Given the fact there will always be turnover in adoption staff, and given the fact that even the most seasoned adoption professional is doing well to know the many facets of good adoption work, we at MARE feel that it is important to provide an annual overview of the purpose and function of the MARE program in order to help adoption professionals better understand how MARE works and how to make best use of the services MARE provides. With that in mind, we present this brief overview of MARE.

Services of MARE

The Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange is a contract program of the Family Independence Agency (FIA) and is administered by Family Service & Children's Aid of Jackson. The MARE program is directed by Kirsta Grapentine and currently has a staff of five including Beverly Belcher, Donetta Hayes, Nancy Jennings, Barb Manegold, and Steve York. Some of the services MARE provides include:

• A monthly photolisting book featuring adoption-eligible children do not have identified adoptive families,
• A complex database which tracks the progress toward adoption of over 3,000 permanent state and court wards,
• Statewide information and referral services for families interested in adoption through a toll-free number (800) 589-MARE,
• A site on the World Wide Web which includes the MARE photolisting book and a wealth of information about adoption (www.mare.org),
• Special events and special recruitment projects,
• "Waiting Child" columns in several Michigan newspapers,
• Two bi-monthly newsletters: Recruitment News geared toward adoption professionals, and Families Across Michigan (FAM) targeted toward adoptive families.

How MARE Works

Once a child is made a permanent state or court ward and is coded with a goal of adoption (Goal 10), an agency has 90 days to identify an appropriate adoptive placement for the child. If no family has been identified at 90 days, the agency is required by FIA policy (Service Manual Item #732) to register the child for photolisting in the MARE book. If an agency has identified a potential adoptive family within 90 days of permanent custody, they need not submit any documentation to MARE at that time.

At 182 days from permanent custody, the agency must submit documentation to MARE indicating progress toward adoptive placement, showing that the child has been adopted, or showing that the child's goal is no longer adoption. If there is no appropriate family at the 182 day mark, it is required that the child be registered for photolisting in the MARE book. Types of documentation that must be received by MARE at the 182-day deadline include:

• An OTR showing adoptive placement (PCA 320)
• A foster parent or relative "hold" registration, or a recruited family "hold" registration for a studied and approved recruited family. The "hold" registration will provide an agency an additional 182 days to complete the adoption.
• A blue MARE Child Entry Form for registration in the photolisting book
• A 5s or Updated Service Plan showing that the child's goal is no longer adoption

Please keep in mind that MARE must receive an OTR (PCA 320) or 5s indicating a change in goal in order to close the child's case in the MARE tracking system. It is also important to note that private agencies may incur financial sanctions if documentation is not submitted to MARE by 182 days from the child's permanent custody date.

Zone Review Process

When a child is registered on "hold," the agency is granted a six month extension to complete the adoption. Many times the child continues to remain "on hold" past that six month extension - in effect one year from permanent custody, and often longer. For this reason FIA has instituted the Zone Review process for cases that go beyond the original six month extension. When the six month extension period expires and no OTR has been received by MARE, a message appears on an agency's tracking list saying "Hold expired; case reported for FIA review." MARE then generates, on a quarterly basis, Zone Review forms for every child (in care of either public or private agencies) having an expired hold. These forms, which are sent to FIA Zone Managers, indicate that a child's hold period has expired, asks the worker or FIA representative to indicate the reason for delay, and recommends any action that is to be taken. If there is an appropriate reason for delay, and the form is signed by the appropriate FIA Zone personnel, the child's agency is then granted an additional six months to complete the adoption. Zone Reviews may continue for cases on "hold" status until the child is adopted.

Photolisting Book

If after 90 days from permanent custody there is no appropriate family identified for a child, or if a child had been previously registered on hold and the family is no longer a viable placement option, agencies are required to register the child in the photolisting book for recruitment purposes. Workers must fill out the blue MARE Child Entry Form completely, and submit a clear well-defined photo in order for it to be considered a complete registration. With the Sears Portrait Program in place (see page 1), there is no longer any excuse for submitting dark and blurry photos! A child remains in the MARE photolisting book until:

• s/he is matched with an approved family and placed on hold,
• the registration status changes to a foster parent or relative hold if the foster parent or relative decides to adopt after the child has been listed in the MARE book, or
• the child's goal changes to something other than adoption and MARE receives a 5s form or FIA approved Updated Service Plan (USP) verifying the goal change.

Once a child is listed in the MARE book, a worker is obliged to consider all appropriate and approved families who express interest in the child. This includes out-of-state families!

The system works best by worker-to-worker contact. Once a family's worker contacts the child's worker, the child's worker has a maximum of 10 calendar days (beginning from the date of the first call) to consider calls from other interested families. At the end of 10 days from the first call about the child, the child's worker is to make a determination regarding the most appropriate family and forward the child's evaluation packet to the family's worker. Once a family's worker receives the child's evaluation packet, the family and that worker have a maximum of 21 days to notify the child's worker if they wish to proceed with the adoption. Once the child's worker sends out the child's evaluation packet, the decision to pursue adoption rests with the family and their worker. For more information on this subject, please refer to the FIA Adoption Policy Manual (FIA Service Manual Item #732, pp. 9-10).

