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Next issue: May 21, 2020
Content submission deadline: May 14, 2020
If you have any topics you would like to see covered in this newsletter, please email: Contracts.Adoption.DHS@state.mn.us
The Permanency Support Unit update is a collaborative effort by Permanency Support Unit staff.
Find COVID-19 updates from DHS and Children’s Bureau
To find the most up-to-date information for providers, counties, tribes and members of the public, visit the DHS website. As changes evolve at federal and state levels, we will update this page with the latest information. To be notified when changes occur, you can also sign up for email notifications. View a list of all DHS waivers and modifications under peacetime emergency authority, Executive Order 20-12.
Permanency Support Unit staff are following Governor Walz’s recommendations as outlined.
The Children’s Bureau Express (CBX) for April 2020 also has information regarding COVID-19, including resources and updates from Jerry Milner, Associate Commissioner of the Children’s Bureau. View the CBX here.
Potential training changes due to COVID-19
Please contact the agency sponsoring the training directly to determine if there are any changes to scheduled training, including cancellation, format, location and delivery.
Listening session for foster, adoptive, and kinship families
Minnesota Department of Human Services, Child Safety and Permanency Division, will host a listening session for foster, adoptive and kinship families on Wednesday, April 29, from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. This webinar is a venue for foster, adoptive, and kinship families to learn about resources, ask questions and share concerns. Please submit questions to mn.sae@state.mn.us by April 27. Presenters include staff from MN ADOPT, Quality Parenting Initiative, and Child Safety and Permanency Division, Family Support and Placement Services. Families can register here.
Relevant DHS training opportunities
Northstar Permanency Quality Assurance staff are hosting 5 trainings on topics related to adoption, transfer of permanent legal and physical custody, and Northstar Adoption/Kinship Assistance benefits. We are currently discussing how to hold these trainings in light of the COVID-19 prevention measures being taken. As of the date of this newsletter, all 5 trainings will still be held; however, the format may change. The May 12th training will not be held in person. Registered attendees will receive an email providing more information. Register for these trainings on TrainLink. For more information, visit the training webpage or email Northstar.Benefits@state.mn.us.
Conferences and events
Minnesota Association for Children’s Mental Health’s annual conference on child and adolescent mental health will take place April 26-28, 2020, online. Read more about the transition to online format.
North American Council on Adoptable Children’s annual conference will take place Aug. 27-29, 2020, online.
Other training opportunities
The MN ADOPT Education Program has many training opportunities for May 2020. One to highlight is a webinar on May 13: “Adoptive Parents Who Struggle with Depression: A Holistic Approach.” COVID-19 update from MN ADOPT: All of our upcoming in-person workshops will be moved to live webinars or postponed. Please check regularly to see the updated changes. If you have already registered for a workshop, you will be notified directly of changes as they are made.
In honor of National Foster Care Month, MN ADOPT Education Program is offering 50% off their live webinars in May. USE CODE: NATFC31 at checkout. View May webinars here.
Children’s Home Society is offering foster care adoption education classes in Anoka, Bemidji, Moorhead, Cloquet, and St. Paul during May and June. Educational classes are being offered in an online format for the month of May.
Relative contact agreement and communication agreements
For children NOT under guardianship of the commissioner: Communication and contact agreements between adopting parents and birthparents, birth relatives or foster parents are legally enforceable if the terms of an agreement are included in a written court order either prior to adoption finalization, or at the time of granting an adoption decree. The court is required to mail a certified copy of the agreement to the parties or their representatives. “Birth relative” means a parent, stepparent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, or aunt of a minor adoptee. The relationship to the minor adoptee can be via blood, adoption, or marriage. See Minnesota Statutes, section 259.58 for legal requirements. Some private agencies assist adopting parents and birthparents, relatives or foster parents in outlining a communication agreement that is mutually agreed-upon contact between all parties, but is not submitted to the court. Minnesota Statutes, section 259.58 would not apply to these agreements, as these agreements are not in a written court order.
For children under guardianship of the commissioner: Communication and contact agreements between adopting parents and relatives or foster parents are legally enforceable if the terms of an agreement are included in a written court order either prior to adoption finalization, or at the time of granting an adoption decree. “Relative” includes someone related to a child by blood, marriage, or adoption; a legal parent, custodian, or guardian of a child’s sibling; and an important friend with whom a child has lived or had significant contact (including a child’s foster parent). See Minnesota Statutes, section 260C.619 for legal requirements.
Policy for full disclosure to prospective adoptive parents, including relatives, for children under guardianship of the commissioner
County agencies must provide copies of children’s social and medical histories to relatives who are intending to adopt. Full disclosure must be provided as part of the matching process, prior to making pre-adoptive placements and signing adoption placement agreements (including relevant evaluations, assessments, and records). In the same way full disclosure is provided to non-relative prospective adoptive parents, so must it be provided to relative prospective adoptive parents. View the full policy here.
Relative search and placement consideration requirements for Northstar Adoption Assistance eligibility
One of the criteria for meeting the special needs determination for Northstar Adoption Assistance eligibility is that the responsible agency has made reasonable, but unsuccessful, efforts to place a child with adoptive parents without providing adoption assistance. This is completed through a documented search for an adoptive placement. A requirement for the documented search is that the agency, whether a public or private agency, has conducted a relative search and considered adoptive placement with a relative. If a relative search was not completed, or if relatives were not considered for adoptive placement, and the child is not being adopted by their foster parent, a relative, or their sibling’s adoptive parent, the child will not be eligible for Northstar Adoption Assistance. See Minnesota Statutes, section 256N.23, subdivision 2(d), (e), and (f) for the legal requirements.
