Foster Link

UX Design Concept

Project Summary

Foster Link was a concept app I created for my application to the USC Iovine and Young Academy, where I was accepted with a full-tuition scholarship.

My family actively supported foster care at our local church, providing support to families with foster children in our community, and also fostered a child ourselves. As a result, the difficulties that foster children face are very near and dear to my heart.

Tools/Skills Used

Problem

As my family considered getting involved with foster care at our church through Foster the City, we attended a number of informational meetings to learn more about the challenges that foster children and foster families face. After going to a few of these meetings, a few glaring numbers stood out.

400k

children in the US
foster care system

50%

of foster families don't foster for longer than a year

Mission

Design an tool that supports foster families by connecting them with their friends, neighbors, and social workers to ensure that the needs of foster children are met.

User Research Notes

The app was designed with the input of foster families and those who support them, like social workers and neighbors. Some notes from my interviews with different groups stood out

Social Workers

Foster Families

Support Friends

Solution

With these notes from various stakeholders in mind, Foster Link was created. The app has four key screens (Team, Request, Calendar, and Files), which are shown below.

Support Network

Parents can invite other parents and friends to their support network

Request + Calendar System

Families can submit requests, which can be picked up by their friends and added to their calendar

Secure File Sharing

Files can be organized within the app, with different sharing permissions for each folder

Foster Link

Project Summary

Tools/Skills Used

Problem

As my family considered getting involved with foster care at our church through Foster the City, we attended a number of informational meetings to learn more about the challenges that foster children and foster families face. After going to a few of these meetings, a few glaring numbers stood out.

400k

children in the US foster care system

50%

of foster families don't foster for longer than a year

Mission

Design an tool that supports foster families by connecting them with their friends, neighbors, and social workers to ensure that the needs of foster children are met.

User Research Notes

The app was designed with the input of foster families and those who support them, like social workers and neighbors. Some notes from my interviews with different groups stood out

Social Workers

Most documents are not digitized, which creates headache keeping papers together

Many different types of documents to manage (Legal, medical, educational, personal identification, behavioral, financial, placement history, etc)

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Foster Families

Worry that important paper forms won't make it through mail

Calendars like Google Calendar & Apple Calendar allow people can sign up for events a-la-carte

Certain information on an app should be limited depending on your relationship to foster child

​

Support Friends

Have a strong desire to help, but don't always need to know how

Sometimes spreadsheets and google docs can be hard to navigate when signing up to help

Solution

With these notes from various stakeholders in mind, Foster Link was created. The app has four key screens (Team, Request, Calendar, and Files), which are shown below.

Support Network

Parents can invite other parents and friends to their support network

Request + Calendar System

Families can submit requests, which can be picked up by their friends and added to their calendar

Secure File Sharing

Files can be organized within the app, with different sharing permissions for each folder

children in the US
foster care system