The Children’s Bureau is the first federal agency within the U.S. Government—and in fact, the world—to focus exclusively on improving the lives of children and families. Since its creation by President Taft in 1912, the Bureau has tackled some of our Nation’s most pressing social issues, including the following:
- Infant and maternal death
- Child labor
- Orphanages
- Child health and recreation
- Delinquency and juvenile courts
- Family economic security
- Abused and neglected children
- Foster care
In each of these areas, the Bureau has provided groundbreaking leadership and garnered critical resources to improve the lives of children and families.
As part of its centennial celebration, the Children’s Bureau researched and produced a written history of its first 100 years. The resulting e-book combines compelling text with striking historical images to tell the story of a small Federal agency that took on some of the most devastating social problems of the time, including high infant mortality, child labor, and child abuse and neglect. The e-book puts this history in the context of changing world events and social movements. It also offers a look at some of the determined leaders who helped shape the Bureau to be what it is today—a strong advocate for America’s children and families. --> The Children’s Bureau Legacy: Ensuring the Right to Childhood (e-book) --> The Children’s Bureau timeline offers an engaging, decade-by-decade look at the Bureau’s rich history. The images and brief text take you on a unique journey through the key projects, initiatives, milestones, and political and social events through 2012 that shaped the evolution of child welfare in America. --> Children’s Bureau Timeline -->
The Story of the Children’s Bureau (brochure)
Explore the Children’s Bureau’s 100-year history of improving the lives of children and families through collaboration, research, assistance to States and Tribes, public awareness campaigns, and more.
View the online brochure in English and en Español. (PDF - 3.8 MB)
History of the Children’s Bureau (presentation)
In September 2007, Dr. Cecelia Tichi, then Chair of Modern Culture in the John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress, presented "Justice, Not Pity: Julia Lathrop, First Chief of the U.S. Children's Bureau.
A full PDF(PDF) (157 KB) and audio mp3 (9.01 MB) are available.
Past Programs
Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration Projects
The Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration authority provides states with an opportunity to use federal funds more flexibly in order to test innovative approaches to child welfare service delivery and financing. Using this option, states can design and demonstrate a wide range of approaches to reforming child welfare and improving outcomes in the areas of safety, permanency, and well-being.
Adoption and Legal Guardianship Incentive Awards
The Children’s Bureau provides incentive funding to title IV-E agencies that achieve improved performance in increasing the number of children in foster care who find permanent homes through either adoption or legal guardianship.
The Adoption Incentives program began in fiscal year 1998 as part of the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 (ASFA) and has since been reauthorized several times (as part of the Adoption Promotion Act of 2003 and, the Fostering Connections and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008, as part of the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act of 2014 and, most recently, as part of the Family First Prevention Services Act of 2018).There have been changes in award calculation and payment amounts over the years. For more information about the incentive award program, see Program InstructionACYF-CB-PI-15-08.
Adoption Incentive Awards History - Includes the cumulative Adoption Incentive earning history by state from fiscal year 1998 to fiscal year 2014
