Adoption and foster care can have a language all their own.  To help you navigate these processes, we've compiled a simple glossary.

If you need more information or don't find the term you're looking for, contact us.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A

Abandonment
Desertion of a parent or guardian without the provision of a safe, stable adult resource or an indication of returning to resume care

Abuse
Physical, emotional or sexual maltreatment; abuse may leave foster or adoptive children with considerable physical and emotional scars that will need to be addressed by their new families

Adoption
A legal action in which an adult or adults is provided legal and permanent custody of a child

Adoption Assistance
Monthly subsidies to help adoptive parents raise children with special needs.  These payments are paid by the government and were initially made possible by the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-272).  Minnesota also funds monthly payments for children with special needs who are not eligible for federal subsidies

Adoption Decree
The legal order issued by the courts that finalizes an adoption

Adoption Petition
The legal document in which parent's request the court's permission to adopt a child

Adoption Subsidy
Federal, state or private benefits designed to offset short- or long-term costs of an adoption

Adoption Tax Credit
Non-refundable credit that reduces federal taxes owed by a couple who claim adoption expense reimbursement under P.L. 104-188

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B

Birth Parent
A child's biological parent

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C

Closed Adoption
An adoption in which basic medical and social history is shared through an agency or other third-party.  Generally, contact between birth and adoptive family before and after adoption is prohibited

Concurrent Planning
A process in which the state works toward family reunification and, at the same time, develops an alternative permanency plan for the child if reunification fails.  Concurrent planning is intended to reduce the time a child waits before being placed with a permanent family

Consent to Adopt
Legal permission provided by the courts for the adoption to proceed

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F

Finalization
The final legal step in the adoption process; involves a court hearing during which a judge legally transfers custody of a child to the adoptive parents

Foster Care
Substitute care for children placed away from their parents or guardians.  AAAA bridge foster parents provide for the physical and emotional needs of the child through a long-term bond.

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G

Genealogy
A descriptive record of a family's ancestral line

Guardian
Person who fulfills the role of temporary legal parent; guardianship is subject to ongoing supervision by the court and ends at age 18 or by order of the court

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H

Home Study
A process in which prospective adoptive or foster parents work with a trained resource worker to evaluate their parenting strengths and determine the kinds of children they can parent

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I

Independent Adoption
Adoptions facilitated through an agency with the help of private legal representation; independent adoptions often involve infants and many times afford birth and adoptive parents more openness

Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC)
An agreement regulating the placement of children across state lines

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K

Kinship Care
The full-time nurturing of a child by a blood relative or someone with a previous relationship through a greater extended network

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L

Lifebook
A pictorial and written representation of the child's life designed to help the child make sense of his or her unique experiences; a lifebook may include birth parent information, other relatives, birthplace and date, etc., and can be put together by social workers, foster and/or adoptive parents in cooperation with the child

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M

Matching
The process of finding a child that fits the parenting strengths and capabilities of prospective adoptive parents

Multi-Ethnic Placement Act
The 1994 federal legislation implemented by states that prohibits the delay or denial of any adoption or placement in foster care due to the race color, or national origin of the child or of the foster or adoptive parents; the act requires states to provide for diligent recruitment of potential foster and adoptive families who reflect the ethnic and racial diversity of children for whom homes are needed

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N

Neglect
A failure to act resulting in imminent risk of serious harm, death, physical or emotional harm, or exploitation of a child

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P

Permanency Planning
The strategy of carrying out a set of direct activities designed to help children live in permanent families.  This process has the goal of providing the child continuity of relationships with nurturing parents or caretakers and the opportunity to establish lifetime family relationships

Placement
The point at which a child begins living with foster or adoptive parents

Post-Placement Supervision
Counseling and agency services provided to a family after the child has been placed in the home

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R

Respite Care
Short-term care provided for a child to give adoptive or foster parents time to replenish the physical or emotional resources necessary in parenting

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S

Special Needs Children
An expansive term that characterizes children whose emotional or physical disorders, age, race, membership in a sibling group, a history of abuse, or other factors have contributed to a lengthy stay in foster care.  This term does not necessarily indicate physical challenges or mental delay

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T

Termination of Parental Rights
The legal process which severs a birth parent's rights to raise a child

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W

Waiting Children
Children in the child welfare system who cannot return to their birth homes and need permanent, loving families to help them grow up safe and secure

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