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May 2020Vol. 21, No. 4Coparenting Pilot Focuses on Collaboration Between Birth and Foster Parents

A coparenting pilot program developed by Rising Ground focuses on the benefits of shared parenting between birth parents and foster caregivers with the goal of reducing stress for children in foster care, expediting family reunification, and strengthening families in order to avoid reentry.

The program's advantages include the following:

  • Coparenting allows for more interaction between birth and foster families.
  • Parents can remain closely involved in their children's lives while they are in care.
  • Parents are encouraged to communicate freely via phone calls, FaceTime, etc.
  • Foster parents can easily communicate with birth parents regarding the needs of the child.
  • The child is less likely to feel divided loyalty between their birth and foster parents.

Rising Ground hopes to work with at least 32 parent pairs throughout the 2-year pilot, which is funded by a $200,000 grant from the Redlich Horwitz Foundation, whose mission is to improve the child welfare system in New York.