Welcome to Session 2!
Teamwork Toward Permanency
Remember the Core Competencies of PRIDE:
1. Protecting and Nurturing Children
2. Meeting Children’s Developmental Needs and
Addressing Developmental Delays
3. Supporting Relationships Between Children
and Their Families
4. Connecting Children to Safe, Nurturing
Relationships Intended to Last a Lifetime
5. Working as a Member of a Professional
Team
Supplemental Handouts for This Session
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NJ Definition of an Abused or Neglected Child
Four Standards (Prongs) of the ASFA Law
Children in Foster Care and the Courts
DYFS Hierarchy
Resource Family Reimbursement Rates
Sample Foster Parent ID Letter
Parental Roles for Children in Foster Care
Family and Medical Leave Act
Pre-School and Daycare for Children in Care
Placement Questions
“Parking Lot”
Are there any questions from
the last session that we can
answer now?
Responsibilities of DYFS
DYFS has two essential mandates:
• Protect children from risk and harm
• Connect children to permanent relationships
intended to last a lifetime
These are accomplished in one of two ways:
• Enabling the family to care for the child, or
whenever this is not possible,
• Connecting the child to another family
Examples in “Making a Difference!”
• Why was Child Protective Services called
to intervene in Vernon’s case?
• How did Child Protective Services
respond?
• What might Vernon have been feeling?
• What might Vernon’s mother have been
feeling?
What factors might contribute to families
who cannot care for their children?
• Poverty
• Homelessness
• Loss of job
• Physical or mental illness
• Substance abuse
• Domestic Violence
• Insufficient family/community supports
• Legal problems
How can foster care be a support for
families experiencing these problems?
• Temporary respite during a stressful time
• Opportunity for parents to enter treatment
• Ensures safety for children while parents
develop necessary skills
• Opportunity for birth parents to work with foster
parents on parenting issues and skills on behalf
of the child
• “Families Helping Families”
How would you feel?
Imagine that you are unable to care for a
loved one. You have no choice but to find
help. The loved one may be your parent,
spouse, sibling, friend or child.
Close your eyes for a moment and picture
your loved one …
How would you feel?
• How do you feel about being unable to
care for your loved one?
• What kind of caregiver do you want to find
to care for your loved one?
• What might the caregiver do to make this
easier for you?
Bridging the Gap
• PRIDEBook Page 47 shows some ways
that resource families can “bridge the gap”
with birth families.
• Remember that as we bridge the gap
between resource families and birth
families, we also bridge the gap between
children and their families.
“Family Forever” Video
• This video should help you understand foster
care as a family-focused service
• It will also help you understand how birth
parents may experience their child’s placement
• You’ll see how teamwork contributes to positive
outcomes, in this case reunification
• You’ll also see some of the benefits and
challenges of working with birth parents
Importance of Families to Children
• DYFS first seeks to enable the parents to
meet the child’s basic needs while the
child remains in the home
• When a child is placed into foster care,
every effort is made to work toward
reunification
• When reunification cannot occur, DYFS
recognizes the importance of a family to a
child by making alternative plans
Permanency Is:
• Having a sense of one’s past; including
one’s cultural heritage and identity
• Having a legal and social status that
comes from being a family member
• Having safe, nurturing relationships
intended to last a lifetime
Permanency Must Include:
• Connections
– Ongoing relationships
– Create a sense of belonging and stability
– Helps promote cultural and personal identity
• Continuity
– Child understands connections between past, present
and future
– Know where you’ve been and where you’re going
– Also helps promote cultural and personal identity
The Genogram
• A Genogram is a tool that can be used to
help understand family connections and
continuity
• Provides a “picture” of the family
connections and continuity
• Similar to a family tree, but with more finite
detail (illnesses/addictions/relationships)
• You will prepare a genogram as part of
your homework
The Genogram
If you have a computer and Internet access,
there’s a program called GenoPro® that can
help you do a genogram.
