Vermont Foster Care Data
Vermont ranks #18 of 51 jurisdictions for reunification: 49.2% of FY2022 exits returned to a parent or primary caregiver, 4.0 points above the national rate.
- B
- Four-measure profile grade
- 1,096
- #48 caseload nationally
- 49.2%
- Reunification (#18)
- 29.5%
- Adoption (#17)
The verdict
Signature read: the September 30 stock (1,096 children, #48) is Vermont's sparsest scale stamp. Vermont held 1,096 children in foster care on September 30, FY2022 and ranks near the national median on reunification (#18 of 51) at 49.2%, with a B four-measure profile grade that is not an overall quality verdict.
- #18
- reunification rank of 51 jurisdictions
- 49.2%
- FY2022 reunification rate
- #17
- adoption rank nationally
- 17.0 mo
- median length of stay
Vermont's reunification share (49.2%) lands in the middle third of the FY2022 jurisdiction table (#18 of 51). Caseload is sparse-system scale: 1,096 children in care on September 30 (#48 nationally). Median stay is mid-band at 17.0 months among exits. Grade B is a within-release composite, not an official assessment.
A within-release percentile composite of four AFCARS measures, not an overall quality verdict or a federal assessment. Reunification and adoption are each scored on their own percentile, never against each other.
Aging out of foster care vs. every US state
FY2022 AFCARS: youth who exit care at majority without a permanent family
7% Among the lowest aging-out rates lower than 59% of 51 US states
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source ACF/AFCARS state tables · FY2022
AFCARS jurisdiction row
State TAR extract VT · Vermont B · #18 reunif
1,096 in care · 567 exits · FY2022
- REUN 49.2%
- ADOPT 29.5%
- AGE 6.7%
- LOS 17.0 mo
- RANK #18/51
- GRADE B
- CARE 1,096
- EXITS 567
- PHOTO New Hampshire
- BOOK FY2022 TAR
Nearest caseload peer: New Hampshire (85 children vs Vermont)
The 10 coded stamps above and the extract ID beside them come from the same Children's Bureau AFCARS FY2022 Title-IV-E/B TAR submission, standardized so every jurisdiction's row uses identical measure definitions. Read with this state →
Reunification neighbourhood
AFCARS annual change
What changed from FY2021 to FY2022
The latest comparable state count pair from the U.S. Children's Bureau AFCARS trend series. These are reported changes, not a quality rating or an explanation of why a count moved.
-
Children adopted
202 175
Fell by 27 (−13.4%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Parental rights terminations
179 159
Fell by 20 (−11.2%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Children entering care
591 637
Rose by 46 (+7.8%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Children waiting for adoption
266 250
Fell by 16 (−6.0%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
How Vermont's 567 FY2022 exits break down
Counts rounded from each published exit-share × 567 exits. Named routes do not cover every AFCARS discharge reason; the residual is other published exit routes (guardianship, transfer, and similar), not missing rows.
Two views of Vermont's mid-band FY2022 exit mix
Named exit shares for this jurisdiction beside reunification vs the national rate. Competing shares of one exits denominator, not a scorecard.
Vermont exit routes
Reunification vs national
Same reunification rate as the bar chart; tick marks the national AFCARS rate as context only.
Nationwide peers with similar stay length or adoption share
Two AFCARS peer sets for Vermont, nearest by metric distance rather than reunification-rank standings.
Similar median length of stay
Nearest jurisdictions by median months in care (17.0 mo here).
Similar adoption share of exits
Jurisdictions with a comparable adoption exit share (29.5% here).
Foster-family placement mix in Vermont
Caseload is sparse-system scale: 1,096 children in care on September 30 (#48 nationally). Lead setting: foster family home at 44.8%.
Vermont children returned to a parent or primary caregiver
Children exiting foster care via adoption in Vermont
Youth exiting foster care at age 18+ without permanency
Vermont's decade caseload trail (sparse-system AFCARS counts)
Signature read: the September 30 stock (1,096 children, #48) is Vermont's sparsest scale stamp. AFCARS count series from FY2013 to FY2022 for Vermont.
| Metric | FY2013 | FY2015 | FY2017 | FY2019 | FY2021 | FY2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Children Served | 1,604 | 2,045 | 2,013 | 1,985 | 1,634 | 1,663 |
| In Care (Sep 30) | 971 | 1,332 | 1,270 | 1,245 | 1,054 | 1,096 |
| Entered Care | 677 | 958 | 756 | 736 | 591 | 637 |
| Exited Care | 634 | 713 | 745 | 743 | 580 | 567 |
| Waiting Adoption | 213 | 304 | 329 | 331 | 266 | 250 |
| Adopted | 179 | 189 | 287 | 260 | 202 | 175 |
Vermont FAQ - mid-band jurisdiction
Signature read: the September 30 stock (1,096 children, #48) is Vermont's sparsest scale stamp. Median stay is mid-band at 17.0 months among exits.
How many children are in foster care in Vermont?
1,096 children were in foster care on September 30, 2022, in the FY2022 AFCARS state table.
What is Vermont's foster care grade?
B. This profile grade equally combines within-release percentiles for reunification, adoption, aging out, and median length of stay.
What is the adoption rate in Vermont?
29.5%, ranked #17 of 51 states.
How does Vermont compare to other states on aging out?
6.7% of youth age out without permanency, 2.5 points below the national rate. That is a lower rate than 59% of the 51 reporting states in FY2022 AFCARS.
Read our methodology - how Vermont's FY2022 AFCARS row is sourced, computed, and verified.
U.S. Children's Bureau AFCARS FY2022 jurisdiction report for Vermont (VT). ACF Trends in Foster Care and Adoption workbooks FY2013-FY2022; September 30 caseload stamp 1,096.
Source: U.S. Children's Bureau (Administration for Children and Families) AFCARS workbooks and jurisdiction reports · FY2022 Vermont rates are exits shares from the jurisdiction report; in-care counts are the September 30 stock. Caseload is sparse-system scale: 1,096 children in care on September 30 (#48 nationally).