Post-Adoption Services: A Guide for Professionals

Originally Posted By BrendaPost Adoption Services: A Guide for Professionals (3/99)Books, Manuals, Briefing Papers and ArticlesBourguignon, J.; Watson, K. W. (June 1987). After Adoption: A Manual For Professionals Working With Adoptive Families. Springfield, IL: Illinois State Department of Children and Family Services.This manual is intended for the professional to whom the adoptive family may turn in time of trouble: the adoption worker, mental health practitioner or other professional. It identifies seven problem areas for adoptive families and suggests suitable responses to help the professional work more constructively with the families. If the situation is serious enough, it recommends a diagnostic assessment to identify the family's strong points and suggests a plan for clinical intervention that will help stabilize the child within the family. Though these services may seem to apply more to special needs adoption, they are applicable to all adoptive families regardless of the age of the child. The titles of the chapters are as follows: "Adoption Is Different," "Identifying Difficulties," "Post- Adoptive Assessment," "Intervention With Adoptive Families."Bourguignon, J.; Watson, K. W. (June 1987). After Adoption: Training Guide. Springfield, IL: Illinois State Department of Children and Family Services.This training guide is a companion volume to After-Adoption: A Manual For Professionals Working With Adoptive Families. The curriculum was designed to increase the variety and quality of post-placement and post-adoptive services available for children with special needs. It increases workers' awareness that nearly all adoptive families have stresses in common and are in need of some level of post-adoptive support. For each chapter there are purpose and rationale, trainer's tasks, handouts necessary, and training procedures.Hartman, A. (1984). Working with Adoptive Families Beyond Placement. Washington, DC: Child Welfare League of America.This book provides a post-placement model for practitioners to help the adoptive family deal effectively with their feelings. It recognizes that the adoptive family's needs must continue to be addressed after the home study process, through placement experience, and beyond legal adoption. The model is designed to be individually tailored to the life of each family. The presentation begins by identifying some of the special aspects of adoption as a family-building process, then presents an ecologically oriented family-centered approach to working with families after placement, and discusses long-term post-adoption services with indications of when these might be offered. A bibliography is included.National Consortium for Post Legal Adoption Services. (March 1996). Adoption Support and Preservation Services: A Public Interest. Southfield, MI: Spaulding for Children.The National Consortium for Post Legal Adoption Services has assembled guidelines for obtaining help and preventing adoption dissolution. Currently much of the money spent on adoption support and preservation services fund residential treatment services for adoptive children. In some states, families are required to dissolve their adoptions before residential treatment services can be obtained. The National Consortium believes that many of these children would require less intrusive intervention and not require their families to dissolve their adoption if an adequate safety net of therapeutic, supportive, and financial support services were in place. Support and preservation services are defined and their underlying guiding principles are explained. These include the following principles: 1) Families created by adoption are different than other families. 2) Adoption is a lifelong experience and is beneficial. 3) Society is responsible for providing services, which include the following: advocacy, family education, information and referral, financial supports, family support, community support, psycho-social, reunion and past history inquiries, mediation and problem-solving, and service coordination. Services should be family-centered and directed, strengths-focused, community-based, multi-disciplined, adoption-sensitive, and culturally sensitive. Outcomes should strengthen family integration, attachment, family functioning, parental entitlement and claiming, identity formation of family members, and community networks. Resource issues include funding, training, staffing and automation.Watson, K.W. (May 1991). Delivering Post-Adoption Services: The Role of the Public Welfare Agency. Chicago, IL: Illinois State Department of Children and Family Services.This monograph develops the thesis that the public child welfare agency is best equipped to take the initiative in providing post-adoption services that will ensure the success of special needs adoptions. It suggests a public agency role and offers suggestions on how to accomplish what needs to be done. Much of this book is based on a curriculum designed in Illinois for the training of professionals working with adoptive parents.Watson, K.W. Providing Services After Adoption: The Public Welfare Agency Must Take the Lead to Meet the Lifelong Needs of the Adoption Triangle. (Winter 1992). Public Welfare, 50(1):5-13. Adoption has changed over the years because of the way the members of the adoption triangle have been affected. Therefore, attitudes of adoption professionals and agencies have also changed. Now they are aware that postlegal adoption services are necessary to make adoptions work. Agencies, then, have to develop new programs that will meet the lifelong needs of adopted children, adoptive families and birth families. The public child welfare agency will be the chief provider of these new programs and services. The chief source of funds for the expanding of postlegal adoption services will have to come from adoption assistance; further services could possibly be tied into the already existing program. This would at least take care of those families who have adopted special needs children. A second source for the funding would be from the clients themselves who could afford to pay for it. Another source is to tap the new money that is coming into human service budgets. In most parts of the country, these new funds are available for intensive, in-home, family preservation programs. Therefore, families that have adopted special needs children and are by their nature especially vulnerable to disruption should be prime candidates for these programs. For instance, in Illinois adoptive families are one of the three priority groups that the family preservation program singled out for start-up services and for which the legislature appropriated money. Other sources are grants from government and private foundations.Prew, C.; Suter, S.; Carrington, J. (1990). Post Adoption Family Therapy: A Practice Manual. Salem, OR: Oregon State Department of Human Resources.This manual is for post-adoption family therapy, a project started in Oregon. The first part describes the conception of the project, its development and implementation. The research findings are presented. The second part describes working with families of adoption. Therapeutic techniques and a treatment model are included. The families who participated in the project had adopted children with special needs and were at risk of disruption. A family-based therapist and an adoption worker acted as co-therapists for the families. They trained each other about adoption