The software costs about $50, but can be
downloaded and used for FREE for 30 days.
www.genopro.com
Symbols for Genograms
Individuals - Children - Illnesses & Addictions
Male
Female
Cancer
Heart
Disease
Adopted
Child
Foster
Child
Pregnancy Miscarriage
Death
Drug/
Alcohol
Abuse
Suspected
Drug/Alcohol
Abuse
In Recovery from Serious Mental
Drug/Alcohol
or Physical
Abuse
Problem
Drug/Alcohol
Abuse & Mental or
Physical Problem
Tw ins
Standard Symbols for Genograms
Family Relationships - Unions
Marriage
Engagement
Legal cohabitation
Cohabitation
Separation in fact
Engagement and
cohabitation
Legal cohabitation and
separation in fact
Cohabitation and
separation
Legal separation
Engagement and
separation
Legal cohabitation and
official (legal) separation
Casual relationship or
dating (short-term)
Divorce
Committed (long-term)
relationship
Non-sentimental
cohabitation
Casual relationship and
separation
Nullity
Love Affair
Non-sentimental cohabitation
and separation
Temporary relation / One
night stand
Symbols for Genograms
Emotional Relationships
Indifferent / Apathetic
Harmony
Hostile
Violence
Abuse
Manipulative
Distant / Poor
Friendship / Close
Distant-Hostile
Distant-Violence
Physical Abuse
Controlling
Cutoff / Estranged
Best Friends / Very Close
Close-Hostile
Close-Violence
Emotional Abuse
Jealous
Discord / Conflict
Love
Fused-Hostile
Fused-Violence
Sexual Abuse
Fan / Admirer
Hate
In Love
Distrust
Fused
Neglect (abuse)
Limerence
Genogram:
The Flintstones
Definitions
• Permanency planning is a set of
activities and tasks directed toward
achieving the child’s permanent goal
• Concurrent planning is the practice of
directing activities and tasks toward more
than one permanent goal at a time
How Are Children Placed?
• When an instance of abuse or neglect is
reported in a family, DYFS initiates an
investigation
• As a result of the investigation, DYFS will do one
of three things:
– Find the report to be unfounded and close the referral
upon intake
– Open the case for services in an attempt to preserve
the family (children remain in the home)
– Remove the children immediately on an emergent
basis (Dodd removal)
How Are Children Placed?
• When preservation services are put in place,
DYFS continues to work with the family until the
issues have been resolved or until such time that
it is determined that children are at risk of harm
• When a child is removed under non-emergent
circumstances, it must be under the authority of
a court order
• When Dodd removals occur, DYFS must obtain
a court order to continue the out-of-home
placement within three business days
The DCF/DYFS Hierarchy
Who do I call when I have a problem?
The DCF/DYFS Hierarchy
Local Office Manager
Casework Supervisor
Casework Supervisor
Supervisor - Intake
Supervisor - Adoption
Intake Caseworker/Investigator
Intake Caseworker/Investigator
Adoption Specialist
Supervisor
Supervisor - Ongoing
Ongoing Caseworker
Ongoing Caseworker
Supervisor – Resource Families
Resource Family Support Worker
Resource Family Support Worker
Resource Family
The DCF/DYFS Hierarchy
Local Office Manager
Casework Supervisor
Casework Supervisor
Supervisor - Intake
Supervisor - Adoption
Intake Caseworker/Investigator
Intake Caseworker/Investigator
Adoption Specialist
Supervisor
Supervisor - Ongoing
Ongoing Caseworker
Ongoing Caseworker
Supervisor –- Resource
Resource Families
Families
Resource Family Support Worker
Resource Family Support Worker
Resource Family
The DCF/DYFS Hierarchy
Governor
Commissioner
Dept of Children &Families (DCF)
Director
Division of Youth & Family Services (DYFS)
Assistant Director
DYFS Area Office
Local Office Manager
DYFS Local Office
Court Timelines
• Every child placed into care under court order is
assigned a “law guardian” – an attorney that
represents the child in court
• After a child is in placement for about 45 days,
the case is reviewed by the Child Placement
Review Board (CPRB) – a panel of volunteers
appointed by the presiding family court judge to
review cases and make recommendations to the
court on the child’s behalf
• A case is reviewed by the family court judge
approximately every three months
Court Timelines
• Around the 11th month of placement, the Court
will hold a permanency hearing
• At the permanency hearing, DYFS must present
a permanent plan to the court, which must
include an intent to terminate parental rights
(TPR) if reunification with family is not imminent
• If termination of parental rights is pursued, DYFS
files a “guardianship complaint” which ultimately
results in a TPR trial before the judge
Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA)
• Federal legislation enacted in 1997
• NJ implementation defined by law
(N.J.S.A. 30:4C-11.1)
• Expands the provisions of the Adoption
Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980
– States must demonstrate commitment to prevention
and reunifications services
• Ensuring a child’s health, safety and timely
permanency are DYFS’ paramount concern
Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA)
• DYFS must demonstrate that reasonable efforts
were made to prevent a placement or state why
they were not possible
• Permanency options include safe return home,
adoption, or “alternative” plan
• When a child is in placement for 15 of 22 months
(about a year), DYFS must present a permanent
plan, which must include termination of parental
rights (TPR) or a statement of why TPR is not
appropriate, if reunification is not likely
Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA)
The ASFA law does NOT mandate
that if a child is in foster care for
over a year, they automatically
become free for adoption!
