ADOPTION By: Jessica Forgety (Girls, Grab a Tissue…)

What You May Not Know… About Adoption in the United States

Adoption Through The Department of Children’s Services (Adoption through Tennessee State Government) Each State has slightly different adoption laws, but overall they are very similar within the United States. Adoption can not occur unless the child is in state custody and the parents rights have been terminated for at least six months.

What if a Newborn is Dropped of at a Safehaven ? If a baby has been left at a safe drop location, such as a hospital or fire department, or police station all rights of the parents are terminated. The hospital employee or civil servant taking the drop off, can not request information from the person leaving the infant. If the name or any other personal information is reported, the state must then file a motion to remove the child from the home, get permission from both parents, terminate both parents rights, then place the child in foster care prior to adoption. This lessens the chance of this baby being adopted and lengthens its time in foster care. Once the newborn is dropped off at the location it is taken to the hospital to receive care and CPS is notified. custody automatically resides with the state and the child can quickly go to a foster parent which can quickly adopt the child. It is not difficult to find a home looking to adopt a newborn baby in the united states. Training on this program, including the crucial laws surrounding it is available for personal of all drop off locations, but unfortunately is not always effective. Safehaven Alliance

CAPTA(Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act) was set forth in 1974 to bring national attention to the need for protection of vulnerable children in the United States. – It provides Federal funding to States in support of prevention, assessment, investigation, prosecution, and treatment activities as well as grants to public agencies and nonprofit organizations for demonstration programs and projects. – CAPTA also sets forth a minimum definition of child abuse and neglect.

Statistics Few sources of statistical information exist for private adoptions. Private adoptions are still regulated by the state, but are carried out through a private company rather that the state government. The cost for a private adoption ranges from $5,000-$40,000 within the United States. Public adoption through foster care ranges from $0-$3,000. In August of 2010, there were 114,562 domestic children in foster care waiting to be adopted in the United States. Immigrant adoption has more than doubled in the last 20 years. Korea is the largest single-country source of immigrant adoption. Korean children make up around 22 percent of all immigrant adoptions.

Once Child Protective Services receives a referral and the referral meets the criteria for investigation there are two tracks that can be taken. The case will be assigned to a case worker and follow an investigative track(meth labs, sexual abuse, drug exposed newborns, physical abuse) or an assessment track(neglect). There are approximately new cases each month per case worker per county(number of case workers vary per county based on the number of average referrals). All information on individuals is confidential and by law CPS can only state whether or not a case has been assigned. Emotional and mental abuse is extremely hard to prove. A mental health professional would have to put it in writing or be willing to testify that the caretaker caused the emotional or mental harm

What if you Suspect Abuse or Neglect? If you suspect that a child is being abused or neglected, you are responsible for reporting it to Child Protective Services. You can fill out a CPS referral online or call in a referral. It may be a good idea to talk to your principal about it before you make the call, but you are not required to do so. If you feel it is urgent and your principal is not available, go ahead with the referral. If your principal does not agree that a referral is appropriate, but feel that it is- make the referral. CPS can not release the name of the person who made the referral. Do not wait until the end of the day then call in a referral, and ask the CPS intake personnel if you can have permission to hold the child off the bus or keep him/her from going home. CPS can not give you permission to keep a child at school beyond school hours. This happens often.

Do not treat a child being abused, in foster care, or that has been adopted any different than any other child. Many children under investigation or in state custody complain that they feel singled out by their teacher. You may become a member of the team that makes decisions about what is best for the child. This is called the Child and Family Team, and you may contact the child’s case worker for information on meeting times and dates. The meeting can be held at your school or you may attend over the phone. The team is made up of the child's family members, doctors, social workers, pastor, teacher, foster parents, anyone who has an interest in the child’s welfare.

These scenarios and clues may be signals that a child is being abused. Again, CPS will investigate if the referral fits the criteria to do so, it is your responsibility to make that referral if you believe a child is being abused. You are mandated to do so by law!

The Child Shows sudden changes in behavior or school performance Has not received help for physical or medical problems brought to the parents' attention Has learning problems (or difficulty concentrating) that cannot be attributed to specific physical or psychological causes Is always watchful, as though preparing for something bad to happen Lacks adult supervision Is overly compliant, passive, or withdrawn Comes to school or other activities early, stays late, and does not want to go home

The Parent Shows little concern for the child Denies the existence of—or blames the child for—the child's problems in school or at home Asks teachers or other caregivers to use harsh physical discipline if the child misbehaves Sees the child as entirely bad, worthless, or burdensome Demands a level of physical or academic performance the child cannot achieve Looks primarily to the child for care, attention, and satisfaction of emotional needs

The Parent and The Child Rarely touch or look at each other Consider their relationship entirely negative State that they do not like each other

REFRENCES National SafeHaven Alliance. (n.d.). Retrieved Febuary 21, 2012, from Woods, S. (2012, February 21). CPS Supervisor State of TN. (J. Forgety, Interviewer) (2012). Retrieved February 21, 2012, from US Department of Health and Human Services: