Category: Adoption Professionals
Mental Health and Behavioral Treatment Options The adoption community has made great progress in understanding the impact of trauma on children's mental health and emotional well-being. As more...
The U.S. Department of State has released the FY2022 Annual Report on Intercountry Adoption. This covers the period of time from October 1, 2021 through September 30, 2022. In the report, the Depar...
In a field saturated with research and best practices on adoption competency and adoption-informed care, there is much value in creating intentional spaces where we can learn directly from adoptees...
The impact of prenatal stress and preverbal trauma on developmental trajectories is both a topic of education and area of treatment focus in my clinical practice. As a specialist in infant and earl...
PDF Version - Adoption Advocate No. 170 The National Training and Development Curriculum (NTDC) is a newly developed, comprehensive free training curriculum to prepare and equip foster ...
A lawsuit filed in Merrimack County, New Hampshire Superior Court last week makes serious allegations against numerous individuals and organizations, of child abuse, neglect, and failure to protect...
We learned a lot about the characteristics of adoptive parents in the U.S. when we conducted a nationwide survey in 2021 that garnered 4,200+ responses - the largest survey to date of this populati...
There is unanimous agreement in the scientific literature that the vast majority of all adoptions are successful. Despite these encouraging statistics, it remains important for adoption social work...
A Webinar for Adoption Professionals on Preparing, Educating, and Supporting Adoptive Families How many calls from families have you received describing a crisis situation with their child that lea...
A Free two-part series for Adoption Professionals on Preparing, Educating, and Supporting Adoptive Families National Council For Adoption and three nationally-renowned experts discuss ethical guide...
A training course for adoption professionals As families prepare to welcome a child through adoption, it is important that they consider the possibility that their child was or will be exposed to s...
Earlier today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families (ACF) released its annual Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) da...
Course Registration Studies show that adopted children are referred for special needs support within the school system at twice the rate of non-adopted children. NCFA's recent Profiles ...
Did you know that the Census Bureau is a great source for U.S. adoption statistics? With surveys going back to 1990, the Census Bureau has a number of demographic data collections for adoption rese...
The U.S. Department of State has published its annual report on intercountry adoptions completed between October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021. During this time, there were 1,785 intercountry...
With a lunch box in hand and a plaid skirt down to my knees, I entered the gymnasium for my first day of fifth grade. Fifth grade was a big deal at morning arrival and afternoon dismissal-- we got ...
ALEXANDRIA, VA (July 27, 2022) - A new report released by National Council For Adoption (NCFA) highlights the dramatic changes that have taken place in adoption in recent decades and answers key qu...
For adopted individuals to be empowered to advocate for their healthcare needs, medical providers must know how to interact in an adoption identity affirming manner and create an environment where ...
Thanks to the participation of over 4,200 adoptive parents, NCFA collected an expansive volume of data through our 2021 survey. In our new report, we highlight some of the key findings of our analy...
Little education and training exists on the intersection of addiction and adoption. As the director of Adoption Programming at PACE Recovery, and an adopted individual, Dr. Brett Furst offers his e...
ALEXANDRIA, VA (June 21, 2022) - National Council For Adoption was proud to present the 2022 Warren and Mary Alice Babineaux Award to Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Indiana Department of Chil...
ALEXANDRIA, VA (May 11, 2022) - A new report released by National Council For Adoption (NCFA) highlights the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on adoption within the U.S. Adoption by the Numbers, a r...
Adoptions that take place across state lines often involve the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC), an important legislative agreement to facilitate interstate child welfare rela...
Kinship adoption, in one form or another, has been around for centuries. And yet there is a significant lack of training and resources on how to support families navigating this pathway to permanen...
NCFA recently conducted a webinar about supporting people in the adoption community who have roots in Ukraine and Russia. We have compiled a list of resources on this topic below. Supporting Youth ...
Improving the adoption process and long-term outcomes for everyone impacted by adoption will require legislative action by Congress to address key issues. In the January 2022 issue of the Adoption ...
An overview of adoption trends in the United States PDF version 18% Decrease in adoptions from foster care from FY19 - FY 21 19,130 Number who aged out of foster care withou...
A visual snapshot of NCFA's impact in adoption awareness, education, research, and advocacy in 2021 made possible by the engagement and generosity of our friends and supporters. Loading...
Renewed discussion of racial inequality throughout the U.S. has revitalized attention to racial disproportionalities in the child welfare system and how they might best be addressed. The Multiethni...
October 18, 2021 - Alexandria, VA - National Council For Adoption (NCFA) is pleased to announce Dr. Elizabeth Bartholet as the 2021 inductee to the Adoption Hall of Fame. This award is given annual...
As National Adoption Month approaches - it has been celebrated annually in the U.S. since 1985 - so does NCFA's Adoption Hall of Fame ceremony and reception scheduled for November 2nd in Washington...
In this practical introductory guide to Dr. Bruce Perry's Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics, learn how adoptive parents and professionals can implement the wisdom of the NMT, particularly The S...
