Adoptions continue during the pandemic.
Deciding to adopt is a major step in your life's journey. Choosing those to help you, is one of the important decisions you will make early on in your adoption process. No one answer is correct and depends on how much you want to be involved and control the process (working with an attorney) or if you would rather turn the process over to agency personnel and protocol.
Whichever way you choose, the best of luck, and remember, I am here to help you achieve your dream.
Kathy Ann Brodsky, LCSW is a New York and New Jersey licensed social worker, adoptive mom and advocate for ethical adoption practice. Through her private practice and agency affiliations, she has prepared thousands of adoption homestudies, counseled expectant, birth, pre/post adoptive parents and adopted persons, as well as trained professionals to work with adoptive families. She was Director of the Ametz Adoption Program of JCCA and a member of the Advisory Board for POV’s Adoption Series and the Adoption Advisory Board of Path2Parenthood, She is currently a Adoption Professional Advisory Council of HelpUSAdopt , a member of the Advisory Board of the Family Equality Council and active in the Adoptive Parents Committee in New York. Her blogs and written contributions can be seen throughout the Internet, including her BLOG and as Head Writer for ADOPTION.NET She was named an “Angel in Adoption” by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption in 2001. You can reach her directly.
Deciding to adopt is a major step in your life's journey. Choosing those to help you, is one of the important decisions you will make early on in your adoption process. No one answer is correct and depends on how much you want to be involved and control the process (working with an attorney) or if you would rather turn the process over to agency personnel and protocol.
AGENCY: Someone else will be overseeing the matching
process and all the steps of the adoption. They are also the conduit of all
information. They make the decision if your profile will be shown to an
expectant mother alone or along with other profiles. Therefore, it is important
for you to ascertain how many others are seeking a particular type of
child with this agency as well as how many profiles are presented at one time.
You also want to find out the typical length of time before a match/placement
is made; how many matches they make in a year and how many families are in
their program. You also want to be sure that if this agency does your
homestudy, that you can access it for any other adoption that may come your
way.
ATTORNEY: A more hands on approach. With legal
guidance, you will control what happens and when, including the outreach
efforts to find an expectant mother. You can do this yourself or hire a
consultant to run the outreach campaign and screen calls and emails from
expectant mothers. Yours will be the only profile seen at a time. Your attorney
is your legal advocate throughout the process and will coordinate all needed
services. You should confirm that they have access to adoption attorneys
in other states, in case it is needed.
While all states have agencies who do private,
international and foster care adoption, each state has its own regulations.
For example, NYS has a limited number of agencies in state or authorized
to place children into NYS. As a result, they can get glutted with waiting
families. Because of this, many singles and couples choose the
independent/attorney route.
I myself (a New York resident) adopted twice,
starting with a private attorney and ending up needing an agency in the state
where my daughters were born. My attorney remained involved and helped locate
needed out of state services.
Over the years, I have counseled thousands of
singles and couples as they decide early in the adoption process or reconsider
their choice at a later date. Once in the adoption process, some find they want
less oversight or more personal control. You can do that and adjust what services,
professionals, etc. you need to complete a specific adoption.
Whichever way you choose, the best of luck, and remember, I am here to help you achieve your dream.
Kathy Ann Brodsky, LCSW is a New York and New Jersey licensed social worker, adoptive mom and advocate for ethical adoption practice. Through her private practice and agency affiliations, she has prepared thousands of adoption homestudies, counseled expectant, birth, pre/post adoptive parents and adopted persons, as well as trained professionals to work with adoptive families. She was Director of the Ametz Adoption Program of JCCA and a member of the Advisory Board for POV’s Adoption Series and the Adoption Advisory Board of Path2Parenthood, She is currently a Adoption Professional Advisory Council of HelpUSAdopt , a member of the Advisory Board of the Family Equality Council and active in the Adoptive Parents Committee in New York. Her blogs and written contributions can be seen throughout the Internet, including her BLOG and as Head Writer for ADOPTION.NET She was named an “Angel in Adoption” by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption in 2001. You can reach her directly.
