Foster Parents are Valued and Respected Partners within Our Community
Recruitment Line 866-233-0790

Eckerd Community Alternatives is the lead agency for community-based child welfare in Pinellas and Pasco counties as contracted by the Florida Department of Children and Families. Overseeing the local child welfare and foster care system, Eckerd Community Alternatives and its partner agencies provide case management, foster care, adoption and independent living services for children and their families, helping to ensure the safety, well-being and permanency of our community’s children. 

Eckerd Community Alternatives serves more than 3,100 children in care due to abuse or neglect in Pinellas and Pasco counties. This includes children who live with their parents under protective supervision as well as children who have been removed from their parents as a result of safety concerns and now live with relatives, non-relatives or in licensed foster care.

Eckerd Community Alternatives is one of nearly 40 programs under parent organization Eckerd Youth Alternatives, Inc. Founded in 1968 by Jack and Ruth Eckerd and now with programs in nine states, Eckerd Youth Alternatives has given tens of thousands of youth the opportunity to succeed.