Q. How many children are there in the foster care system?

A. Approximately 20,000 children enter foster care annually in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. There are approximately 5,000 children with a goal of adoption in Pennsylvania and more than 900 children who have no identified resource or family to call their own.

Q. How many children are placed for adoption?

A. As noted above, more than 5,000 children are available for adoption just within Pennsylvania alone.

Q. What are the steps to become a foster parent?

A. The first step is to become a resource parent (that means, an adoptive or foster parent). To do that, you should attend an orientation meeting at one our Diakon Adoption & Foster Care sites. Orientations or “info nights” are held monthly (for a schedule of our orientations, please see our Events page). After families have been oriented to the programs Diakon offers, they will attend resource family preparation training. This training, which involves 24 hours of instruction, provides a solid curriculum to prepare each resource family for success after a child is placed with them, whether for foster care or adoption. Topics covered during training include grief and loss, sexual abuse, transracial adoption, behavioral management, attachment, results of abuse and neglect, and how the child welfare system works.

Q. Who can become a foster parent?

A. To become a resource family for foster care or adoption, you can be a single- or a two-parent family, regardless of race or age. You don’t have to own your own home and, most importantly, you don’t have to be perfect to be a perfect parent. In addition, Diakon Adoption & Foster Care does not discriminate on the basis of based on race, creed, or lifestyle. We use a strengths-based approach in licensing resource families. That means we are looking for all types of families, with many life experiences that can be employed as strengths in parenting children with special needs.

Q. Why chose Diakon?

A. The Greek words from which the name Diakon is derived mean “service,” and we stand behind this mission of service. As an organization, Diakon has been helping children in need since 1868. Today, we remain committed to continued support for children who need a family, whether temporarily or for a lifetime.

Q. How much does it cost to adopt?

A. Costs to adopt vary by program. More information will be provided in orientation sessions. However, within Pennsylvania, most fees are covered for adoption of children with special needs through the Statewide Adoption & Permanency Network.

Q. What are the foster care reimbursements?

A. $22 a day for traditional foster care, $27 a day for specialized foster care, and $29 a day for treatment-level foster care.

How long and what does it take to be certified?

After family training, a family must submit an application and provide paperwork to Diakon Adoption & Foster Care, which includes but is not limited to: State police, child abuse, and FBI clearances; three references; financial information; birth certificates; marriage licenses; divorce decrees if applicable; driver’s license; autobiograhy; auto insurance; and registration and homeowner’s or renter’s insurance.

After all paperwork is compiled, a Recruitment and Family Development Specialist will visit the resource family home (at least once) to complete an interview and a home-safety checklist. When this interview has been conducted, a family profile will be written to represent the strengths of the families and how that family will meet the needs of a child with special needs. The profile will also describe in detail what type of child the family is best suited to parent; further, it will represent their preferences to assure that the best match is made between the resource family and child within the child-welfare system. This process normally takes from 60 to 120 days.

How long does it take to be placed with a foster child? An adoptive placement?

The waiting period for a foster or adoptive child varies depending on a resource family’s willingness to accept certain special needs and behaviors that a child presents. It is very difficult to put a time-frame on how long the process takes; however, usually, a family should expect to be placed with an adoptive child within nine to 18 months. With foster-care placements, again depending on the family’s openness to a variety of special needs, timing of the first placement will vary. Families willing to accept a variety of children with special needs, older children, and children of minority heritages usually have access to more referrals and possible matches, because those are the types of childrenw within the child-welfare system.

What support do we receive from Diakon while child is placed?

After a child is placed with a resource family for either foster care, foster-to-adopt (legal-risk), or adoption, a case manager will be assigned to your case. The case manager will visit your home at least monthly to supervise the placement of the child in your home, offer support and tips on behavioral modification, assist in finding resources for the child, such as counseling or medical or therapeutic support services. Your case manager will be available to your family throughout the duration of the month. Diakon Adoption & Foster Care offers a 24-hours-a-day, sever-days-a-week on-call service in the event of emergency or if issues arise with your foster or adoptive child.