Foster Care

One of Black Family and Child Services goals is to help place children with special needs in safe, happy and healthy environments.

This placement may be temporary— in a foster home with the goal of reuniting the child with birth parent(s) or an extended family member (grandparent, aunt or uncle) or a permanent placement with an adoptive family that would provide a forever home.

Foster parents provide temporary care to a child when his or her birth parents are unable or unwilling to provide adequate care. There are four major reasons why most foster children need this type of care:

	They are victims of physical, sexual or emotional abuse
	They are victims of serious neglect
	They have been abandoned
	Rights for their care are voluntarily relinquished by their parents

Foster Care Requirements

	You must be over 21 years of age
	You can be either married or single
	Persons in your home 18 years of age or older must be fingerprinted and submit a current physician’s report
	Parents must attend 30 hours of foster care training classes

You may qualify as a foster parent even if:

	You do not own your own home
	You do not have a separate room for your foster child—a foster child can stay in your room in a crib up to age three
	Your income is modest and you do not have a bank account

BFCS Foster Care Services provide a comprehensive program that includes:

	Orientation - held monthly
	Pre-services training classes
	Foster-adopt program aimed at increasing the number of children in foster care who will be formally adopted by their foster families.
	Support groups for grandparents
	Advanced training