May 2004Vol. 5, No. 4Print issueSpotlight on National Foster Care Month

Results from a study published in the Social Policy Journal indicate a relationship between TANF time limits and involvement in the child welfare system. Findings point to a need for family-centered services for families approaching their TANF time limits, as well as a need for greater coordination between the TANF and child welfare systems.

The research examined case records of more than 1,800 TANF families in Nevada who had at least one child removed from the home. Nevada imposes a 24-month time limit on receipt of TANF benefits before a family is required to "sit out" from receiving benefits for a 12-month period. Families are allowed two sit-out periods and can receive welfare benefits for a total of 60 months. Some families are exempted, either temporarily or permanently, from the sit-out periods. These families are designated as hardship cases due to a parent's physical or emotional disability, substance abuse, or other issues.

Among the study's major findings:

• Families with more months counted toward their 24-month TANF time limit were more likely to have at least one child removed from the home and placed in foster care than families with fewer months toward their time limit.
• Families for whom TANF time limits were waived due to hardship were no more likely than non-hardship families to have a child removed from the home.
• Families with multiple welfare episodes were more likely to have a child removed than those with a single welfare episode.

Findings were generally similar for families in urban and rural areas.

Although more research is needed to fully explain these findings, the authors recommend that families who are approaching their TANF time limit receive family-centered casework services designed to prevent parent-child separation. Moreover, the results from this study point to a need to strengthen the relationship between the TANF and child welfare systems in order to better coordinate services for these families.

A copy of this article, "Facing Time Limits: Its Consequences for Foster Care Placements," is available in the Social Policy Journal, Volume 3(1), or may be obtained online for a fee from the Haworth Press at www.haworthpressinc.com/web/SPJ/. (Editor's Note: Link no longer active)

A recent article published in Adoption Quarterly reported on a study of 90 adopted adults who initiated a search for and met their birth mothers. The authors explored a number of hypotheses regarding factors that may influence adopted persons' contact experiences and subsequent relationships with birth mothers and siblings. The findings may have implications for counseling adults who are searching for birth relatives.

Similar to findings of previous studies, the majority of participants (67 percent) reported establishing a satisfactory relationship with their birth mothers. Reasons cited for satisfaction with the relationship included good relationships with their birth mothers and similarities between themselves and their birth mothers. Those dissatisfied with the experience cited a lack of interest on the part of the birth mother, discrepancies in lifestyle and values, and secrecy (about the adoption itself or the birth father) as reasons.

The closeness established between the participant and the birth mother was found to predict the general evaluation of the contact experience. Researchers determined that participants who established a mother-child relationship (about 17 percent of participants) felt closer to their birth mothers than participants who established a friendship (about 40 percent of participants). The type of relationship participants developed with their birth mothers was highly correlated with:

• The frequency of contact
• The adopted person's evaluation of the importance of the relationship
• The adopted person's satisfaction with the relationship
• The adopted person's satisfaction with the contact experience

Contrary to the researchers' hypothesis, the closeness of the relationship with (or attachment to) the adoptive mother while growing up was not found to significantly influence the relationship established with the birth mother. Other factors that did not correlate with closeness of the relationship with the birth mother included:

• Feelings about adoption while a teenager
• Resentment toward the birth mother
• The adoptive mother's supportiveness of the search

The closeness of the relationship established with the birth mother was found to be positively related to feeling uncomfortable talking about adoption with the adoptive mother while a teenager.

Participants (55) who also contacted birth siblings were generally more satisfied with their relationship with siblings than with their birth mothers. Relationships with siblings became closer over time than relationships with birth mothers. The authors suggest it may be easier for adults who were adopted to integrate another sibling into the family than to integrate another parent.

The authors note that the study results should be interpreted cautiously, because the sample was composed of volunteers from an adoption search organization who may be biased toward contact. However, the data suggest that continuation of contact between participants and birth mothers may depend on the ability and willingness to revise expectations and negotiate a mutually satisfactory relationship.

The article, “Adults Who Were Adopted Contacting Their Birthmothers: What Are the Outcomes, and What Factors Influence These Outcomes?," is in Adoption Quarterly, Vol. 7(1). Ordering information can be found online at http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J145v07n01_02#.U2fcmvutKyc.

