Best of 2025

The Imprint was fortunate to feature dozens of perspectives and analyses in our Opinion section this year. The following is a selection not necessarily of the best 10 pieces from 2025, but strong work that captures the breadth of topics within child welfare and youth justice that were written by Imprint columnists this year.

The Imprint’s investigation looked at policies in all 50 states on their use of psychotropic drugs in foster care.

Jeremy Loudenback reported on a foster youth advocate who now sits at Adelanto ICE Processing Center, swept up in Trump’s immigration dragnet.

As always, we were fortunate to have some amazing guests join us this year on The Imprint Weekly Podcast. In this episode we feature clips of 12 great interviews from 2025. 

In 2025, Imprint reporters looked into voluntary relinquishments: when parents feel out of options for their children's mental health needs .

Reporter Jeremy Loudenback documented the dramatic decline of foster care entries in the largest local child welfare system in the country.

Trump’s second term led with an effort to dramatically cut spending viewed as wasteful or unaligned with his priorities. 

In 2025, Indigenous Child and Families Reporter Nancy Marie Spears examined Indigenous experiences with child welfare systems.

Some of the strongest Youth Voices Rising pieces published by The Imprint in 2025, all written by youth with lived experience.