Announcing NCFA's Annual Conference: September 22-24 in New Orleans

SAVE THE DATE: Announcing NCFA's Annual Conference, September 22-24 in New Orleans!

Visit fromhelpingtohealing.org for more information.

Less Than One Week to Register for Webinar: Understanding Grief and Loss

Less than one week left to register for our newest webinar!

"Understanding Grief and Loss"

Join NCFA on Thursday, October 1st at 2pm EST when Bethany Christian Services’ Senior Vice President of Clinical Operations, Kris Faasse, will educate us on the basics of the grieving process. Special attention will be given to some common implications for birth parents and adopted children of various ages. We’ll explore the science, research, and experience of grief and loss in the context of adoption. This 90 minute webinar will include some time for Q & A with the expert. 

In order to attend the webinar session, you must register by Wednesday, September 30th at Noon EST!

About the Presenter

Kris Faasse, LMSW, ACSW started working in the adoption arena as a pregnancy counselor working with expectant moms facing unplanned pregnancies and wrestling with decisions about whether to parent their children or make adoption plans. Currently, she serves as the National Director of Adoption Services for Bethany Christian Services, an adoption and family preservation agency with offices nationwide. She has over 20 years of experience and holds both a Bachelor and Master’s Degree in social work. Kris has trained both nationally and internationally on topics including openness in adoption, the adoption process, grief and loss issues and Safe Haven Laws.

New NCFA Webinar! Understanding Grief and Loss

Register now for our newest webinar!

"Understanding Grief and Loss"

Join NCFA on Thursday, October 1st at 2pm EST when Bethany Christian Services’ Senior Vice President of Clinical Operations, Kris Faasse, will educate us on the basics of the grieving process. Special attention will be given to some common implications for birth parents and adopted children of various ages. We’ll explore the science, research, and experience of grief and loss in the context of adoption. This 90 minute webinar will include some time for Q & A with the expert. 

In order to attend the webinar session, you must register by Wednesday, September 30th at Noon EST!

About the Presenter

Kris Faasse, LMSW, ACSW started working in the adoption arena as a pregnancy counselor working with expectant moms facing unplanned pregnancies and wrestling with decisions about whether to parent their children or make adoption plans. Currently, she serves as the National Director of Adoption Services for Bethany Christian Services, an adoption and family preservation agency with offices nationwide. She has over 20 years of experience and holds both a Bachelor and Master’s Degree in social work. Kris has trained both nationally and internationally on topics including openness in adoption, the adoption process, grief and loss issues and Safe Haven Laws.

#PFF15 Adopted Persons Scholarship

Adopted People Scholarship

"What does family mean to you?"

In a short 250-450 word essay, adopted people and foster care alumni are challenged to answer the question above for a chance to win a free registration to our 2015 Putting Family First Conference, held in Washington D.C. on June 21-23 2015.  This scholarship is generously sponsored by Gladney Center for Adoption. The winning essays will also be published on our NCFA blog. Applicants must 18 or older and need to submit their essays by May 8th.  

*Please note that room and travel are not included in this giveaway and must be booked separately.  

Hopscotch Values Our Membership with the National Council for Adoption

 

It was such a pleasure to visit and reconnect with the staff of NCFA.  Together we attended the USCIS Intercountry Adoption Stakeholders Meeting on March 17, 2015.  It was nice to meet in person with the Children's Issues officers.  Meeting in person allowed for a fresh perspective on the work they do within the constraints of each country and also within our own country's limitations.  We can truly appreciate the magnitude of work they are undertaking to insure legal and ethical adoptions take place in the best interest of all children.  Thank you Megan Lestino for picking me up from the airport and getting me back on my way home.   Looking forward to seeing all of you again in June for the NCFA/JCICS conference!  

Creating Trauma-Informed Classrooms

NCFA Releases Adoption Advocate No. 75 | Creating Trauma-Informed Classrooms

With another school year beginning, it is important for teachers and school administrators to understand the impact of trauma, abuse, neglect, and other risk factors in a child's history that can affect his or her ability to learn and feel safe and connected in the classroom. In the September 2014 issue of NCFA's Adoption Advocate, co-authors Casey Call, Karyn Purvis, Sheri R. Parris, and David Cross share the results from different schools employing Trust-Based Relationship Intervention® (TBRI®), and emphasize the power of safe, nurturing relationships in the classroom—particularly for children from "hard places."

