Foster Parent or Adopting a Child

In North Carolina, the process of becoming a foster or adoptive parent entails a comprehensive evaluation and mutual selection procedure that includes home visits, interviews, and criminal history checks. There is no dual licensure procedure in North Carolina. This indicates that foster care and adoption go through two different approval procedures. Certain agencies try to keep the two tracks separate, while others try to streamline them as much as possible.
Foster parents in North Carolina must hold a license from the NC Division of Social Services, with families arranged through the county DSS in their area or a licensed private organization. The local county DSS or a recognized private agency must approve adoptive parents.

A family must finish TIPS-MAPP (Trauma Informed Partnering for Safety and Permanence – Model Approach to Partnerships in Parenting) or a comparable training and evaluation process in order to be eligible to become a licensed foster parent in North Carolina. This course, which requires a minimum of 30 hours, will teach participants about the child welfare system, the role of foster and adoptive parents, how to become successful foster or adoptive parents, and how to evaluate families to see if they would be better off adopting or fostering.

TIPS-MAPP is highly recommended for families who wish to adopt from the foster care system, even though it is required for foster parent license. Raising a child that was placed in foster care differs greatly from raising a child that was born into your family. TIPS-MAPP or an equivalent will provide you with vital knowledge and skills.

We’ve put together a list of particular actions to help families get started with this process.

Steps in Foster Parenting:

1. View the Foster Parent Orientation video, which is required.

2. Select a private foster care placement agency, the local DSS, or another organization.Click here to view the application website.

3. Participate in an agency orientation.

4. Finish the TIPS-MAPP training.

5. The Mutual Home Assessment must be finished in order to license foster homes. This is not the same as a home study for adoption.

6. Your agency will finish the Foster Home Application and send it to the Division of Social Services in the state of North Carolina for approval and certification.

7. After receiving a license from the NC Division of Social Services, evaluate and accept foster care placements in accordance with your family’s parenting style and the needs of the children.

8. Foster parents must recertify every two years.

Steps in Adoptive Parenthood:

1. Select a private adoption agency, the DSS in your area, or an agency. Click here to view the application website.

2. Go to the agency of your choice’s orientation meeting.

3. Finish up the TIPS-MAPP course. For adoptive families, this is optional, however for some agencies, it is required and highly encouraged.

4. Pre-Placement Assessment (PPA) completion: This is not the same as the Mutual Home Assessment that foster parents get; rather, it is your adoptive home study. You need a PPA if you wish to adopt. Every eighteen months or whenever a major change takes place in your family or home, PPAs need to be updated.

5. After your PPA has been authorized, you can register with AdoptUSKids to find out more about adoptable children.

6. After receiving an authorized PPA, you can also register with NC Kids. After that, you’ll be included in a database of waiting kids and approved families, which is meant to help waiting kids discover suitable matches.

7. Either send in your PPA for adoptable children or request a match for adoption with a child you are currently fostering.

8. After a match is made, have a meeting and create a plan for the child’s transition into your household.

9. Obtain a final decree of adoption by completing the formal adoption procedure.

The intricacy of the legal processes, protracted waiting periods, and possible emotional difficulties for the adoptive parents and the adopted kid are common problems in adoption. To successfully manage these hurdles, strong collaboration with adoption agencies, attorneys, and support services is vital.

There are several advantages to adoption for both adoptive families and the adopted children. Among these are a few of these:

1. Building Families: When a person or couple is unable to conceive or bear children naturally, adoption gives them the opportunity to do so.

2. Providing a Loving Home: Adoptive parents can provide children in need with a stable and loving home, enabling them to have a better opportunity at life.

3. Fulfilling the Child’s Needs: Adoption helps children whose biological parents are unable to provide for them or who do not have a stable home environment.

Frequently Asked Questions about Foster Parent or Adopting a Child

1. What kinds of adoption are there?

Domestic, foreign, foster care, and private adoptions are examples of common forms. Everybody has different needs and things to think about.

2. What is the duration of the adoption process?

Time varies a lot. Adoption type, national laws (if international), and unique situations are some of the factors.

3. What qualifications must one meet in order to adopt?

While requirements can vary, they frequently include things like age, marital status, stable finances, and doing a home study.

4. What is the price of adoption?

Prices differ a lot. Agency fees, legal fees, home study fees, and travel costs are possible costs associated with foreign adoptions.

5. Can a single person adopt?

Indeed, a lot of organizations welcome submissions from single people. It’s important to check with the adoption agency as requirements may vary.