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- What
is the process to adopt: domestically, internationally,
if I live in Illinois, if I live outside of Illinois,
including outside of the United States?
- How
long is the wait for a child?
- What
programs/services do you offer?
- What
are "home study services only?"
- What
type of children do you work with?
- What
are your fees?
- What
are the qualifications to be an adoptive parent?
- Where
is your office located, what is the telephone number,
and what are your hours?
- When
can I reapply after I've adopted with you?
- What
is your philosophy on openness?
- How
do I adopt my spouse's child?
- What is the process to adopt: domestically,
internationally, if I live in Illinois, if I live
outside of Illinois, including outside of the United
States?
In general, to adopt through Family Resource Center
an interested person should first register to attend
a free Program Introduction
session. These are held
each month at our offices at 5828 N. Clark Street
in Chicago. If you live outside the Chicago area,
call us at (773) 334-2300 or (800) 676-2229 and we
will include you in our next telephone Introduction
Program.
Once you have attended an Intro meeting, asked your
questions, and feel comfortable moving forward, you
will fill out an application. When we have reviewed
your information, we will schedule an initial interview.
Following the interview, a home study will be conducted.
If it is necessary to be licensed, (this will vary
depending upon where a family is adopting from) you
will submit licensing materials, and participate in
the required training. Once the home study is complete,
you are ready to adopt!
The process can be slightly different depending on
whether you are adopting domestically or internationally,
and depending on the state in which you reside. Naturally,
we reserve the right to discontinue working with a
family if the application, interview, home study,
or reference and background checks reveal issues that
would affect how a family parents an adopted child.
- How long is the wait for a child?
We don’t have a "waiting list" of
adoptive families. Instead, we allow our birthparents
to choose the family they wish to raise their child.
When families have been accepted into our program,
and a home study written, they submit a family "album"
including a "Dear Birthparent" letter which
describes who they are and their thoughts on adoption,
as well as photographs depicting their lifestyle and
any other information that they wish to convey to
a potential birthmother. When birthparents are ready
to choose a family, they are shown all of the albums
that match their criteria. Therefore, a family can
be selected soon after their album is submitted, months,
or in rare cases, years later, or never. At Family
Resource Center we never guarantee that a family will
be successful in their hopes to adopt, but the more
open a family is to types of children and circumstances,
the more often their album is likely to be viewed.
- What programs/services do you offer?
Within our domestic programs we have a Traditional
Adoption Program where a family is matched with
a
birthparent that has been receiving services from
our agency. We also offer an Agency
Assisted Adoption Program for
families who come to us with an identified birthparent,
or who choose to actively develop their own outreach
plan to find a birthmother. We provide home
study
services to them as well as counseling, training
and/or
help with marketing as needed. Over the past 10 years
we have developed a special interest, and a level
of expertise, in African-
American and bi-racial adoption.
Internationally we provide direct placement in China
and Ukraine, and have facilitated adoptions in over
25 other countries. Our China
Adoption Program is
all inclusive,
with travel groups forming each month. The Ukraine
Adoption Program requires a more individual approach,
so we
provide all the support with documentation, training,
planning and post placement services, while partnering
with a local Ukraine agency for in-country expertise.
For families adopting through other international
agencies or programs, we provide home study services
through our International
Options Program.
At Family Resource Center we believe that people know
what is best for them, which is why our motto is "our
help, your decisions." Families are encouraged
to pursue as many adoption options as they can financially
and emotionally afford, including attempts to become
pregnant. We just ask to be kept informed along the
way.
- What are "home study services
only?"
If a family is working with an out-of-state agency,
or with an international program from another agency,
we are happy to conduct the home study interview and
evaluation within the state of Illinois. If a family
needs licensing, or wants to participate in our adoption
classes, we can arrange for this as well. For more
information visit our Home Study
Services page.
- What type of children do you work
with?
The majority of the children we place are newborn
infants. Sometimes we work with parents placing a
child that is a few weeks or months old, and very
rarely, a child who is toddler aged. The children
are of every race, and combination of races.
Most often their birthmothers had healthy pregnancies,
carried them to full term, and made an adoption plan
for them. However we do work with children whose mothers
used drugs during their pregnancy, who did not receive
prenatal care, or may not have even known they were
pregnant.
The children are born to women of all racial and socioeconomic
backgrounds. We do not work with children who are
wards of the state child welfare system. Families
should contact Illinois
Department of Children and Family Services for
information on how to adopt children within the DCF
system.
- What are your fees?
Our fees vary depending on the program, your financial
situation, and circumstances related to the child.
Domestic adoptions typically range from $9,300 (for
our African-American Program) up to $27,300 (for our
Traditional Adoption Program). In our China Program,
the average total cost is usually between $18,000
and $22,000. Ukraine adoptions generally range from
$21,000 to $23,000. Family Resource Center offers
family based financial aid and child based grants,
which also affect the total fees.
- What are the qualifications to be
an adoptive parent?
At Family Resource Center we work with a wide range
of potential adoptive parents. We do not discriminate
based upon age, marital status, race, income, size
of existing family, sexual
orientation, or pursuit of other family planning
options. Some international countries do have
restrictions on the types of people who can adopt,
and you must be 18 years or older to adopt in the
state of Illinois.
- Where is your office located, what
is the telephone number, and what are your hours?
Family Resource Center is located on the north side
of Chicago at 5828 N. Clark Street, between Peterson
and Bryn Mawr. We can be reached by telephone at
(773)
334-2300 or (800) 676-2229. Our fax number is (773)
334-822. You may also contact us by clicking here.
Our regular office hours are Monday through Friday,
9am-5pm, however we have 24 hour emergency availability.
Our phones are answered after hours and on weekends
by live volunteers who are staff, or members of Family
Resource Center’s community. These committed
individuals volunteer this additional time by having
our phones forwarded to their homes.
- When can I reapply after I've adopted
with you?
You can re-apply anytime after placement. Naturally,
we consider how well you have adjusted to your new
family member when conducting the home study.
A new application must be submitted in addition to
the completion of a new, updated home study. A full
re-application fee will be assessed, but the home
study fee will be reduced, as only an update is necessary.
Full placement fees will apply.
- What is your philosophy on openness?
We are not advocates of “open adoption”
or “closed adoption,” but rather of cooperation
between birth parents and adoptive parents to find
the degree of contact and communication that is comfortable,
and best for the child.
Openness by its traditional definition is not required,
although an open exchange of information between birth
parents, adoptive parents, and adopted children is
encouraged.
We do require families to submit to our photo agreement.
Adoptive parents are asked to send five photographs
of their child to the office for the first six months
following placement. Ten photographs per year for
the first five years, plus an annual letter regarding
the child’s current status. These photos and
letters are then forwarded in a non-identifying packaging
to birth parents if they choose, or kept in our files,
should the birth mother ever want to see them. This
agreement is the minimum. Anything above and beyond
this arrangement is encouraged.
- How do I adopt my spouse's child?
As a licensed child welfare agency FRC can only
facilitate the adoption of a child placed by his
or her birthparents to potential adoptive parents.
Experienced adoption attorneys best handle other
types of adoptions such as the adoption of a spouse's
child, the adoption of a relative, and co-parent
adoptions.
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