FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Tuesday, Nov. 24, 1998
Contact: Michael Kharfen, (202) 401-9215
HHS AWARDS EXCELLENCE IN PROMOTING ADOPTION
Secretary Shalala, President and Mrs. Clinton recognize
individuals and organizations for contributions to helping children find
permanent homes
|
Adoption 2002 Excellence Awards.
Governor James and Mrs. Brenda Edgar, State of Illinois and representatives
of Hope for the Children, Inc. receiving their awards.
|
HHS Secretary Donna E.
Shalala today announced the 1998 recipients of the Department of Health and
Human Services' "Adoption 2002" Excellence Awards. The awards were
highlighted at a White House ceremony celebrating November as National Adoption
Month. At the event, President and Mrs. Clinton honored the recipients for giving
abandoned, neglected, or abused children a loving family and a safe and nurturing
home.
Secretary
Shalala also called for increased efforts to recruit and strengthen adoptive
families and to shorten the time that children spend in foster care. She reported
that the President's message to promote adoption is showing some results. From
1996 to 1997, adoptions increased by more than 10 percent -- from 28,000 to
31,000 -- the first significant increase since the federal program was established.
However, HHS estimates that there are still more than 100,000 children who cannot
return to their birth families and need families to adopt them. Typically, children
awaiting adoption spend more than three years in foster care.
To help states
and communities meet the goal of doubling the number of adoptions by 2002, HHS
intends to develop a plan for expanding the use of the Internet. By putting
the photos of children who are legally available for adoption on a national
Internet service, the time that a child waits to find an adoptive family could
be shortened. The plan also will identify important issues and strategies for
addressing them, and examine ways to build on existing efforts that are underway
in some states.
"One
year ago President Clinton made history by signing the Adoption and Safe Families
Act. That new law built on the administration's track record of breaking down
barriers to adoption and established new tools to attain his goal of doubling
the number of children adopted from foster care," said Secretary Shalala.
"Today we honor the individuals and organizations who have demonstrated
commitment and leadership in helping to find permanent and safe homes for children
in foster care."
"Adoption
2002" is the HHS response to President Clinton's initiative to double by
that year the number of children in foster care who are adopted or otherwise
permanently placed. Many of the recommendations of the "Adoption 2002"
report were included in the Adoption and Safe Families Act. The recommendations
included unprecedented financial incentives to states to increase adoptions,
put the safety of children first in placement decisions, and set swifter time
frames for permanent placement decisions. It also recommended annual honors
to those who make exemplary contributions toward meeting the President's goal.
"President
Clinton has set an ambitious and critical challenge to the country to provide
all children in foster care with permanent homes," said Olivia A. Golden,
HHS assistant secretary for children and families. "In the past year we
have witnessed an unprecedented collaboration between the federal, state and
local governments with foundations, businesses and citizens to work together
for adoption. Today's remarkable honorees have earned our most heartfelt appreciation."
The 1998
awards recognized contributions by adoptive families and leadership by individuals
as well as outstanding performance by organizations. A committee representing
non-profit adoption agencies, child welfare and adoption advocates, adoptive
parents, foundations, the business community, and state and federal offices
reviewed and evaluated more than 65 nominations and selected eight winners in
five categories.
The winners
by category are:
Individual
or Family Contributions
- Tim O'Hanlon, Ph.D., Ohio North American Council on Adoptable Children
(NACAC), Columbus, Ohio. Dr. O'Hanlon volunteers his time as the state
representative for Ohio with NACAC. He created and maintains the Adoption
Policy Resource Center Web site, and he has authored several books and articles
on Adoption Advocacy.
- Governor James and Mrs. Brenda Edgar, State of Illinois, Springfield,
Ill. Governor and Mrs. Edgar are long-time champions of children's initiatives.
They convened Project HEART to advise the state of Illinois in streamlining
its adoption system and launched the Corporate Recruitment Initiative with
the Illinois Hospital and Health Systems Association. Illinois adoptions have
increased from 708 in 1991 to 4,239 in FY98.
Increased Adoptions
- Georgia Department of Human Resources, Office of Adoptions, Atlanta,
Ga. Adoptions have increased 66 percent since FY95. Regional Adoption
Coordinators were placed in state service areas to advocate adoption and track
the progress of adoptive children; privatization of services and placement
was emphasized.
- Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, Springfield, Ill.
Finalized adoptions were increased from 2,229 in FY97 to 4,293 in FY98. The
"Illinois Permanency Initiative," to enable the department and juvenile
courts to act more quickly in moving children to permanency, was enacted.
Support for Adoptive Families
- Hope for the Children, Inc., Rantoul, Ill. In FY98, 13 families were
supported in adopting 14 children, 13 children are in the process of adoption,
and three await court determinations; 53 volunteers provided 17,620 volunteer
hours to the families. The agency also partnered with Ronald McDonald House
Charities to bring nearly $8 million to communities for an intergenerational
neighborhood care and support model.
- Three Rivers Adoption Council, Pittsburgh, Pa. The agency partnered
with Black Adoption Services to complete family and child profiles and host
a Celebration of Families for 600 people. It also joined the Exchange to serve
539 families and 869 children, leading to the placement of over 300 children.
Post-placement services were provided to over 70 adoptive and foster families.
Philanthropy
- Kansas Association of Broadcasters, Topeka, Kan. KAB partnered with
Kansas Families for Kids to produce radio and television spots valued at $314,786,
which resulted in an average of 200 calls per month. As a result, the number
of children adopted in Kansas increased by 50 percent in just one year. KAB
also began the "Kid of the Month," which features increased air
time for hard-to-place children, developed an extensive Web site, and financed
the first sibling reunion camp for 90 children separated in the Kansas foster
care and adoption systems.
Judicial Improvement
- Judge Max Baer, Allegheny Juvenile Court, Family Division, Pittsburgh,
Pa. As a result of Judge Baer's activities, Allegheny County doubled the
number of adoptions to 457 in FY97-98. He initiated the Statewide Adoption
Network Legal Project to eliminate barriers to adoption and expedite adoptions
through private and public partnership. He established the One Judge/One Family
policy to ensure consistency in judicial oversight and strengthened it with
The Masters Project to alleviate overcrowding at the Juvenile Court. He also
supported the Family Mediation Adoption Project which involved birth parents
to identify solutions that may have delayed adoption.
###
Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are
available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.
Back to Top
The page was last updated:
October 22, 2003
|