YKQ4r3.
• MVK and Cincinnati Foster CareminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsors providing free Cincinnati Reds game tickets to foster families. Sponsors cover ticket costs for entire households of foster families.
• Northeast Church of ChristminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCommunity partner hosting events at 12020 Southwick Ln, Cincinnati. Venue for Back-to-School Bash and other community events serving foster families.
• American Red CrosscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCertification provider for First Aid, CPR, and AED training offered through Focus on Youth Training Institute. Participants become certified in Infant, Child, and Adult CPR and First Aid through Red Cross curriculum.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Lighthouse Youth Services: Cincinnati-based nonprofit providing foster care, residential, behavioral health, and community-based services for children and youth; direct regional peer operating in the same southwest Ohio catchment with overlapping ODJFS contract relationships.
• Beech Acres Parenting Center: Greater Cincinnati nonprofit delivering parenting education, mental health services, and foster/adoption support with a trauma-informed lens; comparable service mix and Cincinnati footprint make it a head-to-head peer for ODJFS contracts and donor dollars.
• National Youth Advocate Program: Ohio-headquartered nonprofit operating statewide foster care, adoption, behavioral health, and wraparound services; same program taxonomy, larger geographic reach, and direct competition for ODJFS and managed-care contracts.
• Pressley Ridge: Mid-Atlantic nonprofit offering foster care, adoption, residential, and behavioral health services for children and families; closely mirrors Focus on Youth's integrated child-welfare plus mental-health model and similar trauma-informed positioning.

Regional players

• St. Joseph Home: Cincinnati nonprofit serving children and adults with developmental and behavioral challenges through residential, day, and community programs; regional peer with overlapping youth mental health and trauma-informed care services.

Broad incumbents

• Buckner Children and Family Services: Faith-based nonprofit providing foster care, adoption, and family services with trauma-informed care programs across multiple states; comparable faith-based identity, integrated service model, and state-contract exposure.
• KVC Health Systems: Large multi-state child-welfare nonprofit providing foster care, adoption, behavioral health, and family preservation across several states; broader incumbent with similar trauma-informed and case-management approach, often competing for state agency contracts.
• SAFY (Specialized Alternatives for Families and Youth): Midwest-rooted national nonprofit delivering foster care, adoption, behavioral health, and family preservation services across multiple states; similar service taxonomy and state-contract business model at meaningfully larger scale.

Others

• Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption: National nonprofit funder and adoption-recruitment operator behind the Wendy's Wonderful Kids program in which Focus on Youth already participates; not a direct competitor but a strategic partner and upstream channel for harder-to-place youth referrals.
• Boys & Girls Club of West Chester/Liberty: Local youth-development nonprofit partner where Focus on Youth's Behavioral Health Team already delivers weekly services; adjacency rather than direct competition, but a comparable youth-services audience and shared donor pool.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses2 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/FocusonYouthInc
• YouTubebit.ly/FOYYouTubeChannel
• Facebookfacebook.com/focusonyouthinc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/focus-on-youth-inc
• Instagraminstagram.com/focusonyouthinc
• Pinterestpin.it/6St3IS2

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Focus on Youth