A Guide to Becoming a Foster Parent

Jul 12

Understanding Foster Parenting

Why do children need foster care?

If a child's legal guardian or parent is unable to meet their needs, or the child and their family are in crisis, temporary placement in a safe living environment may be the best solution. This will ensure their safety and well-being until they can be reunited with their legal guardians or suitable alternative care arrangements can be made. Nearly 50% of all foster youth are reunited with their families and in most cases, this is considered the best outcome. However, in some cases, children may not be able to be reunited with their birth parents and parental rights can be terminated. In these instances, the child can remain in foster care, whether traditional or kinship until they can be adopted by a loving family.

Foster care provides a minor with a temporary living situation in which they are cared for by a state-certified caregiver.; this can be the home of a person or family, a group home environment, or the care of a family member approved by the state.

When child welfare authorities are made aware of an unsafe situation that may necessitate the placement of a child outside of the home, a judge’s order must be obtained to remove the child from their legal guardian. A case worker is assigned who plays a crucial role in overseeing the safety and care of the child as well as the placement of the child in a safe environment.

The role of foster parents

Foster parents play a crucial role in creating normalcy for the children in their care. Often, children who go into foster care have experienced trauma, neglect, or crisis in their life and a lack of normalcy and stability at home. The role of the foster parent or foster family is to provide safety and comfort through normalcy and routine. Often, the first few weeks can be difficult for the child to adjust, read here for more on what to expect the first few weeks.

Foster parents are state licensed and trained to meet the physical and emotional needs of children who have experienced trauma, as such, foster parents and the case worker, work alongside the biological parents toward a successful reunification. In many cases, however, reunification is impossible, in which case the foster child would be placed for adoption.

Except in specific circumstances, reunification is almost always the goal of foster care. Foster care not only allows for the child to receive care and support but for the parents to receive the assistance and resources they need to better provide for the child, making for more successful reunification.

Because reunification is the goal in most cases, foster parents work to maintain a relationship with the biological parents for the sake of the child’s wellbeing. Staying connected with family is essential to a child feeling a sense of belonging, and understanding their heritage, and culture. When possible and appropriate, maintaining contact with the birth parents reduces the trauma of separation and foster parents play a crucial role in fostering a healthy relationship with biological parents.

Different types of foster care placements

The circumstances surrounding the need for foster care are often complex and the children needing care all have different care needs. Because foster care needs vary by not only the needs of the child but the abilities and resources available for the foster parent, there are different types of foster placements to suit the needs of children and foster parents:

Traditional Foster Care
Emergency
Kinship care
Foster for adoption
Respite care

Traditional foster placement

The most common and most familiar form of foster care placement is traditional foster care. Traditional foster care is available for children from newborn to 19 years of age and can be as short as a few months or as long as a few years. The average time spent in foster care, according to a 2021 survey, is just shy of 2 years. There are many factors that dictate how long a child stays in foster care, and each instance is unique to the needs of the child and their family.

Children who are placed in a traditional foster placement, have likely suffered abuse, neglect, or trauma. Traditional foster placement provides an opportunity to support both the child and their family until a permanent living arrangement can be made, ideally resulting in reunification with the birth parents.

When considering offering traditional foster placement, it’s important to understand the resources available to you as the foster parent and the placement preferences you may have; age, gender, siblings or single placement.

Emergency foster placement

Emergency foster placements offer a short-term, safe solution to children who need a home for the night at short notice. Families who have opened their homes to emergency foster placement can be notified in the middle of the night, or in the middle of the day that a child is in need. Emergency placement is meant to be a bridge between short and long term placement, and some families provide both short and long term options, depending on the preferences and flexibility of the family.

Emergency placement isn’t the right kind of foster placement for everyone, it requires willingness and flexibility to be available to a child or children under extreme duress at a moment’s notice.

A family that doesn’t have the flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances, may not want to consider providing emergency care. Another consideration when deciding if emergency placement is right for you, is family size preferences. Often a sibling group is in need of emergency placement and should be kept together if possible.

Kinship care

The number of children entering care in the US is disproportionate compared to the available foster homes. According to research by The Imprint, a non-profit publication reporting on child welfare, more than half of the US saw a decline in available licensed foster homes between 2021 and 2022.

When a child can stay within their own family for foster care, the outcome is much better than any alternative placement. Kinship caregivers are typically related by blood or marriage but in some cases, can be a close friend of the family. Children benefit greatly from kinship care because it is less disruptive to their life and routines. Children can still practice the same cultural traditions, maintain cultural identity, feel safe, secure, and minimize trauma.

Kinship care is a preferred placement option in most cases and is the best for the child; the outcome for the child is much better and being placed with family is proven to reduce trauma and make for a much smoother transition, however, kinship care does come with its own challenges. Things to consider when deciding if kinship care is right for your family;

How will kinship care affect your family?
Can you provide for the children in your care?
Will providing care have a negative impact on your mental, physical, or emotional wellbeing?
Do you have adequate support to provide the appropriate developmental, emotional, academic, and medical needs for the children in your care?

These are just some of the considerations when determining if providing kinship care is right for you and your family. It’s important, as with all types of foster placement, to consider all possibilities and outcomes.

Other important considerations:
Are you willing to accept a child of a different race, ethnicity or religion?
Are you willing to support and facilitate the child’s ability to practice their beliefs or religion if it differs from mine?
Are you willing to foster a child with special needs?
Are you wiling/ or do you have the resources to foster sibling groups?
What age group are you willing to foster?

