[momatlast]

Hi,

I'm thinking of trying to adopt a waiting child possibly from another state.

I've seen some posts suggesting that if I go through NJ DYFS, that I may have difficulty getting a copy of my homestudy to send out, and difficulty applying for more than one child at a time.

Would it be better for me to have my homestudy done via a private agency? Are there NJ private agencies that are familiar with what would be required to adopt a waiting child from another state? (or even from NJ on the off-chance that I find a child I'm interested in here)

Also, I was told that adoptive parents now need to receive MAPP training (in the past I believe this was only true of foster parents). Is this true? And can private agencies provide this training?

Thanks. As you can see, I'm a bit confused by all of this. Our last adoption was international, and things seemed more straightforward.

[aMarylandfamily]

I would inquire to both private and public agencies and ask regarding their requirements for the adoption homestudy and training and how they process "out-of-state" placements - from search to placement to post-supervision ... and determine which one will work best for you. Training is now required by all states I believe for both adoption and foster care ... not always MAPP ... it can be referred to as PRIDE or something similar ... basically it is an amount of hours required ... Many states contract with private agencies to perform homestudies which can be applied to in-state foster care adoption or out of state - sometimes they will require the placing state if other than your own to reimburse for the costs/expenses associated with the homestudy preparation/requirements but most states placing out of home are prepared to provide same ... generally after the fact/at finalization though ... some states provide no post-placement supervision services so you'll need to be careful (California, Massachusetts are examples and the prospective adoptive parents then end up assuming the costs of reportings for the courts for finalization and that can get pricey) ... again something to ask when inquiring into agencies ... many do have information nights - September, January and Spring ... call asap and find out when those may be taking place ... they are a resource of information.

Hope this helps.

[momatlast]

I'll do that. I've sent away for information from several agencies. Just waiting for it to come in.

[leenab]

In NJ, training is required to become an adoptive family through DYFS or a private agency. It is difficult to go out of state.

And DYFS will only allow your homestudy to be sent out on one child/sibling set at a time. It's their policy.

The first two adoptions were fost/adopt placements for us. Right now we're matched with a sibling set of two for an adoptive placement. And we've had a failed NJ fost/adopt placement where the biograndmother asked for her granddaughter back and got her.

We went through Just Babies, which is contracted by DYFS for in-state foster/adopt. I know Bethany does adoptions from fostercare both in and out of state.

Going through state adoption is anything but straight forward. There is a lot of waiting for a match with no real time line. We waited a little over a year for our recent match. But it wasn't sent to us through DYFS, it came through a friend of a friend of a foster mother.

The biggest thing I've learned in this adoption journey is how important it is to advocate for yourself as well as your adoptive children. I used to be such a quiet and shy person, but that's long gone. You have to be very assertive and follow-up constantly.

-Leena

[momatlast]

Thank you.

[futurefost.mom]

Hi We also inquired about adopting outside our home state. We were told by the state of the childrens home and by our state that states will not share homestudies outside the state. Most states recommend that you have private adoption agency do your homestudy for that reason.