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Content submission deadline: August 20, 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.
Commitment to anti-racist work and inclusivity
The Permanency Support Unit is continuing to review policies, practices, and laws to determine where and how changes can or should be made to ensure racial equity and inclusivity, and promote better outcomes for children and families who are disproportionately represented in permanency and adoption. We are in the beginning stages of this process.
As part of our commitment to this process, unit staff will be attending the DHS Children and Family Services (CFS) Administration’s Virtual World’s Fair on August 4th. The focus of this year’s World Fair is to promote internal CFS staff growth and learning related to equity, race and inclusion.
Adoption background study update
Governor Walz extended the peacetime emergency on July 13, 2020, for 30 days. As a result, emergency background studies (also referred to as COVID-19 background studies) are still being processed for child foster care licensure applications. However, the Background Studies Division recently announced they would begin processing fingerprint-based background study requests for adoption-only home studies, effective July 27, 2020. This applies to requests submitted on or after July 27, 2020. Requests submitted prior to this date will be processed as emergency background studies. As a reminder, individuals who were subjects of emergency background studies are required to complete the background study process by submitting fingerprints.
Questions about this change, including whether someone needs to submit a new background study request or if someone’s previous fingerprints were retained, should be directed to NetStudy2@state.mn.us. The Background Studies Division has also created a webpage providing more information on returning to full compliance for adoption background studies. Questions related to adoption and Northstar Adoption Assistance should be directed to northstar.benefits@state.mn.us.
Change to income offsets for Northstar Adoption Assistance and Northstar Kinship Assistance
As of July 1, 2020, the department stopped offsetting monthly Northstar permanency benefits based on receipt of the following federal benefits:
- Black Lung Disease
- Railroad Survivor Benefits
- Veterans Benefits
- Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (RDSI)
Families that were affected by these offsets should have received an increase in their monthly benefit amount, and they will receive a notice from us soon. Additionally, families are no longer required to notify the department of a change in their child’s income from one of the above benefits.
Content submissions for the Permanency Support Unit Update
We want to hear from you! As a reminder, we welcome content suggestions and submissions for inclusion in this newsletter. Please send any content suggestions, including requests for more information or clarification on a topic, to our email at Contracts.Adoption.DHS@state.mn.us. Also, please send any organization training or announcements to include in this newsletter.
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. View a list of all DHS waivers and modifications under peacetime emergency authority, Executive Order 20-12.
View the federal Children’s Bureau’s COVID-19 resources webpage, which includes resources and updates from Jerry Milner, Associate Commissioner of the Children’s Bureau.
Potential training changes due to COVID-19
Please contact directly the agency sponsoring the training to determine if there are any changes to scheduled training, including cancellation, format, location and delivery.
Relevant DHS training opportunities
Northstar Permanency Quality Assurance staff are hosting trainings on topics related to adoption, transfer of permanent legal and physical custody (TPLPC), and Northstar Adoption/Kinship Assistance benefits. The next training is Tuesday, August 11, where staff will provide a broad overview of the adoption process for children in foster care. As of the date of this newsletter, this training will be held online. If the training format changes, attendees will be notified. Register for these trainings on TrainLink. For more information, visit the training webpage or email Northstar.Benefits@state.mn.us.
Conferences and events
North American Council on Adoptable Children’s annual conference will start August 26, and workshops will be featured for four days online. Registration is now open. There are plenty of registrations options; attendees can choose to attend the sessions live, by recording or both!
Other training opportunities
The MN ADOPT Education Program has many training opportunities for August 2020. One to highlight is “Understanding Trauma through the Eyes of a Child” by Mary McGowan. Register here.
Children’s Home Society is offering foster care adoption education classes during August. Educational classes are a 2-day online format, which allows Children’s Home Society to accommodate more attendees. This format has also been successful in providing incoming foster and adoptive families the information they need to move forward in their process. Contact Maddie Hilsabeck with any questions at maddie.hilsabeck@chlss.org.
The Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare, in partnership with Hennepin County’s be@school truancy prevention program, is hosting a 3-part webinar series for their annual be@school conference. Dates are August 4, August 11, and August 19. More information is available here.
Minnesota adoption and child foster care assessment home study update
An adoption-only study is valid if it is has been updated or completed within the past twelve months. An original home study approved for both foster care and adoption may be approved for up to two years in accordance with Minnesota foster care licensing standards. In addition to the required updates to a home study based on period of validity, an agency may update home studies as needed, but must update in the following circumstances if there’s a change in:
- Employment status, if it significantly impacts the family’s availability or type of care they can provide
- History of arrest, child abuse, substance abuse or domestic violence
- Family composition, including relationship status (such as marriage or divorce); a temporary change, such as a grandparent visiting, may not require a home study update.
Documentation verifying a person’s legal name
To process Northstar Adoption Assistance and Northstar Kinship Assistance eligibility determinations, DHS staff must verify the legal names of children and their proposed permanent caregivers. Legal names are required to ensure the child meets citizenship/immigration requirements, and the proposed permanent caregiver meets background study requirements.
For adoption of children under guardianship of the commissioner, DHS staff must also verify that the parents whose rights were terminated (or who consented to the adoption of their child) were the legal parents of the child, to ensure the child is legally free to be adopted. This also affects a child’s eligibility for Northstar Adoption Assistance, because the first criterion of the special needs determination is that the child cannot or should not return home to their parents.
If DHS staff are unable to verify legal names, we may ask for additional documentation to ensure eligibility criteria are met.
Required notification for recipients of Northstar Adoption and Kinship Assistance
According to a family’s Northstar Adoption or Kinship Assistance benefit agreement, If there has been a change in status or circumstances that may impact a child’s continued eligibility, the DHS Permanency Support Unit must be notified within 30 days of the change. For example, notification would be required if a child is living outside of the adoptive family home, if the child has a new address or if there is a name change. Responsible social services agencies should ensure an adoptive or kinship family is aware of this requirement if they learn the family has had a change impacting their adoption or kinship assistance agreement. Additionally, agencies who are parties to a family’s benefit agreement are also responsible for reporting these changes upon learning of them. For more information, please check here.
MN ADOPT’s recruitment opportunities for youth
Recruitment opportunities for youth can be requested via the State Adoption Exchange (SAE) registration form. Print media opportunities include a monthly feature of a child on the State Adoption Exchange, with their public narrative and photo in newspapers throughout the state. Newspapers include the Star Tribune, Duluth News Tribune, Adams Publishing (26 community papers) and the Press Publications (six community papers and one magazine). This also includes a monthly feature on our Meet the Kids page. Please email Kim Sacay with any questions about recruitment opportunities at ksacay@mnadopt.org.
MN ADOPT’s professional and community partner email list
Join MN ADOPT’s professional & community partner email list where they 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.
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