Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network: A National Technical Assistance Center

Grandfamilies, also called kinship families, are families in which children reside with and are raised by grandparents, extended family members or other adults with whom they have a close family-like relationship such as godparents and close family friends. According to data from Generations United, over 2.6 million children across the country live in households headed by grandparents, other relatives or close family friend with about 2.4 million grandparents reporting they are responsible for their grandchildren’s needs. In about one-third of these homes, neither of the children’s parents live in the home.

The Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network: A National Technical Assistance Center, with funding from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, is working to increase the capacity and effectiveness of states, territories, tribes/tribal organizations, nonprofits and other community-based organizations to serve and support kinship families and grandfamilies.

This five-year project, launched in 2021, is led by Generations United. USAging is one of five key project partners which also include the National Caucus and Center on Black Aging, the National Indian Child Welfare Association, ZERO TO THREE and Child Trends. A diverse steering committee of the nation’s leading experts on kinship and grandfamilies, including caregivers from the Generations United GRAND Voices Network, will also support the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network.

USAging’s activities include collecting and reporting data on the status of kinship care and grandfamily programming by Area Agencies on Aging and Title VI Native American Aging Programs, contributing to regional convenings and supporting technical assistance activities.

Learn more about the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network.

Project Lead
Meredith Hanley, Director