Foster-to-adoption

Foster-to-adopt placement occurs in situations where a foster family wants to adopt a child in their care and the child is available for adoption. Not all foster parents aim to foster-to-adopt and not all foster children are up for adoption. Adoption can only take place when the child’s biological or birth parents have had their parental rights terminated. The requirements for adoption vary by state, read more here about foster-to-adopt resources in your state.

The road from foster-to-adoption is complex, many foster-to-adoption placements may not end in adoption which can bring great hardship. It’s best to speak with a placement specialist if this is the type of placement you are looking for to review the intricacies of the process and what to expect.

Respite care

Being a foster parent is incredibly challenging and demanding. Sometimes the demands of foster care necessitate respite care for the foster children by another respite provider or family. This could be due to needed self care or a vacation, or in particular cases, when a foster child has behavioral or emotional needs, whatever the case may be, respite care provides a short-term solution to give the foster family support and a break for a short period of time.

Becoming a Foster Parent

Now that you’ve learned about some of the most common foster placements to consider, you can start to think about which options are best for you and your family.

The process to become a foster parent varies by state and county. The first step is to contact your local public county child welfare/ foster agency. If your state allows for private foster/adoption agencies, you have a choice to work with the public agency or a private agency. There is no one right answer, as a foster parent, you have to choose the best option for yourself and your family when choosing an agency that is going to give you the tools, training, and support you need.

Download our guide The 7 Steps to Becoming a Foster Parent

Eligibility criteria and requirements

Statistics show that half of all foster parents quit in the first year of fostering. The demands on the family, the emotional toll, and hardship is difficult to navigate without support and training.

Before contacting an agency, it is crucial to learn as much as you can about the ins and outs of foster parenting. Read blogs, talk to families, ask questions. No one can tell you if its the right choice for you, so it’s best to come prepared to your screening interview with as many questions and considerations as possible.

Depending on the agency you choose, the process may vary slightly but most agencies will begin the process with a screening call. This process is meant to allow for questions to be answered about the process, why you are interested in becoming a foster parent, and details about your home, financial situation, and willingness to complete a home study, just to name a few.

Complete additional trauma-informed parenting training as required. The TIPS-MAPP is a required training and a prerequisite for licensing. In the training you will be exposed to the realities of foster parenting and any considerations you have in receiving adequate support as the foster parent. This training is intended to equip foster parents with the skills and knowledge they need to create and plan permanency in a child’s life.

The TIPS-MAPP training also serves as a screening tool, both for the prospective foster parents and the leaders of the training. Over the course of 10 weeks, prospective foster parents can decide if pursuing foster care is right for them and their family.

Next, you will work with your chosen agency to complete a home study. A home study is intended to give your agency representative an opportunity to observe your home, parenting style, lifestyle, and relationships within the home. In most cases, a follow up home study will occur to ensure any items that were identified as not meeting requirements are secured.

The agent facilitating the home study can also answer questions and provide you with resources and training materials designed to help you meet the needs of the children in your care. The representative will also assess the safety of your home; fire alarms, fire extinguishers, adequate space and privacy.

Legal requirements to become a foster parent

In order to be eligible to be a foster parent you must be:

At least 21 years of age.
Consent to and pass a criminal background check.
Be physically, emotionally, financially, and mentally able to care for children.
Have a telephone (or similar means) for communication.
Have transportation to safely transport the children in your care.
Be able to provide 3-5 personal references.

Be advised, that a health screening of yourself to prove that you are in good health and to screen for diseases may also be a requirement as well as additional health training.

The health of foster parents is crucial, not just physical but mental and emotional health as well. Read our post about how to care for yourself as a foster parent and how to model self-care as a routine to your children.

What to expect next

Once you’ve completed the requirements, trainings, and licensure, you may be ready for your first placement phone call. In some cases, such as an emergency, you could receive a call that requires an answer immediately. Its crucial to have thought out the questions you must know the answers to before deciding to take a child into your home, questions to consider:

What is the age of the child?
What is the sex of the child?
Are there siblings in need of/ already in care?
What are the medical needs of the child?
What are the behavioral needs and challenges of the child?

For a child, being removed from their home and their family is traumatic- finding a new foster home because of an ill-fit, is just as traumatic. Work closely with your placement specialist to know what questions to consider before accepting a placement.

When you have to say “‘no” to taking a placement

Having to say no is not easy but sometimes it is the right thing to do for the child.

Ultimately, when the time comes, it’s important to remember that there is no perfect scenario when it comes to foster placements. The nature of foster placements is often an emergency and you can’t predict what type of phone call you could receive. It’s most important to know what is possible for you and your family and be honest with yourself and your placement specialist. You are not a bad person for saying no, in fact, you are doing the best possible thing for that child by giving them the opportunity to be with a family who is a better fit for their emotion, physical, and behavioral needs.

Once the child is in your care, a schedule of case worker follow up, counseling, doctor’s appointments and possibly visitation with birth parents is likely to follow. Finding normalcy through routine will help your child feel safe and secure within your home and support a less traumatic transition period.

When possible, give your child space to process the complex emotions they’re likely going through. A room or space of their own, surrounded by familiar objects can help with feeling like they belong and so can having a few of their objects in common areas in the home, like a favorite blanket on the couch.

It’s important to find the support you need as a parent to process the complex emotions and change to your home. Find a network of foster parents for support through your agency, schedule time to do the things you enjoy, and talk to your support structure. You don’t have to navigate this alone.

Becoming a foster parent is all about making a child’s life safe, stable, and supportive with hope of family reunification or permanency in another loving environment. We hope that this article has helped guide you on your journey to becoming a foster parent.

If you are a prospective foster parent in Nebraska, we are here to help.