Alaska

State staff in the Adoption Unit provide subsidy-related information and support. The Alaska Office of Children’s Services (OCS) contracts with Northwest Resource Associates (NWRA) to offer post-permanency services through the Alaska Center for Resource Families (ACRF). Services provided vary depending on families’ needs.

For more information, visit https://www.acrf.org/supports/post-adoption-supports

The program typically serves 400 or 500 adoptive and guardianship families per year.

Youth who were adopted or placed in guardianship from foster care at age 16 or older also have access to state-funded independent living services, including employment support, material supports, and housing support.

OCS’s grant contract for ACRF requires the provider to offer services statewide, including ensuring access in rural areas. ACRF has three regional offices (in Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Mat-Su) and offers many services virtually or through teleconference. In-person events are more clustered in the urban areas near one of the three offices.

The program also coordinates with tribal nations across the state so that families who need access to services have any support they need to participate.

The PARKA Path is for families who are adopting from foster care in Alaska.

Cultural responsiveness is a key value of the state; it has a commitment to serving diverse populations of all types, including through the post-permanency program. Alaska has a robust Tribal Child Welfare compact that ensures tribal members have access to culturally responsive services. The Adoption Unit partners with tribal nations so they can provide access to subsidies to children in tribal foster care.

NWRA is committed to equity and inclusion, and staff receive training on providing culturally responsive services. ACRF has developed relationships with many tribal nations across the state, and offers training on cultural approaches to permanency that addresses the specific issues affecting Alaska Native children and families. Other training topics include the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) and interracial parenting and the spirit of ICWA. NWRA and ACRF are certified through the All Children-All Families program as providing LGBTQ2S+ inclusive and affirming practices.

To ensure effective support of relative adoptive and guardianship families, ACRF works closely with the Volunteers of America kinship programs.

At finalization, OCS shares information with families about ACRF’s services. In addition, when youth are three months from turning 18 and their subsidy is going to end, the Subsidized Adoption and Guardianship Unit sends a letter to the family letting them know about other potential supports that may be available to them.

ACRF staff co-lead orientation for prospective adoptive parents and offer the Path to Adoption Learning series, so they are able to connect with families early in their journey. In addition, there are three specific points where ACRF connects with prospective and current families:

• The contractor doing home studies always invites ACRF staff when they do the home study visit so they can share information about available supports.
• The state notifies ACRF when adoptions and guardianships are finalized and the family is receiving a subsidy. Then ACRF sends a welcome packet with information about available post-permanency services. The families are also added to the program’s mailing list so they receive updates about events and supports over time.
• Every year, ACRF mails a letter and magnet with their contact information to families. The state provides an updated list of adoptive and guardianship families each month.

In addition, ACRF has launched an eight-part email series to support families in their journey, as part of the State of Alaska’s post-permanency services. The email series is designed to make adoptive parents and guardians aware of essential services and support, while highlighting real family stories to reassure families that they are not alone.

ACRF also attends community events to recruit prospective foster and adoptive parents, where they share information about post-permanency services. They work closely with state permanency specialists and Heart Gallery staff to make sure those professionals know they can refer families for support before finalization.

ACRF reports on its outreach efforts in grant reports to OCS.

Adoption Unit staff provide subsidy support and information. They make referrals to ACRF when families need additional support.

OCS currently contracts with Northwest Resource Associates, a private nonprofit agency, to operate the Alaska Center for Resource Families.

Alaska monitors existing adoption and guardianship subsidies through monthly reports to ensure that appropriate maintenance is made. Otherwise, families are obligated to comply with reporting requirements such as notifications of address changes or if the child is no longer residing in the home, which could affect the subsidy payment. Guardianships in Alaska require an annual report to the court. If families do not comply with that requirement, the guardianships are dissolved and subsidy is discontinued.

Alaska permits changes to the adoption and guardianship assistance agreement when the change will best meet the child’s special needs. Parents must make a request in writing and must include documents demonstrating the need for the change. Alaska will evaluate any documentation that supports the family’s request, including medical, mental health, or school reports and other documentation from the family, current service providers, and other resources. Final changes are negotiated between OCS and the family and require the family’s concurrence.

The Subsidized Adoption and Guardianship Unit receives automated notifications, based on the youth’s social security number, when a family or youth involved in an adoption or guardianship subsidy enters into an out-of-home placement. The centralized intake unit also has a process in place to notify permanency staff when a youth in adoption or guardianship comes into custody. OCS is able to pull reports on children entered as “previously adopted” in the state’s data system. Staff often receive notice about other changes, such as hospitalizations or residential care. Staff review all of these cases individually as they occur and run quarterly reports.

With these notifications and reports, OCS evaluates trends and reasons for re-entry. Staff in the Subsidized Adoption and Guardianship Unit strategize about if additional supports could be provided or if the subsidy may change. The Adoption Unit also collaborates with child protection services to ensure that investigators understand adoption and guardianship and the child’s history.

Information not available.

Information not available