Designed for waiting adoptive parents and those already parenting, this engaging training with Dr. Tony Hynes draws on both his lived experience as an interracial adoptee and his professional expertise. Participants will explore best practices for supporting children’s racial and cultural identity, strengthening family and community connections, and engaging in meaningful, age-appropriate conversations about race and racism. The session also encourages reflection on common misconceptions and everyday practices to help families create affirming, supportive environments for interracial adoptees.

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Tony Hynes, Ph.D. was adopted by his parents, Mary and Janet, in the mid-1990s. He has been invited to speak at conferences on adoption and foster care throughout the nation and has a passion for speaking up for children and families touched by challenges in the adoption and foster care system. He writes about his experiences growing up as both an interracial adoptee and as a child in an LGBTQ-headed household in his memoir “The Son With Two Moms”, which has been cited in the DC family court system to inform best practices. Tony’s work and writing have been featured in The Atlantic, and he is a contributing author to books such as “Adoption Unfiltered”. Tony completed his master’s thesis in Sociology on the psychology of children within same-sex headed households, and completed his Ph.D. at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. His dissertation focuses on social connectedness among adult, interracial adoptees. As the Training and Content Development Specialist at C.A.S.E., Tony has designed innovative training curricula that help families and professionals respond to evaluation and assessment tools that encapsulate holistic pictures of adoptees and foster youth.