Shreveport Foster Care Community Joins DCFS Secretary Harris for Fifth Stop on Statewide Listening Tour

SHREVEPORT, La. — The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) continued its Foster Care Community Listening Tour today with its fifth stop in Shreveport. Foster caregivers, advocates, and community partners came together to share their experiences and challenges that foster children and caregivers face—and to help steer improvements to the child welfare system. The Shreveport session coincides with National Foster Care Month, a time dedicated to recognizing caregivers and the children who are waiting for homes.

The discussion focused on difficulties children face when they must live outside their homes and how the community can support those children. Foster homes provide children with stability and care. When reunification with the child’s parents is not possible, adoption can offer the safest path forward. Foster families partner with DCFS to help children move toward homes that are best suited to their needs.

Caregivers also emphasized the importance of strong working relationships among frontline child welfare staff, foster parents and children, noting that those connections are essential to stability and good outcomes. Several participants reflected on the increasing demands placed on the child welfare system and the importance of ensuring staff have the time, tools and support needed to stay closely connected with foster families. Their message was clear: when staff and caregivers are able to work together consistently, children are better supported.

The Shreveport region supported 1,013 children in foster care during 2025, with an average of 591 children in care each month. Local foster caregivers helped 342 children return safely to their families and finalized 50 adoptions. These outcomes reflect the strength and dedication of the Shreveport families who step forward to care for children in their community.

The Shreveport region has a shortage of foster homes. The current home-to-child ratio is 0.66-to-1. More foster families are needed to support children and meet the goal of a 1-to-1 ratio of homes to children set forth by the Administration for Children and Families’ “A Home for Every Child” program. The work that DCFS is doing in Shreveport and around the state follows Governor Landry's plan, directed by Executive Order 25-130, to modernize the state's child welfare system and address critical needs such as the regional foster home shortage.

"Hearing directly from foster families during National Foster Care Month makes this conversation even more meaningful," said DCFS Secretary Harris. "The Shreveport community showed up with honesty and purpose, and the perspectives shared today will help shape real improvements for the children and families in this region. We heard clearly how important strong, consistent relationships are among foster caregivers, frontline staff and the children we serve. Every voice we heard reinforces why this work matters and why we remain committed to building a system where every child has a safe, stable home."

DCFS is committed to building a foster care system that prioritizes stability, family, and the voices of those with lived experience in and around the system. With the support of caregivers and partners, Louisiana can ensure that every child has a path toward healing.

Here is how the community can help support children and families right now:

• Become a foster caregiver or explore other ways to help: http://dcfs.la/lahome
• Track Louisiana's progress on foster home availability through the "A Home for Every Child" Resource Page: http://dcfs.la/fchomes