Shared Family Care (SFC) is a child welfare service that places an entire family in the home of a community mentor for approximately 6 months. The mentor provides day-to-day modeling of appropriate parenting and home management skills, and, in essence, "reparents" the parent(s). Through a combination of both in-home and out-of-home care, SFC helps families develop positive networks of community resources and supports without separating children from their parents. A recent article in the Journal of Family Social Work describes SFC programs, summarizes an evaluation of two demonstration projects, and describes challenges and helpful tips for those interested in developing an SFC program in their community.

SFC programs exist across the country and are administered by both private and public child welfare agencies. Although the programs vary somewhat, they share a number of key elements:

• Mentors. Mentors are carefully screened and receive initial and ongoing training.
• Matching mentors to clients. Prospective mentors and families meet several times in order to allow both parties to learn more about each other and determine if the match is appropriate.
• A rights and responsibilities agreement. All members of both families develop and sign a written contract delineating rights and responsibilities of both families, as well as general house rules.
• Family support team and wraparound services. Families involved in SFC often have multiple needs. A Family Support Team helps the client identify goals, develop service plans, and review progress. Case managers visit families weekly.
• Aftercare. Due to the relatively short duration of the program, aftercare is critical to provide the family ongoing support and services.

An evaluation of SFC demonstration projects in Colorado and California showed promising results in reducing re-entry into foster care, increasing average monthly income, and increasing independent housing for program graduates. Additionally, although an SFC program can be expensive to develop and maintain, SFC can be more cost-effective than some other types of out-of-home care.

The authors also offer some general tips for developing an SFC program, including assessing community needs, assessing agency capacity, and exploring funding sources.

A copy of this article, "Shared Family Care: Fostering the Whole Family to Promote Safety and Stability" (Journal of Family Social Work, Volume 7(2)) can be obtained online for a fee at http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J039v07n02_04#.U2ffxvutKyc.

Related Item

The National Abandoned Infants Resource Center offers program, policy, and evaluation resources on SFC on its website (http://aia.berkeley.edu/information_resources/shared_family_care.php).

Caseworkers often assist children and families who face multiple problems. Integrating mutliple service streams has become a focus of many programs, since integration may allow agencies to provide more family-centered services that address both immediate and long-term needs.

The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) recently examined whether there are legal barriers at the Federal level that preclude such integration of social services. Their conclusion that Federal laws do not prevent States and localities from implementing integrated service delivery was based on the following findings:

1. Federal restrictions on the specific use of funds do not create significant barriers to service integration; however, there may be a lack of practical flexibility at the State or local level.
2. Federal restrictions create some eligibility constraints, but broad flexibility remains with regard to eligibility requirements.
3. Federal restrictions regarding confidentiality and sharing of information among service delivery programs exist but may be addressed with consent forms that allow the families to decide which programs may share information.
4. Federal waiver authority provides broad flexibility to States in promoting service integration, although that authority is not unlimited.

While Federal barriers may not prevent social service integration, the CLASP study notes other challenges. Many of these involve establishing congruence among different information systems, performance indicators, and administrative systems in order to provide a seamless, family-centered system of appropriate services.

The CLASP report also includes the following appendices to help programs evaluate their potential for service integration:

• Descriptions of 15 Federal funding programs for social services
• A table showing how different Federal funds may be used
• A table showing eligibility requirements for receiving Federal funds
• A model consent form for families to authorize sharing of confidential information

Providing Comprehensive, Integrated Social Services to Vulnerable Children and Families: Are There Legal Barriers at the Federal Level to Moving Forward? was produced jointly with the National Governors Association for Best Practices and the Hudson Institute and was funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The paper can be downloaded from the CLASP website at www.clasp.org/DMS/Documents/1076428367.74/view_html (HTML) or www.clasp.org/publications/CW_Integration.pdf (PDF). (Editor's note: Links no longer active)

A recent article in Clinical Psychology argues that the intervention needs of maltreating fathers are not met by traditional parenting programs, which may actually support some of the problematic attitudes and behaviors of the abusive fathers. "Effecting Change in Maltreating Fathers: Critical Principles for Intervention Planning" describes more appropriate intervention treatments that begin by targeting the motivations, accountability, and entitlement attitudes of abusive men, while leaving skills development and parenting support for later in the process.

