Adoption and Foster Care - Organizations

Annotation: Adopt A Special Kid (AASK) provides complete, no-fee foster and adoption services to families interested in helping children in the child welfare system. The organization was formed in 1973 on the principle that it is every child's right to be a permanent member of a supportive family. AASK's pioneering success in placing children in California lead to requests to replicate its program model, and, today, adoption programs and services developed by AASK operate in California, Arizona, Ohio and New Mexico. In addition to its programs to find families for waiting children, AASK also advocates systemic changes that will improve life opportunities for these children.

Keywords: Adoption, Advocacy, Children with special health care needs, Foster care, Model programs, Services

Annotation: The Adoption Exchange Association (AEA) provides a forum for the exchange of ideas and strategies, collaboration on issues of mutual interest, and increased effectiveness in using resources to provide waiting children permanent homes. AEA connects representatives of state, regional, and national adoption exchanges, including placement agencies, parents, child welfare professionals, and concerned citizens across the United States. The association has developed Standards for Adoption Exchanges, which can be ordered from the Web site, along with other materials exploring various aspects of the adoption process. AEA also offers information packets on children waiting for adoption and resources within individual states.

Keywords: Adoption, Agencies, Collaboration, Information networks, Information services, Standards

Annotation: AdoptUSKids works to raise public awareness about the need for foster and adoptive families and supports states, territories, and Tribes in their efforts to find families for children in foster care, particularly the most challenging to place. AdoptUSKids offers a variety of resources, services, and tools to both families and child welfare professionals. One of its core services is to provide technical assistance and resources to states, territories, and Tribes through the National Resource Center for Diligent Recruitment at AdoptUSKids (NRCDR).

Keywords: Adoptive parents, Adoption, . Collaboration, Children, Foster care, Foster parents, Information sources, Public service announcements

Annotation: Family to Family is an initiative designed in 1992 by the Annie E. Casey Foundation to help child welfare agenies respond more effectively to children who are being placed in out-of-home care. Family to Family provides an opportunity for states and communities to reconceptualize, redesign, and reconstruct their foster care system with the goal of improving care outcomes. An explicit premise of Family to Family is that the planning, implementation, and evaluation of child welfare policy and practices have to be guided by clear and specific goals, and that progress toward those goals requires good performance data. As part of the initiative, the Casey Foundation has developed specific tools for rebuilding foster care, written by leading experts on child welfare, built on lessons learned working inside child welfare agencies and with community and political leaders. Fact sheets about the tools, as well as detailed summaries and full how-to manuals, can be downloaded free of charge from the Web site.

Keywords: Electronic publications, Reform, Foster care, . Systems development, Child welfare, Data, Evaluation, Out of home care

Annotation: Casey Family Programs is a national foundation that provides direct services and works to promote advances in child welfare practice and policy and collaborate with foster, kinship, and adoptive parents to provide safe, loving homes for youth. The foundation also collaborates with counties, states, and native tribes to improve services and outcomes for the more than 500,000 young people in out-of-home care across the United States. Casey Family Programs conducts studies and gathers information; offers access to innovative projects and online publications; organizes and participates in conferences, and provides life-skills tools and opportunities for young people at risk. The foundation has offices in several states.

Keywords: Child welfare, Collaboration, Electronic publications, Foster care, Foundations, Model programs, Out of home care

Annotation: The Center for Child and Family Programs has replaced the National Foster Care Resource Center at Eastern Michigan University's Institute for the Study of Children, Families, and Communities. The center maintains a strong commitment to child welfare and foster care, and the focus has broadened to reflect diverse community needs as well as children and youth in crisis. The current focus is on children and families within the child welfare system; children and families with mental health needs; women and children living in poverty; access to child care for low-income families; gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth and their families; marginalized children and youth; "zero-tolerance" in schools and preschools; and juvenile justice. Training manuals on foster care, independent living, and kindship care are available through the center.

Keywords: Child health, Child welfare, Children, Foster Care, Residential Care

Annotation: The Child Welfare Information Gateway provides information services to child welfare and related professionals and the public as the clearinghouse for the Children’s Bureau, compiling, synthesizing, and disseminating resources to promote the safety, permanency, and well-being of children and families. The Information Gateway provides access to publications, websites, and online databases covering a range of topics, including child welfare, child abuse and neglect, foster care, adoption, and the content areas for which the Children's Bureau Training and Technical Assistance Network (TTA) members provide support.

