Getting Involved: Making a Difference for National Adoption Month

So you’ve read about National Adoption Month some place or you’ve seen a child featured on a local broadcast that talks about children in need of homes in the US Foster Care system and you’re wanting to learn more. Depending on where you are in the education process, you may or may not know what the next steps are.

Let’s assume, for a minute, you’re brand new and you’re looking for guidance or advice on what the first steps are when deciding to move forward, that’s easy enough, right?

First, you’ll want to find out how your state agency for children’s issues is operated. Are you in a privatized state? Are all matters related to foster care or adopting from foster care handled through a state agency? This is an all important first question to ask, because it will have an impact on the rest of the steps you take going forward.

One of the best ways to learn more about how your state operates is by contacting the local Department of Children & Families (the name varies by state, but it’s generally the office that handles matters related to children and will often have the word “Children” or “Child” in their name). Often, they will be able to point you in the right direction, but keep in mind – this is a state run agency and it’s not uncommon for communication and/or information to be difficult to come by. Like all other state funded departments, they are bogged down by economic difficulties, staff shortages and no shortage of work to keep them busy. It may take a few phone calls, so be prepared for that from the get go.

Once you’ve made contact, you’ll want to find out what the first steps are for your state. Usually you’ll be invited to attend an informal meeting where they share information about the process in your state as well as the education and home requirements for fostering. This is something that is typically held in a group setting and involves a number of people who are interested in becoming licensed foster parents in your area. I do need to stress, again, this is something that varies by state and in some cases, even by county, so talking to someone local will be important.

Once you’ve learned more about what the process looks like in your area, you’ll likely be invited to complete some sort of application process or even attend classes that meet your states educational requirements for becoming licensed. This is, again, another step in the process that is different depending on your location and the need in your area.

Regardless of the steps required going forward, there is only one certainty in adopting from the foster care system and that is, it’s typically not for the faint of heart. The process of becoming licensed in your state to accept children can be as long as six months to a year or as short as a few weeks. Typically, children available through the state range in age from newborns to older teens and will sometimes come with emotional or physical special needs resulting from abuse or neglect in their home of birth.

Either way, it’s important to remember that children adopted from foster care often come with some amount of baggage that is a result of a difficult start in life. The education you get when becoming licensed is a great first step in becoming prepared to deal with those issues, however, becoming involved with local foster parenting associations is also a great source of support and information on resources available in your county, should you need more guidance.

Next, I’ll blog about the never-ending string of acronyms that is all to common in the system – PRIDE, MAPP, TPR, GAL, CASA – it’s a never ending list of letters that will become second nature to you as you start your journey to becoming licensed.

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