The article draws on literature on parenting, child abuse, promoting change, and treating batterers in order to construct principles to guide intervention with maltreating fathers. These include:

• Given that maltreating fathers tend to be characterized by a sense of entitlement, self-centeredness, and need for control, initial intervention should focus on changing those attitudes, rather than on providing child management skills that may actually enhance the father's sense of control.
• Abusive fathers often have little motivation to change; thus, treatment needs to focus on acceptance of this need.
• Men's violent or hostile treatment of their children's mothers should be a significant component in treatment.
• The damaged emotional security of abused children must be taken into account as (formerly) abusive fathers attempt to rebuild relationships.

The overarching theme of this approach is to focus on changing attitudes before attempting to enhance skills, and on transforming a self-centered perspective into a child-centered perspective. Implications for providing these types of intervention services are discussed. To date, two treatment programs for maltreating fathers, including the Emerge program in Boston (see www.emergedv.com), have been developed around these principles.

To view the abstract of this article or purchase the full text, visit the Clinical Psychology website at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1093/clipsy.bph058/abstract.

Related Items

The same issue of Clinical Psychology carries two additional articles on maltreating fathers:

• "Finding Ways to Reduce the Prevalence of Child Maltreatment Among Fathers: A Comment on the Alternative Approaches" (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1093/clipsy.bph059/abstract) suggests that long-term benefits would be greater if at-risk males were targeted for prevention programs.
• "Advancing Change with Maltreating Fathers" (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1093/clipsy.bph060/abstract) examines barriers to intervention with fathers and suggests that a paradigm shift is necessary in the treatment community in order to overcome these barriers and provide appropriate services.

Families entering the child welfare system have a new resource to help them navigate its often bewildering complexities. A Family's Guide to the Child Welfare System uses a question and answer format and personal stories to describe the experiences, processes, laws, and people who are part of the child welfare system.

Topics include:

• Basics of the child welfare system
• Child Protective Services
• The service planning process
• Available services in the home and community
• Out-of-home placement, including foster care and the court hearing process
• Placements made to obtain treatment that is not otherwise affordable
• Choices for permanent placement
• The Indian Child Welfare Act
• Rights and responsibilities of parents
• Approaches used by agencies and communities to improve the system

In addition, the Guide offers information on terminology, relevant laws and policies, and resources for more information.

A Family's Guide to the Child Welfare System is the result of a collaborative effort among child welfare professionals, organizations, and families, including the National Technical Assistance Center for Children's Mental Health at Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development, Technical Assistance Partnership for Child and Family Mental Health at American Institutes for Research, Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health, Child Welfare League of America, and the National Indian Child Welfare Association. The 140-page Guide is available at http://gucchd.georgetown.edu/72140.html or by contacting:

Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development
3307 M Street, Suite 401
Washington, DC 20007
Attention: Mary Moreland
202-687-5000 (voice)
202-687-1954 (fax)

Nonprofits focusing on strengthening families, foster care and adoption, or youth development in the metropolitan Washington, D.C., area should note that the Freddie Mac Foundation's next deadline for grant applications is September 1, 2004.

Grants are made to public charities for general operating expenses, program support, capacity building, planning, and capital projects. Amounts range from $5,000 to $50,000. The Foundation funds organizations in the following geographic areas:

• District of Columbia
• Virginia (Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William counties, and the cities of Alexandria, Falls Church, Manassas Park, and Leesburg)
• Maryland (Charles, Frederick, Howard, Montgomery, and Prince George's counties)

Funding also is available for statewide initiatives in Maryland and Virginia and programs that are national in scope. Funding in the Foundation's regional cities of Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, and New York is by invitation only.

More information about the Foundation's priorities and application guidelines, including online application instructions, is available from the Freddie Mac Foundation website at www.freddiemacfoundation.org/.

Noting that a majority of the 2 million prisoners in the United States have children under 18 years of age, the Fall 2003 issue of Family Support Magazine devotes its special focus section to articles on supporting families with incarcerated parents. The 16 selections range from research studies to first-person accounts of the effects of parent incarceration on the family. Included are descriptions of programs that address a variety of needs, including:

• A program that helps incarcerated parents build positive relationships with their children and the children's other parent.
• A hotline counseling program for prisoners' families and former offenders.
• A Georgia program that supports imprisoned mothers by providing help to the mothers, grandmothers, and children.
• A California program that provides group therapy, parenting classes, and help after prison to incarcerated mothers.