This year ACI is a sponsor, a sponsor of the color gold To NCFA I give tribute and with my highest esteem I do hold. An organization like ours with member support will never fold We're stro...
An increasing number of adoptive families are single parent households where children have found permanency and are thriving with a Mom or Dad only. To learn how to best support these adoptive fami...
Funded as a cooperative agreement with the Children's Bureau, NTDC is led by Spaulding for Children in partnership with National Council For Adoption (NCFA), Center for Adoption Support and Educat...
Postadoption depression. It's more common than you may think, but it can be an uncomfortable thing for adoptive parents to talk about. Left unaddressed, postadoption depression, sometimes referred ...
On Friday, July 9, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit decided case No. 20-5158, in which National Council For Adoption (NCFA) was appellant. The matter centered ar...
For many expectant parents, a prenatal Down Syndrome diagnosis brings increased complexity to parenting decisions, whether the pregnancy was planned or unplanned. This issue of the Adoption Advocat...
Can military families adopt while a parent is on active duty? Should military families avoid adoption due to deployments and frequent moves? What do adoption professionals need to know and practice...
America's foster care system is in crisis. Despite real efforts to effect change, over 120,000 children remain in the system awaiting a permanent family through adoption. Finding the right families...
Choosing an open adoption is just the first step in a lifelong journey for birth mothers. In this issue of the Adoption Advocate, three birth moms share their stories and offer advice and encourage...
In many adoption processes, prospective adoptive parents are asked to agree in advance to comply with post-adoption reporting requirements. This is especially true for intercountry adoptions, as ma...
Transparent and effective child advocacy requires adoption agencies to weigh important ethical considerations and follow best practices. In this issue of the Adoption Advocate, Jennifer Lanter and ...
Download PDF Authors Chat - Listen in and learn about the ATC The Adoption Tax Credit can significantly offset the costs and fees of an adoption process, but prospective ado...
People who are interested in adopting are often worried about their ability to come up with the necessary funds for the adoption process. They may also wonder how they can afford the services requi...
Download PDF At various times throughout the year, we are immersed as a culture in times of annual celebration that are strongly linked to traditions, memories, friends, and family. Whi...
Subtle yet steady, a culture war has been slowly brewing in the child advocacy world. It boasts no herald to announce its merits to the nation, and few outside its fields of battle could articulat...
In honor of National Adoption Month 2020, NCFA is featuring various stories and perspectives on adoption. Today we welcome guest writer Jessica, a birth mom, working to raise awareness about the im...
Each November, we recognize National Adoption Month as an opportunity to raise awareness and celebrate adoptive families and their children who have benefitted from both domestic and intercount...
“Cam, you’re fired. I like you, I’m cheering for you, but you broke the rules and I have to fire you.” It was mid-summer, the camp director and I were sitting at a picnic table on the edge o...
A Note from NCFA: Adoption by the Numbers has now been updated! Please visit adoptioncouncil.org/numbers to see the 2022 report. Adoption: By the Numbers National Council For Adoption's Adoption:...
In 2019, 23 percent of all children in foster care were 13-17 years old, and nearly 6 percent of those were adopted that same year.1 While international adoptions have declined overall since 2005, ...
Weaving Hope Into Heartache – A Parent’s Perspective If you’re an adoptive parent like me who has had the benefit of training and education rooted in TBRI, then you know how essential Th...
It's not often that you remember exactly where you were when reading a book more than 13 years ago, but I do remember reading a manuscript of Dr. Karyn Purvis' The Connected Child. I was on a...
Increasingly same-sex headed families are becoming a part of the adoption community. Since the legalization of gay marriage, many agencies have seen an increase in the number of same-sex couples loo...
Uplifting Youth Voices During National Foster Care Month & COVID-19 Entering this new chapter of leadership at the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI), I am excited to enga...
Home has taken on new meaning the past few weeks. We stay home to protect the broader community. We’re working from home. Having birthdays at home. And for many, a stable place to call home might ...
Breaking Jurisdictional Barriers in Older Child Adoptions from Foster Care She scanned the room of the various individuals who came to learn more about adoption from foster care, and after ...
Having followed Tori on social media for awhile, I knew that she would have a unique perspective to share with the adoption community during National Foster Care Month, and she was kind enough ...
In the early 1990s a treaty was drafted, debated, and eventually finalized that would shape the course of international adoption forever. The treaty, later known as The Hague Convention of 29 May 19...
Introduction Now more than ever, adoption agency personnel are being asked to help parents understand pediatric medical and mental health complexities. Whether children are adopted internationally,...
Like all of you, we here at NCFA find ourselves navigating truly unchartered territory as the Coronavirus pandemic creates global uncertainty and societal upheaval. As we come to the end of thi...
Accreditation has long been used by professions to validate the qualifications of providers and the quality of services. This paper examines the accreditation of intercountry adoption service provid...
NCFA is celebrating 40 years of advocating for children, birth families, and adoptive families. We continue to see adoption practice evolve, including new or expanded opportunities for famil...
