A study of 700 children who had been in foster care for 1 year found that more than one-quarter of the children had some kind of recurring physical or mental health problem. (U.S. DHHS 2003)

Free Reports and Educational Materials

All files are downloadable as PDF files.

Return of "The Cruelty"

Why Kansas Child Welfare is Broken - and Ten Ways to Fix It
Kansas 2007 By Richard Wexler, NCCPR

"Even when one looks only at removals the state Department of Social and Rehabilitative Services admits to, Kansas takes children at a rate above the national average and nearly double or triple the rate of systems widely viewed as, relatively speaking, models," Wexler said.

"Add in these 'off-the-books' removals and the figure soars. If Kansas reported the real number of children torn from their parents in 2006, the Wichita area would be a contender for the dubious distinction of child removal capital of America."

Florida DCF Training Bulletin - January 2008

Residents of Florida may want to give this bulletin a read through. This document just might give you some insight into the workings of DCF and help you in your fight to regain or keep your children at home. Do, pay special attention to pages 6-8. [Read Archives] This issue contains:

• Page 1
  • New Feature: Memos From Headquarters
  • Best Practices Found in Florida's Statewide Assessment
• Page 2 - 3
  • Best Practices Found in Florida's Statewide Assessment continued
• Page 4 - 5
  • Disproportionality — What is it and what can we do?
• Page 6 - 7
  • Ten Elements of Quality, Common Sense Documentation
• Page 8
  • Finding Parents in All the Rights Places!
• Page 9
  • ICPC Crossword Puzzle!

Michigan Children's Protective Services

2006 Trends Report

The number of children's protective services (CPS) complaints decreased from 128,854 in fiscal year 2005 to 126,690 in fiscal year 2006. Even though slightly fewer cases were assigned for investigation, a higher percentage of investigated cases was confirmed (i.e., a preponderance of evidence of abuse and/or neglect was found). The largest non-mandated reporting source is "anonymous."

Kinship Care Resource Kit

Helping Grandparents and Other Relatives Raising Children - Kinship care families are everywhere. Across the country, millions of grandparents and other relatives have stepped forward to care for children whose parents are unable or unwilling to raise them. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, more than 2.4 million grandparents reported that they were responsible for meeting the basic needs of their grandchildren.

Is There Justice in Children's Rights?

The Critique of Federal Family Preservation Policy. The Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA), enacted in November 1997, represents a shift in federal child welfare philosophy from an emphasis on reunification of children in foster care with their biological families toward an emphasis on adoption. This paper uses the perceived antagonism between children's rights and family preservation policies to explore the politics of children's rights.

Helping Children in the Child Welfare System Heal from Trauma

From the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, Systems Integration Working Group - Numerous organizations touch the lives of children and their families following incidents of maltreatment. These agencies include the family/dependency courts, child welfare agencies, foster parent associations, foster care agencies or substitute care facilities, mental health agencies, and others. Unfortunately, their actions may worsen the traumatic experience for children and their families.

Burden of Proof Begone

The Pernicious Effect of Emergency Removal in Child Protectice Proceedings - By Paul Chill. This article examines the tendency of emergency child-removal decisions — by social workers, police officers and judges - to become self-reinforcing and self-perpetuating in subsequent child protective proceedings. The existence of this procedural phenomenon is widely acknowledged by legal practitioners, but its causes and consequences have rarely been explored.

Placement of Children With Relatives

A Summary of State Laws - In order for States to receive Federal payments for foster care and adoption assistance, Federal law requires that they "consider giving preference to an adult relative over a nonrelated caregiver when determining placement for a child, provided that the relative caregiver meets all relevant State child protection standards."

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