Session 8

Unit Three: Professional Parent Revisited
 

New Responsibilities...

In addition to the new roles you will be taking on as foster or adoptive parents, you will also be assuming many new responsibilities as a professional team member. We will be briefly reviewing some of these. They include participation in Family Team Meetings, serving as Surrogate Parent for Educational needs, Documentation, Maintaining Health Records, and Preserving the child’s life story and history through lifebooks.

Family Team Meeting Information:

In order to broaden family involvement, increase collaboration and identify additional resources to create a better outcome for children and their families, BCFS is now utilizing a process (not just one meeting) called Family Team Meetings. FTMs bring together a) the family, b) interested people, such as friends, neighbors, community members and c) formal resources, such as child welfare, mental health, education and other agencies.

These meetings focus on family strengths and needs, not on symptoms or problems. They are generally requested by a birth parent and chaired by a BCFS caseworker, but circumstances vary depending upon the needs of the family.

The meetings bring together the wisdom/expertise of family and friends as well as the resources, experience and expertise of formal supports. This team works together to assure safety and meet the needs of children and families. Some components of the FTM include:

	Learning what the family hopes to accomplish. Setting reasonable and meaningful goals. Assessing family needs. Finding solutions to meet family needs.
Designing individualized supports and services that match the family needs and build on their strengths. Achieving clarity about who is responsible for agreed upon tasks.

In your role as a foster or adoptive parent, you may be invited to participate in a family team meeting. You will be involved in a planning session (in-person or by phone) so that you are adequately prepared and understand your role at the meeting.

 

Working with the School System

Foster and adoptive parents will be actively involved with the school system from the moment a child is placed in your home. You will be responsible for enrolling the child in school, communicating back and forth about the child’s progress and needs, attending meetings and assisting children with their schoolwork.

In order to enroll the child in school, the DHHS worker will need to release the records before you can register the child. It is very important to obtain as much information from the child’s caseworker about the child’s experience in prior schools. Records need to be forwarded to the new school and the foster parent will need information about special accommodations and special education procedures, if applicable, to the child in your care.

Children in foster care that need or may need special education services are assigned a “surrogate parent” that can represent the children in all educational matters, i.e., permission for evaluation/placement, member of Pupil Evaluation Team (PET), etc. In most cases, the foster parent is automatically appointed.

Surrogate parents need to become familiar with the Maine Special Education Regulations in order to be a strong advocate for the child.