The start of any New Year is usually considered a milestone for people and organizations alike, but for National Council For Adoption (NCFA), 2020 takes on even more significance than usual. Not onl...
I. Introduction The work of intercountry adoption agencies has always been larger than simply the placement of children with families. In addition to the placement of children, these agencies— as ...
Introduction Historically, adoptions in the United States were strictly closed adoptions that entailed sealed legal records and absolutely no contact between the birth parents and the adoptive famil...
Adoption in the U.S., originally focused on placing healthy infants, has evolved to the point that now the majority of children available for placement either have recognized medical problems or ar...
The decision to begin or grow your family through adoption is certainly life-changing and rewarding. This decision can also bring with it a great deal of uncertainty and emotion. One hundred years a...
Over the past century, transracial adoption in America has become more and more common. In this issue of the Adoption Advocate, Alexis Oberdorfer shares about the history of transracial adoption an...
What is Subsidiarity? Subsidiarity is one of the most hotly debated and diversely interpreted principles of intercountry adoption.1 But before diving into an explanation of subsidiarity in the inte...
Adoption. The real problem of intercountry adoption is that there is too little of it. Adoption is the only institution whereby unparented children become legal daughters and sons by force of a d...
The Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption, commonly referred to as the Hague Convention on Adoption, went into force internationally in ...
Editor's Note: National Council For Adoption asked Sarah Mraz to write this month’s Adoption Advocate following her presentation at last year’s NCFA conference. When asked her to write this piec...
Lori and Joy met at National Council For Adoption's 2016 National Adoption Conference, where they discovered a shared purpose of building a positive adoption culture within the Black community. Wit...
Words matter so much, especially when we’re speaking about something as deeply personal as adoption. Accurate adoption language can help stop the spread of misconceptions about adoption and reflec...
Ethiopia's parliament has passed legislation banning intercountry adoption. NCFA's Ryan Hanlon joined BBC World Service Radio to discuss how this decision places unparented children at risk. NCFA ...
Curiosity about who we are, where we came from, and our significance in life is universal. Today, opportunities abound to search family history to fill in the missing pieces of the past, whether a f...
The Council on Accreditation (COA) announced today that the organization has notified the U.S. Department of State of their intent to terminate their role as a national accrediting entity—a...
Military families have the potential to be outstanding adoptive families. They often have an incredible support network of friends. Military families tend to be flexible and adaptable and those are ...
On December 16, 2016, the Department of State temporarily debarred the Hague accredited agency European Adoption Consultants (EAC), citing noncompliance with federal regulations. Less than two month...
“Why don’t you just adopt?” is a go-to question frequently asked by friends and family of people who struggle with infertility. But infertility is a disease that does not have a one-size-fits-...
Over the past ten years, I've received many calls from young adult adoptees pleading with me to send them their adoption or birth records. Most are heartbreaking stories of lost documents due to fir...
Introduction The wait can be challenging for many attempting to grow their families through adoption. Along with this wait, which is oftentimes quite long, come significant emotions—including joy,...
Thirty years of research shows that positive interactions between a child and primary caregiver(s) significantly impacts brain development. Studies show that children raised in family-based care (bi...
Introduction Since the mid-1940s, the practice of adopting orphaned children internationally has experienced peaks as well as periods of decline, driven in part by public interest, world wars, chang...
Introduction Professionals involved in making child-placing decisions have a life-changing responsibility. These professionals must be properly qualified, trained, and supervised. There is little sc...
Introduction When Andrew1 and his girlfriend Maria chose adoption for their daughter five years ago, Andrew was astounded that he had to sign only one form to terminate his parental rights, while M...
Introduction Historically, private adoption agencies were founded to work on domestic infant and international adoptions. As time has passed and new policies and best practices have been established...
When considering intercountry adoption, prospective adoptive parents will hear countries often referred to as "Hague Countries" and "Non-Hague Countries". These can also be called "Convention Count...
Introduction First, let me answer the question on everyone’s mind: What is adoption medicine? Children who join families through adoption may have special health, behavioral, and developmental nee...
Introduction While adopting a child from another country, you receive word that the in-country court has scheduled the final guardianship or adoption hearing. You make travel plans with your family...
Introduction Adoption. A special way for a family to be formed, and yet born of loss. A journey to navigate, with both joys and challenges. Not a one-time event, but a defining and ongoing experienc...
Introduction The increased regulation of adoption agencies and more stringent agency licensing requirements at both the state and federal levels have resulted in agencies being mandated to accept pr...
Editor’s Note: While it is often easier to focus on the majority of successful adoptions, it is important for adoption and child welfare advocates to look closely at the cases in which adoption di...
Disruption or dissolution is something that no one involved with an adoption wants to happen, and much has been written about the prevention of this occurrence. The reality is that some adoptive fam...
Editor's Note: NCFA is committed to protecting the best interests of and advocating for all members of the adoption triad: birthparents, adoptive parents, and children. While it is possible for bir...
Introduction In January 2010, the earthquake in Haiti and its aftermath brought the longstanding debate over intercountry adoption and its place in the wake of an emergency to the public attention. ...
