MN Promise in Motion: Fall Updates

October is Foster Youth Voice Month! Across Foster Advocates’ work, Foster voice is central to how we build resources, conduct research, and advocate for systems change priorities. Foster voice is loud and clear in our Minnesota Promise Report, from the care note and introduction letters, to the BOLD ideas and action items. We can fulfill our collective promise to Fosters by listening to their expertise and vision for change. Read on for highlights of our Minnesota Promise work in motion!

States participating in 2025 Foster Youth Voice Month, organized by Selfless Love Foundation.

A few Foster & partner updates first:

Fosters: The application cycle for leadership opportunities (including those for MN Promise) will reopen next year. To give our team space for intentional planning around MN Promise and other priorities, we are dedicating our time throughout the rest of the year on how we can bring greatness to our community in 2026 and beyond! Our team is still here for you. Please reach out to staff for individual support (or email info@fosteradvocates.org if you’re not sure who to go to).

In the meantime, we hope to see you at the Inclusion Initiative's first ever Leadership Summit for Fosters, Adoptees, and Allies on November 15th in Minneapolis! Tickets and scholarships are available until they run out. You'll see our staff there, and save the date for our Foster Advocates' Winter Celebration on December 6th.

We are also tracking federal shutdown and legislation impacts that may affect our Foster network. Stay tuned on updates here.

Partners: In alignment with the central themes of the MN Promise Report, we are excited to release additional Foster-informed resources. On November 14th, we are presenting at the AspireMN Annual Member Meeting. Non-member community partners (especially those working in the child welfare and health and wellbeing sectors) are welcome and encouraged to attend. Please sign up for this FREE development opportunity, where we hope you will take away valuable information and insight to strengthen your Foster-informed practice, no matter your scope of work. Stay tuned for announcements on how you can engage in more Foster-informed learning and technical assistance opportunities from Fosters Advocates in 2026!

Would you like to pre-order printed copies of the full MN Promise report for your organization or Fosters you work with? Reach out here.

Lastly, to all our supporters–we have exciting news coming soon! Stay tuned over the next month for some big announcements and additional ways YOU can support the Foster Movement in Minnesota. 

In Solidarity,

Elena Leomi

Managing Director of Movement Building

Movement Moment

Have 5 minutes? Learn these acronyms!

One way every Minnesotan can be more Foster-informed is being aware of these Foster-specific resources, so you can elevate them for Fosters and in community conversations. How many of these do you already know? 

• STAY

  1. FIG

     1. ETV

        1. EFC

           1. OOFY

Action Activity

Have 15 min? Check out Foster op-eds!

Take some time to celebrate Foster Youth Voice Month by settling in with a cup of tea and reading through some of the Minnesota Foster op-eds published by the Imprint!  Stay tuned over the next month for more op-eds being published from our August op-ed workshop with Youth Voices Rising.

 Minnesota Promise in Motion

Earlier this month, we presented at the MN Coalition for the Homeless annual conference, highlighting Foster’s bold ideas from the MN Promise report and focusing in on how the housing sector can be more Foster-informed.