As a mother of two daughters, Kate Shanahan has come to understand in a deeply personal way how layered and complex identity can be, especially within adoptive and transracial families. There are beautiful moments of pride and connection, and there are also moments that feel isolating, misunderstood, or quietly heavy. Children in adoptive, foster, and kinship families often carry stories of loss, transition, resilience, and cultural complexity long before they have the language to articulate them. Parents do their best to hold space for those stories at home, but children do not live only at home. They spend most of their waking hours in school.

That is why this scholarship matters so much to Kate.

School social workers and educators are often the first to notice when a child is struggling, the first to hear a question about belonging, the first to witness a subtle shift in behavior, the first to hold space for emotions that may be rooted in adoption-related grief or identity exploration. Yet without adoption-competent training, even the most compassionate professionals may unintentionally misinterpret what they are seeing. When school-based professionals are equipped with specialized understanding of trauma, attachment, racial identity development, and the lived experiences of adoptive and foster families, they are better prepared to respond with insight instead of assumption, and support instead of misunderstanding.

Through Sweet Peach Tree, Kate’s work has always centered on the belief that what we do consistently, through care, conversation, and community, shapes our children’s sense of identity and confidence far more than any single moment. This scholarship extends that belief beyond the walls of our homes. It represents an investment not just in one student or one professional, but in the systems that surround our children every day. When a school social worker is trained to understand the nuances of adoption and foster care, that knowledge ripples outward, impacting classrooms, families, and entire school communities.

Being part of the iCARE4 Adoption and Foster Friendly Schools Social Worker Champion Scholarships is both a personal commitment and a professional one for Kate. As a mother, she wants her daughters, and every child navigating adoption or foster care, to feel seen, valued, and understood in every space they enter. As a founder and advocate, she believes that supporting the professionals who stand beside our children is one of the most meaningful ways to create lasting change. When we equip those on the front lines with knowledge and empathy, we move closer to a world where no child feels invisible in their own story.

As Kate puts it: “What we do consistently, through care, conversation, schools, and community, shapes our children’s confidence far more than any single moment.”

Kate and her husband are the proud parents of two daughters. Kate is the founder and CEO of Sweet Peach Tree and a sponsor of the iCARE Champion School Scholarship for school social workers.