Documenting a child’s adoptive placement in SSIS when they are not physically residing in the home
Last month, we clarified that an Adoption Placement Agreement (APA) can be fully executed when a child is not physically residing in an adoptive home. If you need assistance documenting an adoptive placement in this circumstance, consult with your SSIS Mentor. There is a data fix that must be completed in order to properly document an adoptive placement when a child is residing out of the adoptive home.
MAPCY reassessment requests due to COVID-19
Questions related to caregiver requests for MAPCY reassessments due to COVID-19–related issues should be directed to Jody McElroy at jody.mcelroy@state.mn.us. Options to increase benefit levels can be found here.
PPAI Relative Services
Contracted agencies are available to assist with home study services for identified relatives. These services include:
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Relative outreach services: Contracted agencies help engage and support relatives or kin as they start the adoption home study process. Contracted agencies will have regular contact with the referring county and the outreach services may include face to face meetings with the relative or kin to assist with the application process.
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Relative home study services: Contracted agencies assess a relative’s or kin’s ability to parent children under guardianship of the commissioner or tribal guardianship, or a child in out-of-home care referred by a county or tribal social service agency for a concurrent permanency planning resource home study.
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Relative concurrent permanency planning services: Contracted agencies provide concurrent permanency planning services to relatives or kin who are interested in actively supporting children and their parents’ efforts to reunify. In the event that a child is placed in a relative’s home, contracted agencies provide placement services until reunification or until adoption finalization.
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Relative child placement services: Contracted agencies provide placement support services to a family until reunification, or until adoption finalization.
If a county or tribal social service agency is referring a child’s relative or kin for any relative service, the family must meet the definition, defined by Minnesota Statutes, section 260C.007, subd. 27. Further, if a referral is for concurrent permanency planning purposes, and a child is in out-of-home care, the child to be placed in a relative’s or kin’s care must be age 8 or older at the time of placement. If children to be placed in a relative’s or kin’s care are part of a sibling group, at least one of the siblings has to be age 8 or older at time of placement, to be eligible for relative services.
Motion for adoptive placement for children under guardianship of the commissioner
When making an adoptive placement, relatives and important friends of a child must be considered prior to considering prospective adoptive parents with no relationship to a child. Moreover, when considering relatives and important friends, agencies must consider them in a specific order:
- An individual related to a child by blood, marriage, or adoption
- An important friend with whom a child resided or had significant contact
If a relative or foster parent requests to be considered for adoptive placement of a child, and they believe their request has not been reasonably considered by the responsible agency, they can bring their request to the court at any post-permanency review hearing for a child. After the court hears the request and the agency’s response, the court can order the agency to take appropriate action regarding the request.
County agencies are required to send notice of a fully executed APA to relatives who have kept the court informed of their whereabouts and who have responded to the agency’s previous notice indicating a willingness to be an adoptive placement resource for a child, unless the court has previously ruled them out as either a suitable foster parent or permanency resource for the child. The purpose of the notice is to inform individuals of a child’s adoptive placement. The notice must also contain information regarding a relative’s or foster parent’s ability to file a motion for adoptive placement within 30 days of receiving notice of a fully executed APA. Note that this motion for adoptive placement can actually be filed by a relative or foster parent at any time after a child is ordered under guardianship of the commissioner, but not later than 30 days after receiving notice of the child’s fully executed APA, provided the relative or foster parent has an approved adoption home study in place.
If a relative or foster parent files a motion for adoptive placement, the court can order a hearing if the court determines the relative/foster parent has made a prima facie showing that the agency was unreasonable. During the hearing, both the agency and the relative/foster parent will be able to present their case. The judge can then grant or deny the motion for adoptive placement. The judge’s decision in this case is appealable. See Minnesota Statutes, section 260C.607, subdivision 6.
MN ADOPT employment opportunity
MN ADOPT has a current job opening for the role of HELP Program Manager. This is a 0.8-1.0 FTE position that will be based in its St. Paul office. For more details, visit MN ADOPT's employment webpage.
MN ADOPT education program annual survey
Your feedback is critical for MN ADOPT to ensure we are meeting your educational needs. We would appreciate you taking a few minutes to complete this short anonymous survey with the option to enter to win a free MN ADOPT recorded webinar of your choosing ($15.00 value!). 5 winners will be chosen. Please complete the survey by May 8 to be eligible to win.
Join the MN ADOPT professional and community partner email list
MN ADOPT is in the process of developing a professional and community partner email list so we can share information and updates more often and in greater detail than we are able to provide through the monthly Permanency Support Unit newsletter. As a member of this email list, you’ll receive information about event and ticketing opportunities for families, giveaways, Kid Connection features, coupons for educational trainings, upcoming workshops and general program overviews of all MN ADOPT programs. If you would like to opt in to the email list, please complete this subscription form.
MN ADOPT speaker’s bureau
SPEAKERS BUREAU - Telling your story is a powerful way to help others understand the importance of adopting from foster care and the needs of adoptive families. Adoptive, foster, kinship parents, adopted persons and foster care alumni who are open to sharing their stories through participation in panels, conferences and media features. We also need professionals willing to share their knowledge. Please complete the form from the link below or share with others.
Please sign up here for the Speakers Bureau - professional or parent- all are greatly appreciated!
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