Belmont alumna Marcy Bursac is an advocate for foster care adoption who graduated in 2005 with a major in psychology and a minor in education. Residing today in St. Charles, Missouri, Marcy works as a senior technical analyst for an American cybersecurity software company. Her true passions of fostering and adoption, however, have led her to become the host of a podcast, a three-time published author and founder of nonprofit organization The Forgotten Adoption Option.
After spending 12 years in nonprofit philanthropy, during which she worked with organizations like Mercy Children’s Clinic and Dress for Success Midwest, Marcy made a career pivot into into technology in order to align her schedule better with her two adopted, biological siblings.
“People started asking how to adopt through foster care,” Marcy recalled. “So after my kids went to bed, I would teach about the process from my living room.”
During the pandemic, Marcy wrote down those conversations into a published a book called “The Forgotten Adoption Option: A Self-Reflection and How-To Guide for Pursuing Foster Care Adoption.” This trajectory helped her start her podcast and officially launch her nonprofit.
Many people are unaware that 30 percent of the children in foster care are adoptable. Through The Forgotten Adoption Option, Marcy recruits and trains families to adopt children in the foster care system.
“I do this by creating resources for families to use to navigate the complicated process. To date this includes three books, an app, a grade school classroom lesson and monthly podcast episodes,” she said.
Marcy's dedication to this cause has been recognized nationally, earning her prestigious accolades such as the Angels in Adoption® Award from the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute and being crowned Mrs. Ohio 2022 while representing her family’s foster care adoption parter, the Dave Thomas Foundation. At nationals, she placed in the Top 16 and won the Mrs. People’s Choice Award, allowing her to donate her prize money back to the Dave Thomas Foundation.
Moreover, Marcy's commitment to fostering community engagement and education is evident in her involvement with initiatives such as her Foster Care Adoption Awareness Reading Program, devleoped with local girl scouts, and her continuous efforts to support and mentor families considering adoption.
In 2023, she won the Pilot Pen G2 Overachievers Grant and made an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show. This grant is being used to fund her foster care adoption advocacy work including: (1) her new book, “What to Know When You Adopt Through Foster Care: Real Life Stories and Practical Tips,” (2) a research study on non-kin families that adopt through foster care with research partners including Belmont alumna Kristin Richards, who is chair of the Social Work Department at Jackson State University, and Marcy’s sister, who is an adjunct instructor at Case Western Reserve University, (3) working to create digital marketing infrastructure to reach more people with a heart to adopt, and (4) expanding her classroom reading program nationwide.
Belmont played a pivotal role in shaping Marcy's trajectory, instilling in her a strong sense of community and values that continue to guide her today.
As an Honors Program participant, Marcy honed her leadership skills, creativity and problem-solving abilities. She said the unique interdisciplinary approach of the Honors Program, which encouraged connected thinking across different subjects, has profoundly influenced her approach to problem-solving in her professional endeavors.
As a resident assistant, she was given the freedom to be creative. “I choreographed an out-of-the-box (pun intended) dance routine to Irish dance music with rectangular boxes as props which won first place at the Tennessee Association of College and University Residence Halls Conference,” Marcy reminisced. “We would practice in the basement of one of the residence halls. When I was an RA for what used to be Bruin Hills, I would bake brownies and deliver them to my residents to make it super easy to open their door and spend time checking in.”
As an RA, she asked her resident director’s wife to be her mentor, which was one of her greatest decisions at Belmont. “I learned so much from our conversations. She poured into me with encouragement for school, relationships and my faith,”Marcy said.
The connections she has today are often rooted in her time at Belmont, whether it be former peers dropping an encouraging word or offering to lend a hand with her nonprofit work.
As she continues to blaze trails in her professional and philanthropic endeavors, Marcy remains deeply rooted in the values instilled during her time at Belmont. Likewise, her journey from student to changemaker serves as a testament to the transformative power of education and the profound impact individuals can have on the world around them.
Marcy’s social media accounts are left public for a reason – she always welcomes anyone to message her on Instagram or LinkedIn, or on her nonprofit’s Instagram, with questions they may have about foster care adoption.