Keywords: Adopted children, Adoptive parents, Biological parents, Child abuse, Child neglect, Children with special health care needs, Clearinghouses, Databases, Family violence, Information services, Information dissemination, Adoption, Injury prevention, Spanish language materials, Support groups

Annotation: Children Awaiting Parents (CAP) is a national, not-for-profit organization that recruits foster and adoptive families for special needs children who have been waiting the longest for permanent families. CAP serves older and minority children who may have mental, physical and/or emotional disabilities. Photos and narratives of waiting children are posted on the Web site and also provided in The CAP Book, a printed, national photolisting of adoptable children with special needs. The organization also provides a CAP Book CD, featuring national and state contact information, home study procedures, and adoption success stories. The Web site provides pre- and post-adoptive information for prospective parents, as well as registration and other placement assistance for caseworkers. CAP has initiated a program called Faith in Children, a special adoption recruitment campaign to reach out to the community through faith-based organizations and also served as a founding board member of Voice for Adoption, a coalition of 78 special needs adoption organizations, professionals and child welfare advocates addressing the needs of waiting children throughout the United States. In addition, CAP coordinates the Foster/Adoption Network-FAN, which recruits New York State foster and adoptive parents for children with special needs and is comprised of 18 public and private agencies in upstate New York.

Keywords: Information sources, Adoption, Adoptive parents, Affective disorders, Children with special health care needs, Family centered services, Foster care, Foster parents, Psychological needs, Recruitment

Annotation: Concerned United Birthparents (CUB) is a national organization that works to open birth records for adoptees and their birthparents, develop alternatives to the current adoption system, and assist members in coping with ongoing problems related to adoption separation. Members include birthparents and others who support adoption reform. CUB publishes a newsletter and sponsors conferences and has information for consumers on its Web site. It has local branches in nine cities in seven states.

Keywords: Adoption, Adoptive parents, , Biological parents

Annotation: The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute, founded in 1996, is a national not-for-profit organization devoted to improving adoption policy and practice, improving the quality of information about adoption, and enhancing the understanding and perception of adoption. The institute conducts surveys, publishes reports and other publicattions, and provides a database of adoption literature and an e-mail newsletter.

Keywords: Adoption, Adopted children, Adoptive parents, Biological parents, Foster care

Annotation: Healthy Foster Care America (HFCA) is an initiative of the American Academy of Pediatrics and its partners to improve the health and well-being outcomes of children and adolescents in foster care. Partners have included representatives from child welfare, family practice, social work, nursing, government, the legislative and judicial fields, child psychiatry and psychology, education, advocacy organizations, alumni, and families. HFCA partners encourage collaboration among the various disciplines working with children and adolescents in foster care in an effort to develop a collaborative action plan to improve the health and well-being of these children. The Web site provides information for professionals and families on health issues and needs, health care systems, data, policy statements, and adovcacy.

Keywords: Adolescent health, Child care, Child health, Child protective services, Child welfare, Foster care, Foster children, Foster parents

Annotation: Jewish Children's Adoption Network works to find Jewish adoptive homes for Jewish children, primarily those with special needs. No-fee services include helping a birth family parent a child, locating resources for help with personal problems or coping with a child's limitations, helping an adoptive family find resources for adoption or parenting, helping families negotiate adoption subsidies, and helping biological and adoptive triad members in getting a search started. Services to consumers include referrals, publications, and reference information. Oral information can be provided in Hebrew or Yiddish. JCAN publishes a newsletter and sponsors training seminars.

Keywords: Adoption, Children with special health care needs

Annotation: The National Adoption Center (NAC) expands adoption opportunities for children with special needs (those who are older or have physical, emotional, or mental disabilities) and children from minority cultures. Many of these children are siblings who need homes together. The center's National Adoption Exchange provides information, registration, and family recruitment referral services for children and potential adoptive parents. It operates a telecommunications system that links state adoption agencies, state and regional exchanges, and other interested groups. Its Internet site, Faces of Adoption: America's Waiting Children, features photos and descriptions of children for potential adopters. NAC publishes a newsletter and policy positions on adoption topics and sponsors conferences.

Keywords: Adoption, Child welfare, Children with special health care needs, Minority groups

Annotation: The National Council for Adoption (NCFA) is an adoption advocacy nonprofit organization serving adoptive parents, birthparents, adoptive professionals, and agencies by advocating for the positive option of adoption through education, research, and legislative action. NCFA serves as an adoption information clearinghouse, offering referrals, publications, reference information, and online training tools. Some materials are available in Spanish. NCFA also sponsors conferences.

