It’s that time of year again. Spring semester at the School of Social Work means guest blog posts from students enrolled in the SW5905 Permanency in Child Welfare course. Each week starting next week and continuing through to the end of May, we will be publishing blog posts written by students learning about permanency and adoption. [...]
I came across a provocatively titled blog article, “I hate adoption” that is an important read, and I encourage you to get past the title. This essay provides another side of adoption that we don’t hear much about – the voices of the adoptive siblings. While some readers may not agree with the author’s conclusions [...]
Promoting adoption is not enough for a child; ultimately we want stability for children in their permanency placements. Children may experience adoption disruptions, displacements and dissolutions. Often times these occur because adoptive parents are struggling to find accessible and affordable post-adoption services. It is estimated that between 10% to 25% of pre-adoption placements are disrupted [...]
Did you know that the both AdoptUSKids and the Child Welfare Information Gateway have resources in Spanish? Click here for the free, downloadable adoption resources in Spanish from the Child Welfare Information Gateway. A number of resources are also available on the AdoptUSKids site, Ayuda para las familias de crianza y adoptivas.
Much of the media during National Adoption Month is focused on talking to adoptive parents or prospective adoptive parents and professionals working to place children in permanent homes. But just as important is the views and perspectives of the adopted or foster youth themselves. A new book released this month, Dear Wonderful You: Letters to [...]
The 2014 National Adoption Month campaign is focused on the importance of sibling connections. Approximately 75% of children and youth in foster care are separated by one or more sibling and these relationships are often lost once children are placed in permanent homes. Here are some resources for working with sibling groups in permanency and [...]
Minnesota is fortunate to host many organizations that provide post-adoption services. Of course, I need to put in a plug for our Directory of Professionals that have completed the Permanency and Adoption Competency Certificate program. The Directory is searchable; you can search for a therapist by geographical area, practice specialty, licensure, and more. [...]
Yesterday, the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption recognized their 2014 list of Best Adoption Friendly Workplaces. Every year DTFA publishes their list of companies that provide the most supportive environments for adoptive families. Organizations can complete the survey found on the DTFA website here and you can also download the Adoption Friendly Workplace Kit for [...]