FOSTER AND ADOPTIVE PARENT ADVOCACY CENTER

What FOSTER AND ADOPTIVE PARENT ADVOCACY CENTER does

Foster and Adoptive Parent Advocacy Center (FAPAC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in October 2000 and headquartered at 1528 Marion Barry Ave SE in Washington, DC, with a secondary program office at 508 Kennedy Street NW. FAPAC provides advocacy, training, and direct support services to foster, adoptive, and kinship parents, and increasingly to birth parents and foster youth, operating primarily within the District of Columbia and Maryland. Its core service portfolio includes monthly peer support groups, a peer mentoring program, accredited foster parent trainings, systemic and individual advocacy support, and the Families Growing Stronger Together (FGST) foster care prevention program for birth parents. The organization also runs three annual signature events — the Foster Youth Summit (April), the Gala for Foster Care (May), and Christmas for Kids in Foster Care (December) — and produces reference resources including the DC Resource Parent Handbook.

FAPAC operates on a grant-funded nonprofit revenue model with no fees charged to families. Funding is sourced approximately 43.6% from foundation grants, 25.5% from government grants, 25.5% from contracts, 3.2% from individual donations, and 2.1% from event ticket sales. The go-to-market motion is community-led and direct-to-consumer, relying on peer referrals, partnerships with organizations such as the DC Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA), Children's Law Center, and Family and Youth Initiative, and signature events for awareness and fundraising. The organization does not operate proprietary technology; its digital stack consists of Kindful for donations, Eventbrite for event registration, and standard calendar integrations. FAPAC is governed by a Board of Directors and led by Executive Director Najiba Hlemi, with approximately 10 staff supported by AmeriCorps members and interns.

Name

FOSTER AND ADOPTIVE PARENT ADVOCACY CENTER

Legal name

Foster and Adoptive Parent Advocacy Center

Website

https://dcfapac.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Foster and Adoptive Parent Advocacy Center (FAPAC) is a DC-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2000 that provides advocacy, accredited training, and peer support services to foster, adoptive, kinship, and birth parents, as well as foster youth, in the District of Columbia and Maryland.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Child Welfare Advocacy and Support Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Child Welfare, Foster Care & Adoption Services (BPAGAEAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Family & Parenting Support Services (BPAGAEAC), Parent Support Groups & Peer Networks (EDACALAG)

Keywords

• Foster care advocacy
• Parent training services
• Child welfare support
• Kinship care programs
• Peer mentoring services

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grants: Approximately 43.6% of FAPAC's funding comes from foundation grants, providing critical support for long-term programs and advocacy.
2. Government Grants: Government grants account for 25.5% of funding, helping implement key initiatives serving foster, adoptive, and kinship families.
3. Contracts: Contracts represent 25.5% of funding, enabling delivery of specialized services and training.
4. Individual Donations: Individual donors contribute approximately 3.2% of funding, representing meaningful personal support.
5. Event Ticket Sales: Event ticket sales represent 2.1% of revenue, important for community building and awareness alongside funding.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

FAPAC provides direct advocacy, accredited foster parent licensing trainings, peer support groups, peer mentoring, and a foster care prevention program (FGST) for foster, adoptive, kinship, and birth parents in the Washington, DC child welfare system. It complements these services with annual community events (Gala for Foster Care, Christmas for Kids in Foster Care, Foster Youth Summit) and informational resources such as the DC Resource Parent Handbook.

Product overview

FAPAC offers a portfolio of interconnected programs serving the DC foster care community. The core services include advocacy support (systemic and individual), peer support groups, peer mentoring, and accredited trainings for foster, kinship, and adoptive parents. The Families Growing Stronger Together (FGST) program provides parenting education to prevent foster care involvement. Annual signature events—the Foster Youth Summit, Gala for Foster Care, and Christmas for Kids in Foster Care—build community and raise awareness. Supporting resources include the DC Resource Parent Handbook, BOND Program materials, Kinship Navigator, and an advocacy request form. All programs are provided free to families.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Named customers2 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered event sponsor, referral partner, core partner and program partner.

• Counselor Global Solutionsevent sponsorGTM or Marketing Partner · 8 May 2026Sponsor of the 4th Annual Gala for Foster Care (Advocate Sponsor level, $500). Receives 2 tickets and event recognition.
• Children's Law Centerreferral partnerOthersProvides legal services to at-risk children and their families. Uses knowledge from representing individual clients to advocate for changes in law and implementation. Refer families to each other's services as appropriate.
• DC Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe DC government agency responsible for protecting children from abuse and neglect, preserving families through services, and providing foster care and adoption services. FAPAC works closely with CFSA on policy and practice improvements.
• Post-Permanency Family Center (PPFC)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerA program run by Family Works Together through Adoptions Together in partnership with CFSA. Provides comprehensive support, training, and therapy for families who have achieved or are working toward guardianship or adoption of DC children. Housed in same building as FAPAC.
• Family and Youth Initiative (FYI)program partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe only DC-area organization focused exclusively on helping teenagers in foster care make lifelong connections with caring adults. Creates enriching lifetime relationships for youth at risk of aging out.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• National Foster Parent Association: National membership organization supporting foster parents through advocacy, training, and peer networks. Provides the broader umbrella equivalent of what FAPAC delivers locally in DC.
• Children's Rights: National advocacy organization that litigates and campaigns on behalf of foster children. Comparable to FAPAC's systemic advocacy function but operates at national policy and litigation scale.
• Voice for Adoption: National advocacy nonprofit focused on adoption and permanency for children in foster care. Comparable to FAPAC's adoption and permanency advocacy segment.
• Casey Family Programs: Large national foundation working to reduce foster care need and improve child welfare systems. Operates broadly across child welfare policy, comparable to FAPAC's systemic advocacy role but at much larger scale.

Direct peers

• Adoptions Together: Regional adoption and post-adoption services nonprofit operating in DC, Maryland, and Virginia. Provides training and family support comparable to FAPAC's accredited trainings and resource parent programming.
• Post-Permanency Family Center: Provides post-permanency support, training, and therapy for adoptive and guardianship families in DC; runs in partnership with CFSA. Operates from the same building as FAPAC and directly overlaps on post-adoption service delivery.
• FosterClub: National nonprofit focused on foster youth voice, leadership, and transition support. Closely comparable to FAPAC's Foster Youth Summit and youth-aged-16-21 program segment.
• Family and Youth Initiative: DC-area nonprofit focused on connecting foster teens with caring adults to prevent aging-out of care. Directly comparable to FAPAC's Foster Youth Summit and youth transition programming.
• Children's Law Center: DC-based nonprofit providing legal services to at-risk children and families. Co-located in the DC child welfare advocacy space, shares referral relationships with FAPAC, and serves overlapping foster and kinship populations.

Regional players

• DC127: DC-based nonprofit recruiting and supporting foster and adoptive families. Operates in the same DC market as FAPAC with overlapping foster-parent recruitment and training mandates.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/fundraisers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/foster-and-adoptive-parent-advocacy-center

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about FOSTER AND ADOPTIVE PARENT ADVOCACY CENTER