Timeline to Permanency
Day 1 (assume emergency)
Child is removed from home
0 days
Within 3 business days
Initial Court Hearing (Order to Show Cause, OSC)
3 days
About 2 weeks later
Follow-up Court Hearing (Return on the OSC)
2 weeks
45 days after placement
CPRB Initial Review
45 days
About every 3 months
Court Hearing (Compliance Review)
Around 11th month
Permanency Hearing in Court
12 months
If plan is TPR, within ~3 mos
Filing of Guardianship Complaint
15 months
If plan is TPR, within ~8 mos
TPR trial is schedule (3-5 court days)
24 months
After TPR trial, within ~2 months
Judge issues decision
26 months
Within 45 days of TPR decision
Parties may file appeal
27 months
After appeal filed, up to 1 yr
Appellate Division hears appeal
39 months
3 months
Timeline to Permanency
Number of Months from TPR to Adoption (FY2005)
15,879
11,299
9,381
4,833
2,740
1,639
1,315
<1 Month
2,686
1-5
Months
6-11
Months
12-17
Months
18-23
Months
24-29
Months
30-35
Months
1,228
3-4 Years 5+ Years
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families,
Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children's Bureau,
www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb
Preliminary Estimates for FY 2005 as of September 2006
Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA)
• In order to terminate parental rights, a
judge must be satisfied that DYFS has met
four specific standards or prongs, “based
on the preponderance of the evidence
presented” …
Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA)
1. The child's safety, health or development has
been or will continue to be endangered by the
parental relationship.
2. The parent is unwilling or unable to eliminate
the harm facing the child or is unable or
unwilling to provide a safe and stable home for
the child and the delay of permanent placement
will add to the harm. Such harm may include
evidence that separating the child from his
foster parents would cause serious and
enduring emotional or psychological harm to
the child.
Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA)
3. The Division has made reasonable efforts to
provide services to help the parent correct the
circumstances which led to the child's
placement outside the home and the court has
considered alternatives to termination of
parental rights.
4. Termination of parental rights will not do more
harm than good.
Parental Roles
•Giving birth (Birth Parent)
•Legal responsibility (Legal Parent)
•Protecting & nurturing (Caregiving Parent)
For children in placement, it is important to
remember that these parental roles may be
held by different people or agencies.
Parental Roles
List all of the things children are given only through
their birth parents …
• Addictions
• Citizenship
• Consent
(medical/education/general)
• Family/Tradition
• Life
• Genetics
– Eye/Hair/Skin Color
– Gender
– Physical Characteristics
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Personality
Intelligence
Health Issues
Heritage/History
Name
Prenatal Care
Religion/Culture
Siblings/Relatives
Talents
Parental Roles
List all of our legal responsibilities as parents …
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Advocate
Clothing – Subsidy (monthly allowance) from DYFS
Consent (general) / Power of Attorney
Day Care - Contracts w/approved providers
Education – Consent for Transfer/IEP
Ethics
Food – DYFS Subsidy/WIC
Healthcare – Medicaid/Placement Physical/Consent
Identification – Foster Parent ID Letter
Liability
Name
Protection
Safety – Various assessments by DYFS
Shelter – Subsidy
Supervision
Therapy
Parental Roles
List all of the things we do for our children every day …
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Acceptance
Advocate
Affection
Buy Things
Clothing
Comfort
Commitment
Consistency
Day Care
Develop Talents
Discipline
Documentation/Chronicle
Family/Traditions
Food
Healthcare
Hobbies
Hugs
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Humor
Hygiene
Interaction
Language
Liability
Life Skills
Listening
Love/Affection
Morals/Ethics
Motivation
Nurturing
Opportunity
Patience
Playing
Protection
Quality Time
Religion
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Role Model
Safety
School/Homework
Shelter
Sports/Recreation
Structure
Supervision
Support
Teach
Therapy
Tolerance
Transportation
Trust
Understanding
Vacation/Recreation
Values
Parental Roles
How might these distributed roles make CHILDREN feel?
