We believe that each family who adopts deserves professional, ethical and sensitive treatment during the home study experience. We also believe that each child who is adopted needs a permanent family that will provide the best possible parenting, no matter their challenges.

Home studies help prepare prospective adoptive parents for the tasks of raising a child who was not born into their family. They also provide assurance to individuals who are responsible for placing a child for adoption that the family is properly equipped to take care of a child. A home study consists of a series of interviews with a social worker, the collection of documents about the family, and a written narrative report. Home studies are required in most states and, if you are adopting internationally, by the United States Citizen Immigration Service (USCIS) and the country where the child resides.

Eligibility

• The minimum age to adopt is 25 years of age. Couples must be married for 1 year or have been partnered and living together for at least 2 years at the time of the home study application.
• Adoptions Together requires that a single parent must be 50 years or younger at the time of application for the adoption of an infant. If part of a couple, the couple’s combined age should not exceed 100. Ages may be older if you are adopting from foster care.
• The prospective parent should be in sufficient health to be expected to raise a child to adulthood.
• Sufficient financial resources are required at the time of home study approval to afford adoption expenses and to provide adequate care for the adopted child. All family members need to be covered by medical insurance. The primary earner must have life insurance to cover one year of salary. The reason for these financial guidelines is to protect both the adopted child and the family from serious financial distress.

Please note that these are the eligibility requirements for a domestic home study. Eligibility varies from country to country for international home studies.

You will be required to complete at least ten (10) hours of pre-adoptive training.

** Families who are adopting from China: 2 additional training hours are required by the China Center for Children’s Welfare and Adoption (CCCWA) **

Training Requirements:

• 3-Hour Adoptions Together/FamilyWorks Together Individualized Hague Training
• 2-Hour Country-Specific Hague Training
• 5 Hour, 20 Minute Adoptions Together Online Training (Hague Package)
  • Complicated Children: Managing their Behavior While Helping Them to Heal
  • International and Domestic Adoption Medicine 101
  • Interracial Adoption and Parenting
  • Trauma, Attachment and the Developing Brain
  • Understanding Blocked Care and Strategies for Moving Forward

Contact us to find out more and register!

This individualized training is for pre-adoptive families who plan to adopt a child or children internationally. If you have been matched with an identified child, it is personalized for your child and specific family situation, with an emphasis on strategies that encourage a positive transition for your child and family. This training will ensure that you learn effective strategies so that you are prepared to “hit the ground running.” The specific topics included in the training are as follows:

• The effects of insecure attachment on the behaviors of your child who has been in foster care and/or an orphanage.
• The effects of trauma on your child’s cognitive, social, emotional and neurological development.
• The effects of pre-natal drug or alcohol exposure.
• The short and long-term effects of institutional care including physical, cognitive, emotional and social.
• The family adjustment during transition and after “honeymoon” phase, including specific tools and techniques to foster healthy attachment and to create a therapeutic environment.
• Language development.
• Long term implications of becoming a multicultural and/or multiracial family including:
  • Strategies for helping the child acculturate and assimilate.
  • The importance of honoring country of origin customs and traditions.
  • To process any known information about your child to help you successfully integrate your child into your family.
• Strategies for helping siblings adjust to your adopted child.
• Local resources.

Conact us to find out more and register!