Read more: http://www.adoptioncouncil.org/files/large/4b9294d4e0fc351

NCFA Friends Visit Hopscotch

 
Wayne & Vickie Allgaier,

Constituent Services for National Council For Adoption, visited Hopscotch Adoptions in our High Point, North Carolina office this past week.  Our staff felt so honored to have a personal visit and opportunity to learn and share with two of the most special people working on behalf of children around the world.  Professionally and personally - it really meant a lot to us!  Hurry back to High Point and drop in anytime! 

Janelle Ison: Adoptee, Birthmom, and Adoption Advocate

Source: http://www.parkerhospital.org/adoptionperspectives

Janelle Ison had just turned 18 when she found out she was pregnant. 

As an adopted person herself, her parents encouraged her to consider adoption, yet she dismissed the idea because of the overwhelming connection she felt with her unborn child and her worries that she would be viewed by her peers as a bad mother.  On today’s show, hear about her unique journey that led her to ultimately place her son for open adoption.  Also, hear how she recently connected with her birthmother and how blessed and fortunate she feels to have so much love and family in her life.  To learn more about Janelle’s adoption journey, you can also view her personal video at:  My Beautiful Son - Janelle's Adoption Story.    

Janelle works at the National Council For Adoption (NCFA), an adoption advocacy nonprofit that promotes a culture of adoption through education, research, and legislative action.  Janelle serves as the Director of Operations and plays an integral role in NCFA’s iChooseAdoption campaign.  The overall goal of the campaign is to enable women facing unintended pregnancy to consider adoption more freely, understand their options and choices in order to make a fully informed decision, and increase public understanding of and appreciation for infant adoption and birthmothers.  For more information please visit: iChooseAdoption

NCFA Responds to Media Reports Regarding the Practice of Underground Placements of Internationally Adopted Children

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Lauren Koch
(703) 299-6633
lkoch@adoptioncouncil.org

 

 

 

September 11, 2013 – Alexandria, VA – The recent Reuters and NBC News reports have drawn public attention to very concerning cases where children who had joined families through both intercountry and domestic adoption were tragically placed in inappropriate settings through the unethical means of secretive internet groups.

Although NCFA takes very seriously the concern of adoption dissolution, we believe it is
important to provide the perspective that while any amount of these unethical child placements is unacceptable, they are a distinct minority of adoptions. This significant concern is a small portion of the many children living in informal care settings that may be unsafe for them – the vast majority of those being U.S.-born children placed there by biological parents.

We call for an end to this inappropriate practice of illegally relocating children to potentially unsafe environments and appropriate prosecution of those involved in harming children. We believe it is a failing of the broader child welfare system’s difficult work of ensuring every child is in a safe setting and a failure to enforce the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children when these situations occur across state lines. NCFA always advocates that when a child is placed in the care of new, permanent caretakers it should always be done through the most permanent legal mechanism possible and under the auspices of professional child welfare workers. Formal, legal adoption and in some cases legal guardianship should be ensured so that proper protocols have been followed to guarantee a placement is a safe setting for a child.

NCFA takes the issue of adoption dissolution very seriously. In the last two years, NCFA has provided four trainings at our National Adoption Conference to help adoption professionals and families understand how to work together in these difficult situations in the best interests of children. We have also recently published Supporting Children and Families When Adoption Dissolution Occurs to provide suggestions to increase professional and public awareness on how dissolution should be handled to protect children and support families.

NCFA has and continues to support enhanced pre-adoption training and post-adoption support services for all types of adoption. We believe increased pre-adoption training will help to better prepare families for the needs of special needs and traumatized children and should specifically educate prospective parents on any known needs of a child. We also advocate for widely available post-adoption support services through the public child welfare system as well as private agencies. A reliable system of support would help to provide a safe place for families to turn before they reach the crisis level which may sometimes cause them to turn to unethical placements.

We believe that the Universal Accreditation Act, passed by Congress in December, and to be fully implemented by July 2014, will increase the education and professional requirements for international adoption agencies and will help support better services for children adopted from all countries. Further, NCFA believes that forthcoming legislation called the Children in Families First Act would provide overall improvement to US intercountry adoption systems, potentially including the ability to better track the placement and status of internationally adopted children for the purpose of post-adoption reports.

