CPS has been addressed. If all the proposed reforms of this program have been implemented and enforced there should be a large reduction in
the number of children needing to be placed in the foster care system.
Only after a neglect case has been fully investigated, parents refuse or do not complete the Family Service Program made available to them and
all efforts for potential kinship care have failed should removal from the home and placement in foster care for the child be considered.
When abuse (physical or sexual) has been alleged, found by the police to have merit, the alleged offender has been charged and all efforts were
made to allow child to remain in home or kinship care should removal from the home and placement in foster care be considered.
In any case all the efforts made must be full documented under threat of perjury and said report goes before a judge for initial determination of
child removal to foster care.
Once a removal determination has been made by a judge, reviewed by the review committee and found to be in compliance with all policies,
procedures and laws should the child be removed.
Removal from one’s family is a traumatic experience for any child, no matter the conditions they were removed from. Immediate counseling MUST
be provided to ALL children who is of an age of understanding to realize what is happening to them. This service should be provided until it is
deemed no longer necessary.
Neglect and abuse situations should be handled differently in some areas while the same policies should be implemented in others.
ALL workers involved in disposition of a case should have full training not only on procedures, policy and law but also impact of their decisions as
to how they may affect the children. The training MUST be completed prior to their being able to make decisions in a case on their own. There also
must be ongoing training while they are employed by their agency (public or private).
NO foster care worker should have a case load more than twenty families at any one time. More cases do not allow the worker to devote the
necessary amount of time and work in assisting the family and child along with their other responsibilities. Adding administrative staff to do
necessary paperwork would free up social workers to actually do what they have been trained and hired to do. States have been reducing workers
in this field as they have been in education. They say it is necessary due to budget issues. States can either fully fund prevention programs,
assistance programs now or we as a society will pay later with destroyed families, children in juvenile hall or prison.
Families are the backbone of our society. Children are our future. Destroy either one of them or our society will pay a very heavy price…spend the
money now!
Though impractical, it would be nice if ALL involved in the child care field (judges on down the line) would have to be parents themselves or foster
parents for a period of time before they are able to make decisions regarding children. It is hard enough to parent a child with no baggage but you
get a child who has been neglected, abused or exposed to drugs and that is a totally different world. Then you get a worker that is fresh out of
college and thinks that what they learned in a book is the way of the world and the kids pay. Textbook learning is not the “real” world!
A child should be moved as little as possible while in the foster care system. Constant moves only prove detrimental to the child.
ALL potential foster families who have completed their necessary training, home studies and background checks should be placed within a
software program. Data should include, but not be limited to, age of children willing to foster, number of children, whether they will take siblings of
one gender or both genders, gender of children, race of children, special needs of children, willingness to foster/adopt or not.
ALL children entering the foster care system MUST also have their data entered into the data base. It should include reasons for foster placement,
age, gender, special needs, single or part of sibling group, race.
Every effort MUST be made to best match the children to foster families on the initial placement to reduce moves for the child. This should include
the potential that the child may at some point be made eligible for adoption.
Some counties currently use a rotation system for placement. That is, they simply call the next agency of their list and given them a period of time
to place or call the next agency. Agencies have been given financial incentives for placements.
This MUST be totally abandoned. Children are not a commodity. Agencies should not be given incentives for just finding a bed available rather
than finding the “best” placement. Placements MUST be determined by matching the best potential foster parents to the children needing
placement.
If any incentive is to be offered it should be to states for reducing the number of cases in their foster care system by either keeping the family
together due to in home services offered, successfully reunifying families or by adoption when appropriate.
Emergency placement may be necessary at times and just a bed found. These should be done as rarely as possible and for as short of a period of
time as possible.
Foster parents MUST be made an active part of the team making decisions in the best interest of the child as long as the child remains a part of
foster care.
At the time of placement a fully detailed case plan for potential return of the child to its parents MUST be developed. It MUST state what MUST be
accomplished by the parents, the assistance that will be provided to accomplish the plan; a clear date of completion of said plan MUST be
established. I propose ONE YEAR. The parents must have it clearly stated to them in the document that they will have one opportunity to fulfill their
established plan.
Failure to comply with the plan during the course of the one year or failure to complete the plan in the established time is automatic grounds for
termination of their rights. The parents must know their child will NOT be allowed to remain in limbo or subject to instability due to their actions or
inactions. This agreement MUST be side by both parties in the presence of a judge and becomes a part of the permanent record. Compliance with
the case plan should be reviewed every ninety days, or sooner if warranted.
At the time of placement with a foster family a document of facts will be prepared by the placing agency. It will include, but not be limited to, reason
child has been placed, history of the child including medical, any behavioral, physical or mental special needs of the child, case plan established
and agreed to by the parents, services to be provided the child while in care.
All services to be provided to the child while in case MUST be provided with the needs of the foster family as to place, time etc.
Every effort MUST be made to keep siblings together, if not possible, arrangements must be made to allow siblings to visit each other while in care.
The foster family cares for the child twenty-four/seven and payment for their providing this service MUST reflect this service. Foster families should
NOT be expected to go into their personal funds to provide this service. Foster families also should NOT expect this payment to provide them their
source of income to the household.
When a parent(s) have completed their case plan and a determination has been made to reunify the family it should not be rushed. A probationary
transition period should be established to slowly allow the biological parent(s) to transition to having the children back in their home. We want the
reunification to be successful and not have the child returned to foster care. The reunification should go slowly with continued full services
available to the parent(s) to assist them during this period.
Owner/Editor - Chris Chmielewski