Have you Adopted through DSS / Social Services?

Question

I am looking for info on adopting through dss / social servcies and not through fostering. "Adopting Waiting Kids" for example. After completing the adoption homestudy & licensing part...what are the next steps after you have identified children you would like more info on? How long might the process / transition take? Can you adopt out of state if they are legally free? Is it much more difficult than in state? Any info from those who have gone through this would be greatly appreciated, thanks!!

Answer 1

You usually get a child in the state that your home study was completed in. Interstate Home Studies take place by either someone in the other state identifying you as a potential "family friend" or "relative".  You can also find websites for each state that have a blurb about a child that is legally free and you can contact the social service in that state.  We try to keep the child in state and find an adoptive home....but there are sometimes children that have either physical/mental difficulties that we have a hard time placing and we will then look out of state if someone is interested.

If you are only looking for a "legally free" child...I hope you realize that it will be an older child.  So I hope you are not looking to adopt a legally free infant through social services...because that hardly happens.  If there is a safe haven baby that needs to be placed, there are hundreds of other people that have already gotten a home study completed and are looking for a baby.  

I think it would be great to adopt an older child or teenager. Most of them have been bounced from home to home or are in shelters.  Some of the older kids (when they are old enough...16!) are placed in something called "Independent Living", which to me...is a little ridiculous. Most children don't move out of their parents home until they are in their 20's and not 16.  

I work for DCF in my state and my title is a Resource Family Support Worker (formally known as a foster care worker) I conduct the background checks and do the home studies and facilitate placements for the children that have been abused/neglected, so I very much know the process.

And i know in my state....we do not have random lists that go out showing pics of children and their entire background. It doesnt go like that. We do have something that is called the "Heart Gallery" that features a brief thing about the child, but we cannot give out any information until after the home study is completed. Also a lot of people started calling about the same "cute" children in the photos and knew nothing about their background. One of my foster families actually stated that they reason they were doing this home study was because they saw a legally free child that kind of looked like hre husband.....they wanted all this info and a promise that they wold be guaranteed this specific child....That was not going to happen, so they dropped out and wrote to the governor.....They also didnt know the horrible abuse that this child went through and was currently in a group home seeking help...etc etc.

In our county...while the potential foster parents are going through the training..we tell them this statement:

"We find families for our children and not children for our families"

----this statement is for the families looking for a child that has a specific hair or eye color that they are looking for--

(I know I rambled on a bit)

Good luck and I hope that a child in need that has been left behind finds your home to be their forever home.

I dont work or live in NY, but I went to a Wonderful conference/training hosted by this guy named: Pat O'Brien...who helps older children find a "Forever Family"  He is great and so is what he does.

You should check it out

http://www.yougottabelieve.org

Answer 2

I just wanted to say thank you so much for asking this question! I'm in a similar situation and would like to do the same some day so I appreciate reading the answers very much. :)

Answer 3

I am not in your state but where I live I have known several families that were aproved as foster parents for emergancy placement. Children were then placed with them who needed a good home ASAP. In all three cases I know of the biological parents never got there stuff together(off drugs or out of prison). Social Service kept asking if the host family could keep them longer. Before you know it was years. They finally adopted the children.

Answer 4

My husband and I have been trying to adopt through county social services for over two years.  Our homestudy was approved 09/2005.  We look at our states web site as well as the U.S. web site.  Once we find a child or children that may match us, I send an email to our social worker to ask her to send our homestudy to the child's social worker.  The child's social worker receives all of the home study's and weed out family's that do not match.  They take the remaining home studies to a group discussion and narrow it down from there.  They will narrow it down to 2-4 families then go and do personal interviews with each to determine the best match for both the child and the parents.

You can adopt out of state.  Watch the bios of the child.  If it says they have siblings they want to stay in contact with, I will not send a home study.  Some bios will also request the parents to be of a particular cultural background.  I have not had any responses from any of the children we sent our home study for out of state.  I think the process would be a little more difficult, simply due to the travel involved.

Answer 5

once you are homestudied you can inquire about waiting children.  Usually in state families take priority but you can be from out of state.  your state would  do an ICPC (interstate placement compact) with the childs state.  basically your state would monitor the child's  placement and report back to the childs state.  It takes some time to get the paperwork done.  possibly up to a year.  after the child is placed in your home it is at least 6 months before adoption process can begin.  good luck