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...About the Adoption Process Click on a question to see the answer. Or scroll down to read all the answers.
MY HOMESTUDY IS DONE. HOW LONG WILL I WAIT FOR A CHILD?With your homestudy completed, written, and signed, it may still take some time-- from a few weeks to two years or more-- to be matched with a child. A wait of about a year is not unusual. If you are looking for a child with no disabilities or only mild ones, for a single child, a Caucasian child, a girl, or a child under school age, you can expect your wait to be longer. Some agencies prefer to match families with children in the agency's own care, or within the same county or state. Some expect families to locate the child themselves. Once a decision has been made, and you and a particular child are being considered for each other, more time is needed for the two agencies to exchange information, to plan visits, and to arrange for post placement supervision. Even when things are going well, adoption can be a slow process, and most children's social workers have large caseloads and never enough time. It's up to you to stay in regular contact with your worker and to ask how you can help move the process along. See Adoption Article:
How Long Will
I Wait For A Child? Back to TopI SAW A SIBLING GROUP OF 3 CHILDREN. CAN I ADOPT JUST THE YOUNGEST ONE?No. On Freddie Mac Foundation's Wednesday's Child and other Internet websites, brothers and sisters are often featured as a sibling group. They may have a group photo, or there may be separate photos with one description that tells about all of the children. Whether there are two, four, six or more of them, when siblings are presented this way, it is because their social worker wants to find a family for all of them together. Older brothers and sisters are often the only people who have remained constant in a young child's life. Whether they live in the same foster home or have regular visits, siblings share memories and losses, know each other's like and dislikes, and care deeply about one another. Sibling relationships are lifelong, in most cases lasting even more years than the parent-child relationship. When there is a plan to separate a sibling group, perhaps because of extreme special needs, each child will be shown as an individual. The words will describe only one child, and will probably say that the child needs to maintain contact with a brother or sister being adopted separately. See Adoption Article: Siblings Need Each Other. Back to TopIS APPROVAL TO ADOPT A CHILD BASED ON MY INCOME?No. There is no specific amount of money you must earn to be an adoptive parent. You may rent an apartment or house or own your own home. You may have debts. People of widely different income levels have successfully adopted children. In the homestudy (approval) process, you will be asked about your finances. You should be able to demonstrate that you can manage on the income that you have, and financially support a child. However, most Wednesday's Children are eligible for adoption subsidies (financial assistance) for the children's needs, and medical assistance cards. Read more about financing an adoption on the National Adoption Center website.
Back to TopIS APPROVAL TO ADOPT A CHILD BASED ON RACE?No. Families of all races adopt children, and many families adopt children of a different racial or ethnic background from their own. A federal adoption law, the Multi Ethnic Placement Act (MEPA) and its subsequent revisions bar any agency from discriminating because of race when considering adoption opportunities for children, if the agency receives federal funding. However, MEPA does not override the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), which protects the rights of Native American children. Read more about adoption laws at the National Adoption Center website.
Back to TopHOW CAN I LEARN MORE ABOUT ADOPTION?You can learn about adoption through reading, research, talking with adoption professionals, and talking with other families who have adopted children. Here are some suggestions:
Back to TopHOW CAN I FIND OTHER WEBSITES WITH PHOTOLISTINGS OF WAITING CHILDREN?In addition to Freddie Mac Foundation's Wednesday's Child, the National Adoption Center maintains the Adoption Center of Delaware Valley (ACDV) website, featuring over 200 children from New Jersey and Delaware. The National Adoption Center also provides links to over 75 national, regional, state and special interest photolisting websites at http://www.adopt.org/adoption_photolistings.html .
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