Negative
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Abandoned
Abnormal
Angry
Conflicted
Confused
Depressed
Disappointed
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Frustrated
Hesitant
Lost/Misplaced
Rejected
Sad
Scared
Positive
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Happy
Hopeful
Relieved
Safe
Thankful
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
• Federally enacted in 1993
• Entitles eligible employees to take up to 12
weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a 12month period for specified family and medical
reasons
• 12-month period is at discretion of the employer
(calendar, anniversary, fiscal)
• Defines entitlement to leave, maintenance of
health benefits during leave and job restoration
after leave
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
• For more information about FMLA, visit
www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla
• New Jersey has adopted the provisions of
the FMLA through the New Jersey Family
Leave Act (NJFLA)
www.state.nj.us/lps/dcr/law.html#FLA
Guidelines for Effective Teamwork
• Team members need to share child welfare
values and a respect for child welfare laws.
• Team members need to respect one another’s
complementary roles and value one another’s
perspectives.
• Team members need to have a clear
understanding of the goals and objectives, and
ensure that these are shared among all team
members.
New Jersey Family Team Meetings
• A component of child welfare reform plan
• Bring together supportive resources to assess
the family needs
• Help keep the family and team members
focused on plan of action
• Use conflict resolution methods that encourage
collaboration and build consensus regarding
placement and services
• Train other staff to become effective facilitators
New Jersey Family Team Meetings
• Identify needed interventions in finding
solutions for the family
• Empower families to achieve their desired
outcomes
Team Members Could Include
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DYFS staff (caseworker, supervisor)
Foster parents
Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA)
Law Guardian
Service Providers
“Parking Lot”
Are there any questions that you had
that may not have been answered
during this session?
Let’s add them to our Parking Lot!
CLOSURE
• Key Points, PRIDEBook Pages 52-56
• A Birth Parent’s Perspective, PRIDE Book
Pages 59-61
• PRIDE Connection exercises, PRIDEBook
Pages 62-64 (copy in packet)
• Making A Difference!, PRIDEBook Page 65-66
• Session 3: Meeting Developmental Needs: Attachment
Exercise: Resource 2-F
Quickly answer the following
questions from PRIDEBook
Page 48.
Exercise: Resource 2-F
• What do you plan to do tomorrow?
• Who do you plan to have with you tomorrow?
• What do you want to be doing one year from now
(personally or professionally)?
• Who do you plan to have with you then?
• What would you like to accomplish in the next five
years?
• Who would you like to have sharing your
accomplishments?
Questions for Video Clip #1 & Clip #2
• What does the foster mother do that
demonstrates her ability to work as a
member of a team in “shared parenting?”
• How will this help “Annie” to deal with
loyalty conflicts?
Charlie
• Small group activity
• Each group will represent one of the following:
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BirthParent
Caseworker
Foster Parent
School Teacher
Counselor
• What knowledge, skills, and/or experience do
you bring to the table?
Print out the slides following this
slide as supplemental handouts.
The DCF/DYFS Hierarchy
Local Office Manager
Casework Supervisor
Casework Supervisor
Supervisor - Intake
Supervisor - Adoption
Intake Caseworker/Investigator
Intake Caseworker/Investigator
Adoption Specialist
Supervisor
Supervisor - Ongoing
Ongoing Caseworker
Ongoing Caseworker
Supervisor – Resource Families
Resource Family Support Worker
Resource Family Support Worker
Resource Family
The DCF/DYFS Hierarchy
Governor
Commissioner
Dept of Children &Families (DCF)
Director
Division of Youth & Family Services (DYFS)
Assistant Director
DYFS Area Office
Local Office Manager
DYFS Local Office
Team Questions
• List all of the things that you have given
your children through birth?
• List all of your legal responsibilities as a
parent?
• List all of the things that you do for your
children daily?
Timeline to Permanency
Decision to
make
reasonable
efforts
Review
Hearing
Permanency
Hearing (1)
6 mos.
12 mos.
File TPR
Petition (2)
TPR Trial (3)
15 mos.
ASAP
<3 days
Child Taken
into Care
Adjudication/
Disposition
Decision to
NOT make
reasonable
efforts
Permanency
Hearing
File TPR
Petition (if
adoption is
the goal)
30 days
ASAP
Reviews every 6-12 mos.
(from previous hearing)
until child is adopted or
permanency goal
achieved
TPR Trial (if
ordered)
ASAP
(1)
When calculating when to have the permanency hearing or the 15 of 22 months, use the
earlier of the date or adjudication OR 60 days after the child is removed from the home.
(2)
Unless a compelling reason exists not to terminate parental rights.
(3)
In NJ, usually within 6-8 months of filing TPR Petition.
Copyright © 1998 by the American Bar Association
What did we learn about in
Session 1?