by Steve York

After eight years of serving as the editor of the monthly MARE photolisting book, I have both witnessed and helped to implement many changes that have enabled the MARE Book to evolve to its current appearance. Many of those changes have happened as a result of MARE staff input. Other changes were initiated through input from the field – the adoption workers and other professionals who register children and/or use the photolisting book as a recruitment tool. Still other changes were brought about through comments from the many thousands of families and individuals that use the photolisting book along the road to adopting a waiting child. All changes have been made with the approval of our contractor - the Michigan Family Independence Agency.

It is at this time – after eight years as editor and eight and a half years of publishing the book in its current format – that I propose to offer the inaugural “State of the MARE Book Address.”

Since the creation of the MARE Book in its current form (August 1992) the MARE Book has listed over 4,000 children. Nearly 25% of those children were removed from the book because they were placed with families who saw them in the MARE Book. This represents the second largest reason for removal, and should serve as reinforcement of the fact that the photolisting book performs a valuable service in helping waiting children to be placed in permanent families.

The most frequent reason that children were removed from the MARE Book over that same period of time is that they are being placed with relatives or foster parents (35%). This in itself is not a bad thing. On the contrary, it is good and reasonable to place children, when appropriate, in families with whom they have an established relationship. However, this statistic does beg the question: Why were these children registered in the MARE Book in the first place? This then leads to the continual challenge faced by MARE and, I think, the adoption community as a whole: ensuring that the MARE Book is a credible and viable recruitment resource.

The most consistent observation expressed about the MARE book since its inception, both from adoption professionals and families, is that the photolisting book is full of children who are not truly available. That is, there is already a family identified to adopt the child. Despite several modifications to the photolisting book over the years designed to address this issue, the reality is that children for whom recruitment of a family is not needed still appear in the MARE book. Perhaps the best place to start then is a thorough explanation of exactly when and how the photolisting book should be used as a recruitment tool.

Let us start with the “golden rule” of the MARE Book, which is: “Only children for whom no identified family is available should be registered for photolisting.”

Period. If this one simple rule were consistently followed, it would go a long way toward making the photolisting book a more useful resource for everyone. If there is a family identified to adopt the child, that child should not be registered in the photolisting book. If the child is already in the MARE book and an approved family is subsequently identified, the child should be removed from the photolisting book and placed on “Hold” as soon as possible. The various “Hold” registration categories (Relative, Foster Parent, or Recruited Family) were created specifically to allow adoption workers to remove children from the photolisting book (or not list them at all) if a family had been identified.

When should a child be registered for photolisting? Keeping in mind the golden rule, there are specific instances when registration for photolisting is appropriate and required:

1. By 90 days from permanent custody, if no family is identified. If by 90 days from the child’s permanent custody date (the date when the rights of the biological parents is terminated) there is no identified adoptive family for the child, the worker must register the child in the photolisting book. If there is an identified family, workers may submit a “Hold” registration form; however, the form is not required to be submitted at this point. Again, if there is absolutely no identified family for the child by 90 days from permanent custody, the child must be registered for photolisting.
2. By 182 days from permanent custody if no approved family is identified to adopt. If a relative, current foster family, or approved recruited family (i.e. a family with a completed family assessment) has been identified, the worker should use the “Hold” registration to account for the child, but the child will not appear in the MARE book. Any recruited family (e.g. not a relative or the child’s current foster parent) must have a completed family assessment in order for the “Hold” registration to be used. The last page (signature page0 of the assessment must be included with the Recruited Family “Hold” registration form. All children must be accounted for to MARE by 182-days from the permanent custody date by submitting a registration (either “Hold” or photolisting), a 5-S showing a change in the permanency plan, or an OTR (PCA-318 or PCA-320) indicating placement with the adopting family. When a child has been registered and appears in the photolisting book, appropriate families with approved assessments are to be given consideration over families who have not yet completed the assessment process.
3. When a child has been registered using the “Hold” status but the identified family subsequently withdraws, or the adoption is not going to proceed for any reason. In this case the worker should inform the MARE office and arrange for the child to appear in the photolisting book as soon as possible.