But Wait, There's More!

This is but a brief description of the primary components of MARE and should not be considered an all-inclusive explanation of the wide range of responsibilities MARE has, or the services the program provides. Please feel free to phone MARE at (517) 783-6273 for answers to any questions about the program or further explanation.

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Michigan Special Education Mediation Program

Conflicts between parents of students with disabilities and school personnel are often challenging. Although all parties want the best education program for the student, they cannot always agree on what is best.

In the past, parents and school staff have mainly used formal and adversarial tools for resolving disputes. These processes not only position parents and schools against each other, but they can take months or even years to complete, and little is gained for the child in the meantime. Hearings, and especially court cases, tend to increase tension and are seldom satisfying for both parties. Mediation is an alternative.

Mediation of disputes involving special education issues is available through the Community Dispute Resolution Program (CDRP). The State Court Administrative Office of the Michigan Supreme Court administers CDRP, including its special education mediation program. This office, and the neutral mediation services available, are completely independent of the state's Department of Education, which provides some funding to the program.

The CDRP, through its network of local mediation centers, currently assists over 10,000 Michigan citizens per year in resolving many kinds of disputes. Mediators helping to resolve special education disputes have substantial mediation experience, and have completed advanced training to mediate in this area. While not every case brought to mediation results in agreement, the chances that parties who participate in a mediation session will reach an agreement are about 80%.

What is Mediation?

Mediation is a process in which two or more people involved in a dispute meet in an informal, confidential setting and with the help of trained neutral persons (mediators), work out a solution to their problem. Mediation offers the opportunity for the parties to participate in resolving their dispute rather than having it resolved for them, which is the outcome of a hearing or court process. Instead of assessing blame for the dispute, the mediation process focuses on reaching productive solutions while improving communication between the disputing parties.

What kinds of special education disputes can be resolved through mediation?

Some issues that can be resolved through mediation include:

• The ELIGIBILITY of the student for special education programs and services - whether the characteristics of the student meet the criteria for being a student with a disability.
• The EVALUATION of the student - whether the parents or the school agree on the results of the school's evaluation and/or whether an independent evaluation should be conducted.
• The TYPE of special education proposed for the student - whether the programs and services are appropriate to meet the educational needs of the student.
• The AMOUNT of special education proposed for the student - whether the programs and services are appropriate to meet the educational needs of the student.
• A COMPLAINT about how special education services are or are not being provided.

What happens during mediation?

During the mediation session, all parties describe the dispute from their point of view. The mediator helps the parties focus on issues and generate settlement options. Once an agreement is reached, the terms are put in writing, signed by all parties, and when appropriate, submitted to an Individualized Educational Planning Committee for incorporation into the student's IEP.

Interested persons can learn more by calling 1-800-8-RESOLVE (1-800-873-7658). Your call will be automatically routed to your local mediation center. Additional information is also available by calling or writing to:

MI Special Education Mediation Prog.
State Court Administrative Office
309 N. Washington Square
P.O. Box 30048
Lansing, MI 48909
(517) 373-4839
(517) 373-8922 (fax)

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Sears Portrat Program Available

Retailer offers FREE portraits to be used for recruiting families for waiting children

MARE is pleased to announce an exciting opportunity to obtain professional photographs of adoption-eligible children who are currently (or will soon be) featured in the MARE photolisting book.

For several years, Sears Portrait Studios / CPI Inc. has sponsored a nationwide program to provide FREE portraits of adoption-eligible children to the National Adoption Center of Philadelphia, PA. Using the Sears portrait program is easy. Simply take the Sears Portrait Form (copies have already been sent to adoption supervisors, or call MARE for more forms) along with the child or children to be photographed to your nearest Sears portrait studio, and Sears will do the rest. Appointments may not be necessary, but it may be best to call for availability before you go. The photos will be sent to the National Adoption Center, who will forward them to MARE. We will send copies of the prints to the child's adoption worker.

Please be advised that it takes six to eight weeks to receive the Sears photos here at MARE. Workers should plan accordingly when obtaining photos for chidlren who will be listed in the MARE book for the first time. Late MARE registration due to waiting for photos is not an acceptable reason for delay. If a worker is in doubt about the Sears photos being ready in time, that worker should furnish MARE with another photograph, as is currently done, to avoid late MARE registration. MARE will replace the original photo with the Sears photo once it arrives at our office. The Sears portrait program may also be used to update photos of children who are currently listed in the book.

We strongly encourage adoption staff to take advantage of this opportunity. Obtaining attractive, high-quality photos of children for recruitment purposes is a challenge all workers have encountered. Now, through the generosity of Sears / CPI Corp., there is simply no reason to not feature Michigan's waiting children with pleasing, professional photos. It's simple, and it's FREE.

The Sears portrait forms may be photocopied or you may phone the MARE office for additional forms. Consult your local telephone directory for the Sears Portrait Studio nearest you, or phone CPI corp. at (800) 669-9699. If you have any other questions about the Sears portrait program, please call Steve York of MARE at (517) 783-6273, ext. 236.

May 1999 be a year of quality photos of Michigan's waiting children!