Frequently Asked Questions About Foster Care

Foster care is a temporary situation in which someone other than a child’s birth parents provides a home and cares for the child for a brief or extended period until the child can return home.

When children are unsafe in their home with their birth parent(s) or their birth parents are unable to care for them for some reason, they may require foster care until the problem is resolved. Sometimes a safe and appropriate relative or close family friend can care for the children – we call this “kinship care.”

If kinship care is not possible or hasn’t been found yet, local county children’s services agencies (sometimes referred to as caseworkers or CPS) together with local county judges may decide to remove children from the care of their birth parent(s) for a period of time and place them into foster care until the children can be safely returned to their birth family or safe and appropriate relatives are found.

Adriel licenses foster families (including relatives and friends) to care for children in foster care, and Adriel foster care consultants support the foster families and children throughout the children’s stay in foster care.

Learn much more in our recent article, “What is Foster Care and How Does it Work?”

Foster care works through a support network of local county children’s services agencies, private agencies like Adriel, religious institutions, courts, law enforcement, other care providers, and loving individuals and families who want to help the children in their community who need foster care. “How does foster care work” is one of the most important of our frequently asked questions about foster care because this answer is where all the opportunities start.

Private non-profit agencies like Adriel partner with local county children’s services government agencies to provide safe and loving foster parents for children in need all over Ohio. This is only possible when we have trained, licensed, willing, and ready foster parents available to receive foster children. We have many, and we always need more all over Ohio in every neighborhood and school district.

There are many resources available through both Adriel and others to facilitate the process of becoming a foster parent, from exploration and training, through licensure and placement, and beyond. The very first step is for you to raise your hand to be the one to help a child. Once that happens, we’re there for you every step of the way.

Placements happen when county children’s services agencies and local county judges have decided that it is no longer safe for the children to remain at home, and temporarily remove the children from the birth parents until the problem can be resolved. The county children’s services caseworker will then search for the best foster family available for placement until the children are able to return home to their family or relatives.

A foster parent is someone who has been licensed by an agency in their state to provide a safe and loving home for children in foster care until the children are able to return home to their family or safe and appropriate relatives are found for the children.

A foster parent can be any licensed adult living in the same state as the child in need. In Ohio, Adriel welcomes individuals and families of all types to become foster parents. There is no requirement or preference for foster parents to be a traditional two-parent family.

In Ohio, you must be at least 18 years old to apply to become a licensed foster parent. To receive a foster care application from Adriel, fill out the inquiry form here!

There are several steps required to become a foster parent. The steps may vary by state and licensing agency, but they usually include:

1. Fill out an inquiry form here to connect with a licensing specialist.
2. Receive, complete, and submit an official foster parenting application.
3. Attend an orientation to learn about the process.
4. Confirm approval of your application and proceed with gathering documentation and completing the required forms.
5. Attend a state-required 24 hours of pre-service training (virtually or in-person).
6. Submit references and background checks.
7. Complete family home study.
8. Receive license as a Foster Parent.
9. Prepare for your first foster child placement and be ready for the call!

 

Here are the details about how to become an Adriel foster parent in Ohio.

Becoming a foster parent starts with completing the inquiry form here to get connected to your local Adriel Licensing Specialist. Your Licensing Specialist will provide you with the official foster parenting application to complete and return, and they can help you get registered for the orientation webinar. You may also request a personalized one-on-one orientation at a time convenient to you. You’ll learn more details about foster parenting, foster children in Ohio, and the foster parenting licensing process during orientation.

Once your application is approved by your Licensing Specialist you will gather documents and complete the necessary forms required as part of your home study. We’ll need things like copies of your auto insurance, your driver’s license, social security card, recent pay stubs or other income verification, recent utility bills, marriage license (if you’re married), and things like that.

Once you have completed orientation, you can attend the state-required 24 hours of pre-service training webinars that Adriel offers virtually, with a live expert, and at no cost to you to learn all about foster parenting.

Once your training is finished and documents are all submitted, your Licensing Specialist will meet with you and your household members to get to know you and interview you so that we can learn about what makes your family special and what types of children would be a good match. Your Licensing Specialist will also schedule a fingerprinting appointment, complete background checks for all adults in your home, obtain references, and schedule at least one home visit to complete a safety audit of your house or apartment using the state safety audit form.

Once you have met all criteria, completed training, submitted the documents, and Adriel has received your references and background checks and completed your family’s home study, you may then be licensed as an Adriel Foster Parent.

The sixth of our most frequently asked questions about foster care is all about the rules for eligibility by state guidelines. You should research the rules specific to the state where you live. We’ll answer based on the rules for foster parent eligibility in Ohio. In Ohio, there are state rules that provide the requirements for all licensed foster caregivers. Adriel follows these rules and guidelines as well. Individuals applying to become foster parents in Ohio must:

• Be over the age of 18.
• Be permanent residents of the US.
• Live in Ohio.
• Pass certain background checks and have their adult household members pass background checks as well.
• Obtain a physical and provide documentation from a medical professional showing that they are healthy enough to be a foster parent.
• Provide documentation that they are able to financially meet the expenses of their household with their current income.
• Provide other home study documentation to show that they are able to care for and keep children safe in their home.
• Provide appropriate sleeping arrangements for foster children based on state rules in Ohio and ensure that every foster child has their own bed (cribs and toddler beds are ok for young children) and ensure that foster children do not share a bedroom with children of the opposite sex after the age of 5 years old.

Your Adriel Licensing Specialist can provide more detail about the rule requirements for foster parents in Ohio or answer specific questions if needed. Additionally, Adriel makes 3 specific commitments about nondiscrimination in the qualification of Adriel's foster parents:

1. Adriel does not discriminate in recommending foster/adoptive caregivers on the basis of age, color, race, sex, religion, national origin, cultural heritage, marital status, or disability in violation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. 794 and of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C., 1201 et seq.
2. Adriel shall not consider the race, color, or national origin of a foster/adoptive caregiver applicant to determine whether a person shall be certified as a foster caregiver.
3. Adriel shall not consider the race, color, or national origin of a child, for whom a prospective foster/adoptive caregiver or a certified foster/adoptive caregiver has indicated an interest in providing foster care or adoption, in determining whether the applicant shall be certified or the child placed with the foster/adoptive caregiver. Only in those cases where determined pursuant to rule 5101:2-42-18.1 of the Administrative Code that a child's race, color, or national origin shall be considered; shall the agency consider those factors in the placement of the child with a foster/adoptive caregiver.