According to NCFA president Chuck Johnson, “These are tragic stories with a link to adoption, but the reality is that adoption is a vastly successful solution for nearly all of the children who find families. As we work to bring greater protection to children and stronger support services to families and children, it would be a greater tragedy to falsely conclude that these stories are a complete representation of adoption. In actuality, millions of children have found life and hope in families through adoption. We at NCFA will do our best to continue to make adoption the safest and best process possible for children to thrive as they find their way to a forever family.”

 

# # #
Passionately committed to the belief that every child deserves to thrive in a nurturing, permanent family, NCFA’s mission is to meet the diverse needs of children, birthparents, adopted individuals, adoptive families, and all those touched by adoption through global advocacy, education, research, legislative action, and collaboration.

More information is available on our website, www.adoptioncouncil.org.

NCFA Releases Adoption Advocate No. 61: The Healing Power of "Giving Voice"

Source: NCFA Releases Adoption Advocate No. 61: The Healing Power of “Giving Voice”

Children coming from situations of trauma, abuse, or neglect often experience the loss of their "voice" -- their ability to voice their needs in a healthy way and trust that they will be met. Interventions for children from the "hard places" must include restoring voice, which in turn encourages trust, healing, and attachment. In the July 2013 issue of NCFA's Adoption Advocate, Drs. Karyn Purvis and David Cross explore what the loss of voice means for children, and how appropriate interventions and therapies can allow them  to give voice to their needs and experience healing within a safe, nurturing family. The article includes a brief list of recommended skills and strategies for parents and caregivers.

Click here to download the PDF of Adoption Advocate No. 61 or click here to view the web version.

NCFA - Inter-country Adoption - Senate Approves Fix to Citizenship for Inter-country Adoptees

The U.S. Senate approved an amendment Tuesday to the immigration reform bill that provides automatic citizenship to all persons who were born outside the United States and were adopted by U.S. citizens. The provision would fix a controversial law that has led to the deportation of adoptees who lived most of their lives in the United States.

Called the "Citizenship for Lawful Adoptees Amendment," the fix would give citizenship to all of those who were adopted as children by U.S. citizens.

In 2001, inter-country adoptees were given automatic citizenship, but it was not made retro-active for those over 18 years old at the time. There are some adults in the United States today who were adopted, brought to the United States as infants, grew up in the United States, but are not citizens because their parents failed to apply for citizenship for them.

Read the rest of the article here.

NCFA Interns Venture to the Supreme Court for Oral Arguments on ICWA

NCFA submitted amicus curiae or “friend of the court” briefs for the Supreme Court case, Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl. The case involves adoptive parents, Matt and Melanie Capobianco, who made an adoption plan with the birthmother of a little baby girl named Veronica. The biological father, Dusten Brown, is a member of the Cherokee Nation. Dusten Brown renounced his parental rights via a text message prior to Veronica’s birth, and based on state law he had no parental rights. However, after receiving notice of the pending adoption, he invoked the Indian Child Welfare Act to gain custody of baby Veronica. The Indian Child Welfare Act was created in 1978 in an effort to keep Native American children with their biological families.

Sourced: By Jaclyn Newton

Read more.

Adoption Advocate No. 60, “Preparing Children for the Adoption of a Sibling: Recommendations for Families Considering Intercountry Adoption”

Prospective adoptive parents are not the only ones who need to educate and prepare themselves prior to an adoption -- any children already in the home must have the opportunity to learn more about what it might be like to add a child to the family through adoption. In the June 2013 issue of NCFA's Adoption Advocate, Laura Beauvais-Godwin addresses common questions adoptive parents have about these important discussions, providing general guidelines and suggestions for those considering adoption as a way of adding to their families. Click here to view, print, or download.

2013 National Adoption Conference: “The best yet!”

This year’s conference in Orlando, Florida was NCFA’s largest conference ever and a huge success! Participants absolutely loved the location and seemed to thoroughly enjoy the sessions as they were able to choose between management and clinical tracks. With dynamic keynote speakers including Lucas Daniel Boyce and Secretary David Wilkins, each day started off with enthusiasm and passion about working to connect children with families. If you would like to see the details for each day, please take a look at the NCFA blog, which outlines each day’s sessions and activities. Stay tuned for the announcement of the date and location of the 2014 National Adoption Conference!

