Content by Keyword: Child Welfare

Laudan Y. Aron and Krista K. Olson The Urban Institute March 1997 The research reported here was prepared under contract with the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, with additional support from the Office of Community Services and the National Institute of Justice.

A REVIEW OF FAMILY PRESERVATION AND FAMILY REUNIFICATION PROGRAMS By Westat, Inc. in association with James Bell Associates, Inc., and The Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago May 30, 1995 For the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation U.S. Department of Health and Human Services TAB

Conducted from 1994 through 2002, the Evaluation of Family Preservation and Reunification Programs was intended to evaluate rigorously programs designed to prevent the placement of children in foster care when it can be avoided. A related effort to reunify families who had at least one child placed in foster care was also evaluated, and related

During 2001 and 2002, several data analyses on foster care and adoption issues were conducted for ASPE based on the Multi-State Foster Care Data Archive maintained by the Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago. The following papers are available in this series:

Assessing the Field of Post-Adoption Service: Family Needs, Program Models, and Evaluation Issues Literature Review Submitted to: Laura Feig Radel Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation Hubert H. Humphrey Building 200 Independence Avenue, S.W. Washington, DC 20201 Developed

Amy Dworsky and Mark E. Courtney Institute for Research on Poverty University of Wisconsin-Madison December 2000 A report prepared for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Evaluation of Family Preservation and Reunification Programs Estimating Child Welfare Service Costs: Methods Developed for the Evaluation of Family Preservation and Reunification Programs Submitted to: Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation Submitted by: Westat, Inc. Chapin Hall Cent

In this section we examine additional demographic and socio-economic characteristics. The indicators here include children’s current ages, whether children’s parents have a spouse or partner, parents’ current ages, the age gap between parent (or spouse/partner of parent, whichever is smaller) and child, the education of the parent with the h

This section reports on demographic indicators related to race, ethnicity, and gender for adopted children and their parents. These include the race and Hispanic origin of adopted children and of their parents, transracial adoption (that is, adoptions in which the race, ethnicity, or culture of origin differs for adopted children and their parents

In this section, the Chartbook reports on whether or not adopted children had ever lived with their birth family and where they lived immediately prior to living with their adoptive parents. It also includes information on children’s relationships to their parents prior to the adoption. (Prior relationships could include that they were already r

Part 1 presents some key population characteristics of adopted children and their families. Information presented includes children’s prior relationship to their parents, socio-economic and demographic characteristics, and child and family well-being.

Agency adoption : Adoptions in which agencies work with both prospective adoptive and birth families, and often facilitate matches between them. Adoption agencies may be licensed (adhering to licensing and approval standards established by the state), or unlicensed. Adoption : A process that establishes a legal parent-child relationship betwee

As we have described, adopted children and their families represent a diverse population that has followed complex pathways to adoption. Part 1, “The Population,” presents information regarding the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of adopted children and families, as well as measures of child and family wellbeing.

This group includes children adopted from countries other than the United States. Typically, the adoption is facilitated by a private adoption agency. International adoptions had increased from about 15,000 to over 22,000 children in 2004. Since 2004, international adoptions have been steadily decreasing, to below 18,000 in 2008. 17 According to

This group includes children who were adopted from within the United States but who were not part of the foster care system at any time prior to the adoption. Some of these children may have deceased birth parents, or their birth parents voluntarily relinquished their rights and chose to make an adoption plan for them. These adoptions may be facil

Children adopted from foster care are those who, prior to their adoption, were involved with the child protective services system and removed from their families due to their families’ inability or unwillingness to provide appropriate care. Children adopted from foster care may be a vulnerable group for several reasons. Most children who enter f

Throughout this Chartbook, we present indicators pertaining to the characteristics, experiences, and well-being of adopted children and their families. We highlight a few key findings pertaining to adopted children as a group below:

The adoption landscape is constantly shifting, as a result of changes in U.S. and international laws, as well as changes in societal attitudes and other circumstances. These changes mean that readers should be particularly cautious in inferring how the snapshot presented in this Chartbook may apply to future adopted children and their families.

When comparing adopted children with all U.S. children, readers should be aware of some key differences between the two populations.

THREE PRIMARY WAYS TO ADOPT IN THE UNITED STATES Foster care adoption : Children adopted from foster care are those who, prior to their adoption, were involved with the child protective services system and removed from their families due to their families’ inability or unwillingness to provide appropriate care. Public child welfare agenci