Keywords: Adoption, Adoptive parents, Biological parents, Adopted children, Legislation

Annotation: The National Foster Parent Association (NFPA) is a non-profit, volunteer organization that supports support foster parents in achieving safety, permanence and well-being for the children and youth in their care. NFPA promotes communication and cooperation among foster parents, foster parent associations, child care agencies and other child advocates; strives to improve the foster care system; encourages the recruitment and retention of foster parents; and provides information on current issues and events regarding foster care. In addition, NFPA provides training programs, technical assistance, education materials, and information and referral services.

Keywords: Advocacy, Foster children, Information dissemination, Foster care, Adolescent health, Child health, Educational materials, Foster parents, Recruitment, Referrals, Technical assistance, Training, Youth services

Annotation: The National Resource Center for Adoption (NRCA) -- formerly the National Child Welfare Resource Center for Adoption -- works to increase the capacity of States, Tribes, and territories to improve adoption systems; integrate policy and practice; and develop, expand, strengthen, and improve the quality and effectiveness of adoption services provided to children and youth in the child welfare system. The NRCA also helps jurisdictions improve the effectiveness and quality of permanency support and preservation services. The center's website provides access to the news on adoption together with tools, curricula, reports, fact sheets, webcasts, and other resources. The center participates in the Children's Bureau Training and Technical Assistance Network (TTA).

Keywords: Adoption, Child abuse, Child neglect, Child welfare, Resource centers, Technical assistance

Annotation: The National Resource Center for Family-Centered Practice and Permanency Planning (NRCFCPP) (formerly the National Resource Center for Foster Care and Permanency Planning) at the Hunter College School of Social Work is a training, technical assistance, and information services organization dedicated to increasing the capacity of child welfare agencies to provide children with safe, family-centered care in supportive communities. A service of the U.S. Children's Bureau, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families, the center works in collaboration with partners at the Child Welfare League of America and the National Indian Child Welfare Association. NRCFCPPP publishes newsletters hosts Webcasts and teleconferences and provides free downloadable documents, including training curricula, legislative updates, and topic-specific resource guides. The center is a participant in the Children's Bureau Training and Technical Assistance Network (TTA).

Keywords: Child welfare, Adoption, Foster care, Resource centers

Annotation: Fostering Connections provides information on the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008, Children's Bureau policy and guidance, and related resources and websites. Topics include adoption, education, health care, psychotropic and prescription medications, kinship/guardianship, emancipating/older youth, family connections grantees, tribal issues, siblings, and training. Fostering Connections is a component of the National Resource Center for Permanency and Family Connections.

Keywords: Adoption, Family centered services, Foster care, Foster children, Foster parents, Information dissemination, Resource centers

Annotation: The North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC) is an advocacy organization that works for permanent placement of special needs children and for the families who eventually adopt them. NACAC focuses its program services in four areas: public policy advocacy, parent leadership capacity building, education and information sharing, and adoption support. Services to consumers include publications and reference information. The council also publishes a newsletter and sponsors conferences. The council's Web site includes a database of parent support groups and information on adoption, adoption support, recruiting families, transracial parenting, post-adoption services, public policy, and other topics.

Keywords: Adoption, Advocacy, Children with special health care needs, Information services

Annotation: The Office of Population Affairs Clearinghouse (formerly the Family Life Information Exchange) provides referrals and distributes various federal publications on family planning, contraception, adolescent pregnancy, and adoption. Available materials include a catalog, manuals, directories, fact sheets, pamphlets, and summaries of Adolescent Family Life (AFL) projects. Some materials are available in Spanish and Asian languages

Keywords: Adolescent pregnancy, Adoption, Contraception, Family planning

Annotation: Resolve: The National Infertility Association offers information, advocacy, and support for people experiencing infertility. Services include a national telephone helpline, referrals to medical specialists, literature on the emotional and medical aspects of infertility, a member contact network, medical updates, adoption information, and support groups. Publications include a quarterly newsletter. Some materials are available in Spanish. The organization holds conferences, workshops, and training seminars. RESOLVE has over 50 chapters in the United States.

Keywords: Infertility, Adoption, Advocacy, Health education, Information services, Support groups

Annotation: Tthe Children's Bureau (CB) is located within the United States Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACF). It is responsible for assisting states in the delivery of child welfare services - services designed to protect children and strengthen families. The agency provides grants to states, tribes and communities to operate a range of child welfare services including child protective services (child abuse and neglect) family preservation and support, foster care, adoption, and independent living. In addition, the agency makes major investments in staff training, technology and innovative programs. A variety of fact sheets, reports, and resource lists can be downloaded from the Web site. The bureau also publishes an electronic newsletter called the Children's Bureau Express.

Keywords: Child welfare, Adoption, Child abuse, Child neglect, Domestic violence, Electronic publications, Family violence, Foster care, Injury prevention