[NCFA - Member Agencies] Intercountry Adoption Numbers Continue to Decline

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact:
Chuck Johnson
(301) 751-3750

Intercountry Adoption Numbers Continue to Decline

January 25, 2013 – Alexandria, VA – This week the U.S. Department of State released its FY 2012 Annual Report on Intercountry Adoption. According to the report, American families adopted 8,668 foreign-born children in 2012, a decline from the 9,319 that they adopted in 2011 – making 2012 the eighth straight year in which intercountry adoptions have decreased since the peak year of 2004, when close to 23,000 children were adopted from other countries.

Intercountry adoptions by American families began in the 1950s, when Harry and Bertha Holt appealed to Congress to change existing law and allow Americans to adopt children from other countries. Although the numbers were relatively low in those early years, intercountry adoptions to the U.S. began to rise sharply in the 1990s, following the fall of Nicolae Ceausescu’s regime in Romania. It was learned that tens of thousands of children had been orphaned or abandoned, and were living in orphanages in Romania. Americans responded by adopting thousands of these orphaned and vulnerable children.

In 2008, the U.S. implemented The Hague Adoption Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Inter-Country Adoption (The Hague Convention), an international agreement established to provide universal protections and regulations for the adoption of children and promote cooperation among signatories of the agreement.

Many advocates believed that The Hague Convention would result in increased opportunities for orphaned and abandoned children to find safe, permanent, loving families through intercountry adoption, but that has not occurred. No new countries have opened intercountry adoption programs under The Hague Convention since the treaty was implemented by the U.S., and several countries have closed to address issues within their adoption programs and reorganize under a new Hague Convention-compliant system.

The number of intercountry adoptions will likely continue to decline as adoption programs in both Hague and non-Hague nations slow or shut down. American families adopted nearly 1,000 Russian-born orphans in 2011, but Russia recently banned Americans from adopting Russian orphans as a result of the U.S. passage of the Magnitsky Act in December 2012. Two Countries, Vietnam and Cambodia, have recently announced their succession to the Hague Convention and readiness to resume intercountry adoption with the U.S. but as yet the U.S. has not agreed to work with them on behalf of children in need of a family.

“The decline in the number of intercountry adoptions has occurred at a time when the global orphan population has increased dramatically,” notes Chuck Johnson, president and CEO of National Council For Adoption. “There are millions upon millions of children living outside of permanent family care – and for many, their best chance at securing a loving and permanent family is through intercountry adoption. The continued decline in intercountry adoptions is not good for children, and it is a disgrace and a travesty that more isn’t being done to offer children the hope of a family through intercountry adoption.”

NCFA continues to support The Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption, which requires much stronger oversight and greater transparency in the intercountry adoption process. “The Hague Convention is a foundation for transparent, ethical, and lawful adoption practices, and now that it is in place we must use it,” says Chuck Johnson. “We must do more to expand opportunities for children in need of families to be adopted by those qualified and eager to adopt. We call upon children’s advocates, child welfare officials, and government stakeholders in all nations to work together more effectively on behalf of orphaned and abandoned children, with the sense of compassion and urgency they deserve.”

Adria Anderson
Development and Communications Associate
National Council For Adoption
225 N. Washington Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
T: 703.299.6633 | F: 703.299.6004
aanderson@adoptioncouncil.org
www.adoptioncouncil.org

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The Hope Challenge: Growing Hearts & Building Families

Joint Council - ACTION REQUEST - Russia

As noted in an email (below) from Natash Shginian, the Russian media is looking for stories of Russian adoptees which will highlight the positive results of living in a safe, permanent and loving family.  If you know of an appropriate family or adoptee please have them contact Laris Mason, Executive Director of International Assistance Group and member of the NCFA Board of Directors.  Larisa can be contacted at larisamason@yahoo.com. 

Larisa is hoping to collect pictures, short stories and pertinent facts regarding the child’s and family’s adoption.

Recognizing the urgency of the proposed ban on intercountry adoption, please respond to Larisa by close-of-business on Friday, December 21st.

Thank you for all that you do for the children we serve.


Best Wishes,

Tom DiFilipo

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Colleagues:

We all are very concerned by the critical situation in Russia regarding the possible ban of adoptions by American families proposed by the Russian Government.

I believe that using the Voice of the Child is the most important action right now. Governmental officials as well as representatives from the adoption agencies and other Non-Governmental Organizations cannot have the same strength as the voices of the children.

Children have the right to speak out and they will be listened to. We are working with the media in Russia to bring the Voice of the Child loud and clear to the Russian public and to the Russian government.

