ACF Releases New Resources Showcasing High-Impact Equity Activities

Today, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released new resources highlighting its latest efforts to advance equity across the agency. The resources, which include a video featuring ACF leadership and staff and an accompanying fact sheet, spotlight high-impact activities each ACF program office has completed to strengthen equity in their programs, policies and processes.

The completed activities signal a milestone in ACF’s ongoing Equity in Action initiative , first announced in August 2021 in response to the Biden-Harris Administration’s Executive Order 13985, “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government .” In February 2022, ACF issued a National Call to Action on Racial Equity , and the following August each ACF program office released an Equity Action Statement outlining how it will develop, sustain and account for outcome-based strategic plans to embed equity throughout its programming.

“ACF is committed to advancing the economic and social well-being of all individuals, families and communities, regardless of their identity or circumstances,” said ACF Acting Assistant Secretary Jeff Hild. “As these activities demonstrate, equity is central to everything we do and we will continue taking concrete actions so that every child and family can thrive.”

The activities featured in the video and fact sheet are a small portion of ACF’s many first-year accomplishments, which include efforts to build staff capacity, expand access to services and integrate lived experience into program development. With these activities concluded, each ACF program office has updated its Equity Action Statement to describe current and future efforts to advance equity through grant-making and procurement, programmatic and policy change, use of data and workforce development.

“In just a year, we have made remarkable progress in improving the way ACF operates and ensuring we treat everyone with fairness,” said Dia D. Harris, ACF’s newly appointed chief equity officer. “We know there is much more work to do, and we look forward to further empowering those we serve and cultivating a culture where every child, family and community can thrive.”

The largest human services agency in the federal government, ACF administers more than 60 programs, including Head Start, foster care, child support, refugee assistance services and other programs that serve populations disproportionately impacted by poverty, homelessness, violence and other hardships fueled by inequity. ACF’s current Strategic Plan positions equity as a cross-cutting primary goal, emphasizing the necessity of reducing structural barriers that inhibit safety, health and well-being.

Collectively, the activities represent ACF’s ongoing commitment to institutionalize equity, pursuant to Executive Order 13985 and wider U.S. Department of Health and Human Services efforts to uplift communities historically underserved, marginalized and adversely affected by persistent poverty and inequality. Building on these successes, ACF will continue prioritizing equity to promote equitable health and well-being outcomes for the diverse children, families and communities it serves.

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