Family Care for Children and Youth, Inc. offers quality, individualized services for families in all phases of the adoption process.  Services include:

These services are performed at no-cost for resource families interested in adopting a Pennsylvania youth that is currently a client in the child welfare system as long as funding is available.  As a fully licensed adoption program, services are also available for children/families who are not a client or a resource family in the child welfare system for a fee.

Applicants for adoption services must be 21 years or older and meet other specified requirements.  Training is provided by Family Care for Children and Youth, Inc. for all prospective adoptive families.

If you are interested, please telephone (570) 522-9790 or e-mail the agency at fccy@fccy.org. 

FAMILY PROFILES

The purpose of the Family Profile process is to identify and develop resource families for children in the foster care system.  The entire process is designed to determine the suitability of an applicant to be an adoptive parent based on the applicant's qualifications and the readiness of the applicant to parent a specific child based on the child's individual needs.  Family Care for Children and Youth, Inc. must get prior authorization to provide this service from the contracted entity (i.e. a county children and youth agency, SWAN Prime Contractor, or SWAN affiliate).

Family Care for Children and Youth will perform authorized Family Profile services for existing resource parents in our system, or for families that are recruited for a specific adoptive placement.  The Family Profile unit of service entails the following tasks:

  • Pre-adoptive family orientation.
  • Training completion on issues relevant to special needs adoption.
  • Completion of the Family Care for Children and Youth - Family Profile.
  • Pre-adoption continuing education in order to keep families interested in adoption pending a placement.
  • Registration with PAE on the CY-131.
  • Completion of an addendum during the first and/or second year following the completion of the Family Care for Children and Youth - Family Profile in cases where a child is not place with a pre-adoptive family.
  • A county agency may request a family profile addendum when a family is being considered for a child placement or when necessary for a court proceeding.
  • Annual foster care approval.

CHILD PROFILE

A Child Profile is a comprehensive review of a child's emotional, social and medical history.  The process of developing a profile is to be a collaborative effort involving the child and all of the significant people involved in his/her life.  It needs to be emphasized that the child is to participate with the Permanency Case Manager in the development of the child's profile to the fullest extent possible.  The information gathered in a Child Profile is confidential and is only to be shared between appropriate agencies and with the prospective eligible families.  Each child with a goal of adoption must have a Child Profile.  According to the SWAN Bulletin, the intended purposes of the Child Profile are to:

  1. Assist in recruitment activities and identifying possible matches for placement to occur;
  2. Share information with prospective families who are being considered to provide permanency for the child.  This profile is not considered to be the sole source of information on the child.
  3. Identify strengths and possible risk factors that might be useful in the placement adjustment period and enhancing permanency; and
  4. Maintain a history as described below for the child as a resource of information for his/her later life.

Family Care for Children and Youth, Inc. will perform authorized Child Profile services for existing youth in our system, or for youth that are in placement with another entity.  The Child Profile unit of service entails the following tasks:

  • Completion of the document entitled:  Family Care for Children and Youth Child Profile.
  • The custodial county Children and Youth must register the child with the Pennsylvania Adoption Exchange (PAE).  The Family Care for Children and Youth Case Manager will collaborate with the custodial county Case Worker to ensure the youth is registered on other exchanges provided by PAE.
  • A high quality color photograph of the child (where the child's facial features are distinct and apparent) will be taken and a one-page written description of the child will be completed.
  • Completion of an addendum upon request by a county agency during the first and/or second year following the completion of the original Child Profile in cases where the child is not placed with a family (i.e. the Child Profile may be used for a maximum of three years, which may include two addendums).
  • The custodial county Children and Youth may request an additional child profile unit of service only in cases where the child has not been placed for adoption within three years.

CHILD PREPARATION FOR PERMANENCY

It is understood that children in out-of-home placement have experienced varying degrees of trauma in their young lives.  It is essential that adoption professionals maximize the child's readiness for permanency and prevent permanency disruption by facilitating the transition from out-of-home placement to a permanent family.

Children must be prepared for the transition between foster care and adoption to ensure readiness for permanency.  The following are recommended to ensure that children are engaged in the preparation process:

  • Specialized work with children requires skills in grief and loss, attachment development and the ability to engage children in preparation activities.  The family with whom the child is currently living should be involved in the preparation activities to enhance the child's ability to prepare for changes.
  • Engaging the child requires patience, understanding of childhood developmental stages and sensitivity to the child's trauma by the individual facilitating the preparation process and transition.

The goals of Child Preparation are the following:

  1. To enable the child to understand the reasons for being unable to return to the birth or legal family (clarification), accept the reality of being a member of several families (integration), and visualize him/herself becoming a member of another family (actualization).
  2. To ensure that children have the opportunity to resolve losses, through a process of grieving in a safe atmosphere, to ask questions, and to feel positively about a prospective family (attachment).
  3. To help children establish a more secure foundation for identity formulation by maintaining their biological and placement history.





 

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Family Care for Children & Youth, Inc. | 25 Belford Blvd. | Milton, PA 17847
Phone: (570) 522-9790 | Fax: (570) 522-0016 | E-Mail: fccy@fccy.org

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