If you have any families who have adopted children with special needs, or children who were saved and are thriving because of international adoption, please, ask them to provide pictures of their children and a short story (half page) with any important or pertinent facts regarding the child’s medical condition and their past history. They will be published in the Russian media. Please, send the information by Friday to Larisa Mason, the member of the board of directors of NCFA specializing on Russia - larisamason@yahoo.com. We are working together on this very urgent matter. We also plan to have a few spokesmen - the adopted children - who will represent the entire community of other adoptees. They will write letters and everyone can sign. They also will speak through the social media.

JCICS is involved and Tom is working on this matter as well.

This is a way of protesting the proposed legislation and is a hope to stop the Russian Governmental action.


Best Regards,

Natasha Shaginian-Needham, M.D.
Executive Director and Co-Founder
Happy Families International Center, Inc.
www.happyfamilies.org
Co-Founder of Artist Foundation in Russia Producer

Russian Parliament Proposes Ban in Retaliation for the Magnitsky Act; International Politicking Would Force Orphaned Children to Pay the Price

As reported by the National Council for Adoption:

December 18, 2012 – Alexandria, VA – Legislation has been introduced in the Russian Parliament that would ban intercountry adoptions with the United States. This radical amendment to the Dima Yakovlev Law was proposed as retaliation against U.S. passage of the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act, a bill that imposes sanctions against Russian officials perceived by the U.S. to be guilty of human rights violations in Russia.

Among the sanctions is a prohibition on Russian criminals visiting the United States.

This threatened ban on intercountry adoption comes after years of discussion between Russia and the United States to address areas of needed reform, strengthen protections and increase accountability, and better serve adopted children and adoptive families. Recent negotiations resulted in a bilateral agreement between Russia and the U.S., which went into effect on November 1, 2012.

"Orphaned children could become collateral damage in this round of international politicking," says Chuck Johnson, president and CEO of the National Council For Adoption. “The proposed Russian amendment is a punitive, excessive, and highly unfortunate reaction to a U.S. policy that has absolutely nothing to do with intercountry adoption. The opposition of some Russian politicians to the Magnitsky Act, which prevents Russian human rights violators from entering the U.S., should not threaten the possibility of adoption for orphaned and vulnerable Russian children. NCFA and other U.S. adoption advocates are pleading with Russian officials to do the right thing for the more than 700,000 children currently living in institutions in Russia who deserve loving families of their own.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin, while displeased with the Magnitsky Law, promised an “adequate and not excessive” response. “Banning intercountry adoption is excessive,” says Johnson. “Russian orphans are counting on their President to hear their voices.”

How can you help?

Contact your State Representatives, Congressmen/Congresswomen, and Senators (visit www.contactingthecongress.org to find your representatives) and ask them to stop this from happening.  Below you will find samples from NCFA for you to use. Please personalize it. Congressional offices especially value hearing the unique voices of their constituents. You may cut and past the following text (be sure to personalize the letter at the bold and italicized points):

 Dear President/ Senator/Representative ____________________:

I am writing to alert you to an urgent concern regarding adoption. Congress recently passed the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act and President Obama signing into law on December 14, 2012.

In response, Russia's legislature, is considering legislation this week that is being referred to as the Dima Yakovlev Law, named after a Russian-born child who died in the care of his adoptive parents. This law would ban from visiting Russia anyone involved in the case of Dima Yakovlev or other Russian born adopted children who died in the United States. What is of most urgent concern is that a recent amendment to this law would also end Intercountry Adoption between Russian and the United States. I believe it is absolutely important to protect the rights of every child and there should be a measured response to the death of each of these children. We mourn the loss of these Russian-born children with the Russians as they were also dear to us as American children. However, it is important to note that these children are a tiny minority. Many thousands of Russian born children have been adopted and thrived in the love and care of their American families. If intercountry adoption between Russia and the United States were to close, many thousands of children would likely languish in orphanages instead of finding their way to safe, loving, permanent families in the United States.

Now, let me tell you our story, [tell them how adoption has impacted your family, what outcomes may have been if your child could not have been adopted]. If intercountry adoption between Russia and the United States closes, other children like [your child's name] will not be able to find their way to the many U.S. families willing and waiting to call them their own.

Please ask President Obama to contact President Putin of Russia and ask him not to allow this amendment to become part of Russian law. U.S. diplomacy at this time is essential to save the lives of many young Russians waiting for a family of their own.

Respectfully,
[Your Name]