Note: The MARE Book is NEVER to be used by agencies in order to receive a higher reimbursement rate! In the past some agencies have offered to place children from other agencies with potential adoptive families only after the agency that has the child registers the child in the photolisting book. This is done with the intent that the agency with the family may receive the highest possible reimbursement rate from the State. These “pre-arranged” agreements are not only in direct violation of FIA policy and private agency contracts, they also undermine the integrity and usefulness of the photolisting book. Through continual training and education by FIA and MARE, there has been a sizeable reduction in these types of cases; however, the issue still surfaces from time to time and is something which must continue to be addressed. It should also be made clear that children should NEVER be registered for photolisting in order to secure a subsidy. Once again this practice is contrary to FIA policy (and by extension, Private Agency contract), and undermines the usefulness of the photolisting book.

MARE provides ample opportunities for adoption agencies to be aware of upcoming photolisting registration deadlines through the monthly agency Tracking List and both the 90-day and 182-day Registration Notices. We also produce “cheat sheets” on an annual basis (available for the asking) which calculate both the 90-day and 182-day due date for documentation based on the permanent custody date. The MARE office also contacts agencies once each month by phone and/or fax to determine the status of all children currently listed in the MARE Book. Agencies are required by FIA policy (or contract if it is a private agency) to respond to these requests for information from MARE. The goal is to assist agencies/workers in removing children with identified families from the photolisting book, thereby ensuring that the MARE book is a viable and credible recruitment tool.

How to Register Children for Photolisting

If no family is identified to adopt a child by either 90 or 182 days from the permanent custody date, that child must be registered in the MARE photolisting book for recruitment purposes.

The blue Child Entry Form must be filled out completely, including the child’s likes, interests, hobbies, talents, and the like. Information regarding behavioral challenges and special needs is also to be included, along with an indication of impairment levels and any special placements needs to be considered. Workers must also send a clear, well-lighted photo of the child along with the Child Entry Form in order for the registration to be complete. Photocopied or faxed images of photos are not acceptable, as they cannot be reproduced for publication. Photos may be in color or black and white, and the size of the photo does not matter. Photos may also be sent to MARE via email as J-PEG files (.JPG) with a minimum resolution of 72 dpi (150- 200 dpi is preferred). Sears Portrait Studios sponsor a nationwide program to provide FREE photo sessions to adoption-eligible children for recruitment purposes. The one condition is that original Sears Portrait Studio forms must be used. Copies of these forms have been sent to agencies; additional forms are available by request from MARE. Please keep in mind that it can take 6 – 8 weeks for MARE to receive the photo from Sears. Since a photo is required with every MARE photolisting registration, workers should plan accordingly and submit an alternate photo, if necessary, along with the registration form. The Sears photo will appear in the MARE Book once MARE has received it.

Just as important as registering only those children for whom recruitment is necessary, is making sure that the photos and information of the children who do appear in the book are as accurate as possible. Twice each year MARE sends agencies requests for updated photos and information for children whose listing has not been updated for over one year. A child’s appearance and development can change dramatically in that time, and in order to be a more useful resource the MARE book should contain up-to-date information. Once again, agencies are required by policy and/or contract to respond to requests for information from MARE.

The MARE photolisting book has undergone many changes and refinements over the years. Since the debut of the book in its current format in August 1992, the MARE book has been recognized as one of the best photolisting books in the nation. Michigan is still the only state with a mandatory photolisting policy in order to expose children to as many potential adoptive families as possible. All Michigan adoption professionals can take pride in this service that is offered to waiting children and prospective adoptive families. And we at MARE ask the hundreds of agencies and workers throughout the state to help us continue to produce a valuable recruitment tool.

Editor’s note: A work group is being formed to gather and offer input regarding how the MARE photolisting book is working, and what (if any) changes could be made to help improve this recruitment resource. Details will be shared in subsequent editions of this newsletter as they become available.

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Recruitment Effort Finds Families for Children

by Kirsta Grapentine and Amanda Lynet

At seventeen, Odis had been in foster care for several years, had experienced the disappointment of not being adopted by a long-time foster family, and had also lived in a residential treatment facility. He seemed an unlikely candidate for adoption, and his adoption worker was often teased by co-workers for her determined recruitment efforts. Enter the One by One program created by Bethany Christian Services, and witness the result: a happy ending for Odis and his adoption worker.

