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General Adoption Sites

Adopting.org: This site provides a library of articles on international, open, and domestic adoptions; an interactive support page consisting of chat rooms on a large range of adoptive issues, and expert and support boards for posting questions; and a directory of adoption resources that can be searched and narrowed using criteria such as state and organization name (for instance, the directory can provide you with a listing of Adoptee and Adoptive Parent Support Groups in Colorado - some of the information is outdated).

ADOPTION information.com: Outstanding resource for information on multiple topics, including: adoption costs; adoption fraud; adoptees; gay/lesbian adoption; international adoption; kinship adoption; open adoption; legal resources; single adoptive parents; special needs adoption; transracial adoption; and search resources.

In Colorado: Raise the Future (formerly The Adoption Exchange): Raise the Future is based in the Rocky Mountain region and has branch offices in Albuquerque, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, and St. Louis. Raise the Future is not an adoption agency. It is, rather, a place for the exchange of resources on behalf of dozens of adoption agencies. When an agency is unable to locate a family for a waiting child, the agency uses Raise the Future's services to find a family. Raise the Future offers a wide array of services to agencies that place waiting children with families.

Adoptive Families Together: Adoptive Families Together (AFT) is a national supportive network of adoptive families who share experiences and information. AFT has an excellent LINKS section, including links to sites covering special needs, legal issues, books, etc. The site includes a database of adoptive families, in which the family is able to enter key words that identify the primary issues for each family; families are then able to communicate with each other based on their issues of concern. The site also contains an excellent resource library; all references have been provided by adoptive families.

Child Welfare League of America: CWLA is an association of more than 1,100 public and private nonprofit agencies that assist over 3.5 million abused and neglected children and their families each year with a wide range of services. CWLA services include: advocating for children's mental health issues; lobbying for key legislation affecting welfare of children; and adoption advocacy.

Children's Bureau Express: The Children’s Bureau Express is designed for professionals concerned with child abuse and neglect, child welfare, and adoption; however, the research and promising practices articles and publications are also very relevant for pre- and post-adoptive and kinship families. The Children's Bureau Express is supported by the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The National Adoption Center: This is an excellent site which includes links to articles on many aspects of adoption, including: How to Adopt; Financial Assistance; Resources; Conferences and Seminars; Special Needs; Adoption Parenting; Race & Culture; Issues and Legislation.

Child Welfare Gateway: is a federally funded, national clearinghouse and database with a wealth of information concerning all aspects of adoption. Child Welfare Gateway provides the following: a national listing of adoptive parent support groups; databases on all kinds of organizations/agencies relevant to adoptive parents; bibliographic abstracts of over 4,500 documents contained in their library; statistics on adoption; and search resources. Several topics that are discussed in depth include kinship care, fetal alcohol effects/syndrome, transracial adoptions, single parent adoptions, mental health issues, and post-adoption services. The site is also an excellent source for researching state and federal laws.

Child Welfare Gateway's National Adoption Directory: National Adoption Directory provides a state-by-state listing of information (email and mail addresses, phone numbers) for multiple public and private service agencies that may be helpful to adoptive families. The list of agencies includes the: State Adoption Specialist; State Foster Care Manager; State Licensing Specialist; State ICPC Administrator; State Adoption Exchange/Photolisting Service; State Reunion Registry; State Confidential Intermediary Service; Attorney Referral Service; Licensed Private Adoption Agencies; Adoptive/Foster Family Support Groups; as well as a listing of all county Department of Human Services offices.

National Endowment for Financial Education: "How to Make Adoption an Affordable Option" is an excellent financial resource for people who would like to consider adoption, but are reluctant because they believe that the process is too expensive. It is also for families who, caught up in the emotions of adopting, may not have given serious thought to some of the less obvious financial aspects of adoption, such as costs associated with therapy, medical needs, etc. This site includes information on expenses common to most adoptions, as well as those unique to the adoption of waiting children, to independent adoptions, and to international adoptions. It also includes information on financial assistance and tax breaks available to adoptive parents.

North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC): NACAC is a national agency offering adoption education, parent support, research, and advocacy for adoptive parents and professionals. An excellent resource on many different topics including information on how to adopt, adoption subsidies, transracial adoption, concurrent planning, special needs adoptions, post-adoptive services, etc.

Spaulding for Children, National Resource Center for Special Needs Adoptions: This multi-faceted organization provides help to children who wait the longest for permanency and support services for their adoptive, foster and kinship families. Nationwide, Spaulding's NRC provides training, consultation and informational materials for professionals, organizations and parents.

Resource Center on Fostering Connections Act Launched
On Wednesday, October 7, the first anniversary of passage of the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act, a coalition of foundation leaders launched a national resource center in support of implementing the Act. Fostering Connections promotes the safety, permanency, and well-being of children and youth in foster youth, and the Fostering Connections Resource Center will provide nonpartisan, timely, and reliable information to support decision makers in their implementation efforts. The Resource Center will also provide access to national networks of state-based and local stakeholders organized according to the six major topic areas of the law—adoption, kinship, older youth, tribal child welfare, health, and education. The North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC) will serve as the Resource Center’s lead partner on adoption issues. Through its web site (www.fosteringconnections.org) and network partners, the Resource Center will disseminate materials and provide ongoing expertise to state policymakers and administrators. The web site will continue to grow in coming months, adding tools, research, and analyses. Sign up for e-mail alerts and check out the website frequently to learn about implementation activities.