Adoption Terms
GWCA
Ohio Regional Office
Adoption Terms
Adoption: to take a child of other birth parents as your own child.
Adoption agency: a state licensed entity that provides homestudy services for possible adoptive parents, arrange placement for children in need of adoption and any post-placement services required by law.
Adoption assistance programs: (Title IV-E/federal) Created by the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980, this program provides federal financial support for children who are described as having special needs at adoption.
Adoption triad: The three primary persons affected by the adoption: the birth parents, the child and the adoptive parent.
Attachment: An emotional bond between two people that lasts over a long period of time sets up a relationship and helps each person reach their potential and feel both secure and connected.
Birth parent: two persons who genetically create a child.
Homestudy: process by which a licensed by the state social worker and adoptive parents work together to complete necessary paperwork that assesses their skills, life experiences and strengths to complete the adoption process.
International adoption: The adoptive placement of a child who is a citizen of another country. The adoptive parents must apply to Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services. BCIS only allows adoptions from approved countries The adoptive parents must fill out an I 600-A Application for Advance Processing of Orphan Petition and I 600 Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative.
Finalization: legal act that establishes a family connection between the adopting parents and the adopted chiild. Usually presented in juvenile probate court this act grants rights and responsibilities to the adoptive parent and child equal to those rights and responsibilities granted to families created by birth.
Lifebook: A chronological record of a child’s life, usually in a photo album or binder, created by the child and/or the caregivers, that documents for the child, in concrete ways, the events and relationships important to the child. It may include photographs, mementos, or descriptions that help the child understand their biological origins and others who have played a significant role in their life.
Loss: The emotional and psychological state experienced when someone temporarily or permanently is separated from someone or something to which they have an emotional attachment or need. All loss causes trauma and crisis, in varying degrees.
Non-recurring Adoption Subsidy: one-time expenses incurred by a person adopting, such as travel costs, legal costs, and homestudy-related costs. These are frequently reimbursable through federal and local funds
Parent support groups: groups of adoptive parents and potential adoptive parents that meet to share information, resources, provide education opportunities and offer support for the adoptive family through all phases of their adoption. Some groups create activities for adoptive family members.
PASSS:
An Ohio fund available to any resident family who completes an adoption.
Eligible families adopt a child child who, after the adoption is legalized,
develops needs related to preexisting conditions or related to the adoption
process itself. You must apply in the county of residence. Ohio
families who adopt a child from another state or country are eligible
for this program. Commonly called Post Adoption Special
Services Subsidy.