Bethany Christian Services has long taken pride in recruiting families for children listed in the MARE photolisting book. Recognizing that many foster and adoptive parents initially get involved in the child welfare system as a result of contact with other families who foster and adopt, One by One was born in 1999 when Bethany received a three-year federal Adoption Opportunity Grant to fund this recruitment concept.

The mission of One by One is to enhance the “adoptability” of minority and special needs children in the child welfare system by mobilizing foster parents to serve as “adoption advocates” by promoting personalized exposure of waiting children to their local community. The program does this by placing adoption-eligible children in the home of an approved sponsor family for a series of sponsorship weekends. During these weekends, the child is introduced to the social network through which the family naturally travels – family, friends, church, recreation, etc. The hope is that one of the families who meet the child will open up their hearts and home to the child on a permanent basis.

Since the creation of the One by One program, Bethany Christian Services now focuses on a two-pronged approach in its recruitment efforts:

1. To find families willing to make a permanent commitment to a waiting child through adoption, and,
2. To find families willing to act as sponsor families.

One by One Program Director Jim Nelson feels that this is one of the strengths of the program - it offers families options. A family may not be ready to foster or adopt, but they can still do something to help a waiting child.

Although much of the recruitment that Bethany has done is through outreach to an existing network of foster and adoptive families, a great deal of effort is also being put into forging new partnerships in the community. Churches, schools, community leaders, and other human service agencies are all called upon to join the cause in each of the six regional areas where Bethany Christian Services has offices. Regardless of experience, all families are given encouragement on how to use their existing social networks to find permanent homes for their “sponsor children.” Each approved sponsor family completes a profile form; families and children are then matched based on the child’s specific needs and the family’s comfort level with those needs. A sponsorship agreement is then created with the sponsor family, the child, and the child’s foster family all being aware of the terms of the agreement and what to expect.

A typical sponsorship scenario might include a night of bowling with the sponsor family and their friends, attending a neighborhood or work sponsored outing, and a trip to church. Although most sponsorship activities occur over a weekend, weekday sponsorships are also possible. Regardless of whether it’s a day or a weekend, the focus of the sponsorship time is to be child-friendly, fun, and a non-threatening situation for the child.

Most of the children who have participated One by One are selected from the MARE book, which means that Bethany staff do a considerable outreach and collaborate with the many agencies throughout Michigan that provide adoption services. When Oakland Family Services was approached about including Jerrit and Jamarreo in the One by One, the agency was sold on the concept after Bethany staff came to their office to make a presentation about the program. “They were very thorough and responsive in working with our agency, the foster parents and the children,” said Nancy Rebar, Adoption Supervisor at Oakland Family Services.

Once enrolled in the program Bethany staff put a great deal of effort into preparing the child and the child’s foster family for the sponsorship experience. A special child assessment tool is used by the Bethany worker to help the child gain a sense of “ownership” in the recruitment process. Working with the child’s foster parents allows them to be supportive and encourage the child to participate fully in the sponsorship event. Additionally, because sponsorship events may entail a child being out of the foster home for only one or two nights, it is important for foster families to know that they do not lose any reimbursement pay – a big advantage for Bethany when seeking foster family cooperation.

Sponsor families are expected to host their “sponsor children” for as many visits as it takes to locate a permanent home. For Jarret and Jamarreo it took only one visit! That’s when their host family, an experienced foster family, realized that they wanted to make these siblings a permanent part of their family. Surprisingly, many other host families who initially come forward to host a child have opted to adopt upon spending a weekend with their “sponsor child.” That’s not to say that One by One has not produced its desired outcome - recruited adopted families. It certainly has!

For Odis, One by One gave him the opportunity to be adopted instead of “graduating from the system.” During a weekend sponsorship event, an experienced adoptive family met Odis and decided to adopt him. With the prospect of a permanent family on the horizon, the staff of the residential treatment facility where Odis now lives has noted a difference in his attitude - they have never seen him smile so big or so often. As for Odis’ adoption worker, she is thrilled with the bragging rights she has earned by using an innovative recruitment program that endeavors to find homes for waiting children - one by one.

For more information about the One by One program, contact Program Director Jim Nelson at (616) 224-7483.