Tara Foster, MSW, is a dedicated Health and Human Services professional and leader with three decades of experience navigating complex child and family welfare systems at both local and state government levels. Throughout her career, she has championed policy development, program creation, and community advocacy to improve child and family outcomes across North Carolina.
As an accomplished administrator and consultant, her work has made lasting systemic impacts. Some notable achievements include co-founding a Racial Equity Workgroup, co-authoring the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) Guide to Foster Home Licensing (2008), and the start-up of Foster Real Estate & Property Services, LLC. Her comprehensive child welfare expertise includes consultation, supervisory, and frontline roles with Buncombe County and NCDHHS, serving across the entire child welfare spectrum from assessments to adoption.
Tara’s leadership spans across multiple sectors. She is the Business Administrator for Foster Real Estate & Property Services, owner of Foster ClariT Consulting LLC and has served on various boards, including an appointment to the NC Governor’s Council on Sickle Cell. As an independent consultant, educator, and presenter, Tara has experiences facilitating complex meetings and conversations for government and non-profit organizations, speaking at local colleges, and presenting at prominent trauma and child development conferences.
Deeply committed to community service, she maintains active leadership within the Asheville Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. Tara holds a Master of Social Work from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from North Carolina State University.