A resource file is also included that lists organizations, publications, videos, and internet resources that support families and children of incarcerated parents. The complete issue of Family Support Magazine 22(3) is available through the Family Support America website at http://secure.mycart.net/catalogs/catalog.asp?prodid=285975&showprevnext=1. (Editor's note: Link no longer active)

Related Items

Data Trends recently published a research summary on this topic, documenting the harm for families caused by incarceration. "The Implications of Incarceration for Children and Families" (Data Trends #91) can be downloaded at http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/child_law/ParentRep/ImplicationsofIncarceration.authcheckdam.pdf (PDF - 130 KB).

The San Francisco Partnership for Incarcerated Parents has created a Bill of Rights to encourage justice and human services groups to support children of incarcerated parents. This can be downloaded at http://www.fcnetwork.org/Bill%20of%20Rights/billofrights.pdf (PDF - 668 KB).

Find more about child welfare issues related to parent incarceration in previous issues of Children's Bureau Express:

• "Children of Incarcerated Parents: Research and Resources" (February 2004)
• "Bureau of Justice Statistics Report Reveals Increase in Incarcerated Parents" (March/April 2001)

The January 2004 issue of the Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science (AAPSS) focuses on positive youth development (PYD), contrasting this model with more traditional models of adolescence. The PYD model views adolescents as resources rather than as problems and focuses on their potential rather than their deficiencies.

Some of the themes addressed in this special issue, Positive Development: Realizing the Potential of Youth, include:

• PYD and character strengths
• PYD in school programs and after-school settings
• Research on PYD in the United States
• Effects of PYD on child well-being
• Developing resilience in youth

To read more about this issue, visit the AAPSS website at http://ann.sagepub.com/content/591/1.toc.

Related Items

The National Collaboration for Youth recently published a list of 10 core competencies for staff who work with youth. These Youth Development Worker Competencies include knowledge, skills, and personal attributes needed by workers for effective practice. The list can be used to determine recruitment, selection, and development strategies. It is available in a PDF format at http://sparkaction.org/sites/sparkaction.org/files/nydic/documents/competencies.pdf.

Two curricula that use PYD in working with older youth in foster care and independent living situations are featured in recent issues of Children's Bureau Express:

• "Transitioning Y.O.U.T.H." (May 2004)
• "Foster Youth Help Develop Curriculum and Provide Training for Child Welfare Workers" (February 2004)

The Foundation Center offers information and resources for nonprofits interested in tapping corporations for support. Along with describing some common mechanisms for corporate giving (e.g., corporate giving programs, company-sponsored foundation), the Foundation Center provides a list of electronic and print resources on its website ( http://fdncenter.org/learn/faqs/html/corporate_giving.html).

In addition, an Introduction to Corporate Giving training course is offered at each of the Foundation Center's five libraries throughout the year. The courses are free, but space is limited. Locations and dates of upcoming corporate giving trainings are listed below:

• Cleveland (http://fdncenter.org/cleveland/corpgvcl.html), May 18 and June 24
• New York (http://fdncenter.org/newyork/corpgvny.html), May 17 and June 18
• San Francisco (http://fdncenter.org/sanfrancisco/corpgvsf.html), June 28
• Washington, DC (http://fdncenter.org/washington/corpgvdc.html), May 6 and June 9

(Editor's note: Links no longer active)

Distance learning, or remote learning, makes sense as an option for busy foster families who need to get CEUs (Continuing Education Units) to fulfill license requirements. FosterClub offers these credits in a new free, online service at http://www.fosterclub.com/_booster/article/foster-parent-online-training.

FosterClub courses are composed of published articles, book excerpts, research papers, and reports produced by leading authorities in child welfare and available through the FosterClub Training Library. The site offers a quiz with each course to verify the learner's understanding.

Registered users of the site are able to keep track of CEUs earned and receive a certificate for each course completed. They also may print a transcript of all courses taken. Registration on the system is free, but users may view the materials without registering if they wish.

For more information about the FosterClub Training Library, contact Celeste Bodner, Executive Director, at (503) 717-1552 or celeste@fosterclub.com.