issues and family systems theory. The team was very effective in preventing disruptions. They identified adoption issues such as mastery, entitlement, loss relationships, integration into a family, and identity. The team identified family interactions as a 'protective bonding cycle' in which negative connections are made between parent and child which are intense but unsatisfactory. They describe the intervention and treatment model they developed to break the cycle. It is a brief therapy approach and is solution-focused. Families were empowered to discover their own competence. The project had an excellent success rate.Walsh, J.A. (June 1991). After Adoption Parent Survey: Analyzing the Risks in Special Needs Adoptions. Springfield, IL: Illinois State Department of Children and Family Services.The goal of this study is to develop a program of comprehensive post-adoption services for special needs adoptive families and children in Illinois to preserve adoptions and to reduce the risk of adoption disruption and dissolution. Its objectives are (1) to conduct a comprehensive survey of post-adoption needs and services available in Illinois; (2) to revise the State's adoption program to include post-adoption services; (3) to provide for the purchase of the services of therapist consultation for post-adoption services staff, to contract with private agencies for individual and group therapy, assessments crisis intervention, and search; (4) to define the role of the public child welfare worker in the provision of post- adoption services; to collaborate with other agencies for the development of standards for post-adoption services. The rationale of this survey research is that adoptive families can provide the most accurate information of their own needs, of which services they have used and how helpful these services have been, and of what obstructions get in the way of being able to find or use specific services for specific needs. From a pool of 4,286 special needs adoptive Illinois families, they mailed questionnaires to a ten- percent random sample from across the state.Association of Administrators of the Interstate Compact on Adoption and Medical Assistance, Inc. (February 1990). Post-Legal Adoption Services. Washington, DC: American Public Welfare Association.This issue brief discuss several issues confronting the States in decision-making about post-legal adoption services for children with special needs. The issue brief details one State's (Wisconsin) statewide needs assessment as a necessary first step in preparing a comprehensive State plan for post-adoption services. The programs of Kentucky, South Carolina, and Texas are also described, giving information on unique features in each State's post adoption services provision. A State's decision to provide post-legal adoption services could be considered a natural consequence of the commitment to remove barriers to the adoption of children with special needs. However, the cost of providing these services is a major consideration. The attitudes of adoptive parents and policy makers also may hamper movement toward post-legal adoption services.Fales, M.J. (1985). Post-Legal Adoption Services Today. Washington, DC: Child Welfare League of America.The Child Welfare League of America has published this preliminary survey to present findings about post-legal services today. Such services are being provided today in a variety of ways and in many different settings. Post-legal services are offered by social service agencies, private therapists, mental health clinics, and self-help groups. Agency programs offer groups, including support groups that work with families who had adopted infants and then experienced difficulty in child rearing. Private therapists offer individual and family counseling. Mental health clinics offer a range of treatment intervention techniques. Self-help groups offer meetings or workshops on a specific topic and provide referrals to therapists and agencies. Some also run hotlines or publish newsletters.Adoption Opportunities Grant ProjectsAdams, D. (January 1998). Postlegal Adoption Services for Minority Families: Final Report. Columbia, SC: South Carolina State Department of Social Services.This final grant report describes a program to develop and implement adoption preservation services for minority families in the Lowcountry region of the State beginning from October 1994 through September 1997. The area had approximately 1,036 minority families whose adoptions had been finalized since July 1987. A Statewide survey distributed to 543 families was used to determine the current knowledge of adoption preservation services by the minority community. After it was recognized that minority families were underutilizing adoption preservation services, a second, targeted survey was used to ascertain awareness of preservation services and type of service delivery desired. Three focus groups were used to determine what post legal services were most needed by minority adoptive families and to identify barriers to the provision of these services. The project contracted with One Church, One Child for a case worker to develop and deliver post legal services, ultimately to 27 families and 31 children. A contract was let with Reid House of Christian Services (a social service organization of the African-Methodist Episcopal Church) to work with adopted adolescents. These efforts incorporated minority adopted youth into an ongoing advisory group which planned preservation activities, including a family conference. Cultural sensitivity and joint discipline training was conducted for adoption professionals and other service providers. Other support activities were carried out by a Resource Center which continued to operate after the grant had ended.Adlesic, C.; Van Loon, M. J. (1992). Post-Adoption Services for HIV-Positive Children. Yonkers, NY: Leake and Watts Services.This final grant report describes the development and demonstration of a program to deliver post adoption services to HIV-positive children in New York City. The project ran from September 1990 to December 1992, and focused on developing a strategy for supporting families adopting HIV-positive children. The project aimed to minimize disruptions of these adoptions due to the high medical and personal burden borne by these families and to combat the isolation and lack of support that many families encounter in their community and even within their own extended families. A post adoption medical case management model was developed and documented which primarily featured increased coordination among providers and greater involvement of parents. Outreach and engagement techniques promoted support group participation by adoptive parents. Guidelines were produced to help other city agencies implement similar post-adoption services or refer families to the existing program. Only one adoption disruption occurred out of the 45 post-adoptive families referred to the project over the 2-year period, and more than 50 foster and 48 pre-adoptive parents were referred to the support groups. A wide range of detailed findings and recommendations are made. They include broad topics, such as family recruitment and outreach, and specific topics, such as recommendations for groups of parents of seroreverters, for bereavement groups, and for child care during support group meetings.Adoptions Together, Inc. (January 1996). Project Succeed: Final Report. Kensington, MD: Adoptions Together, Inc..This grant report describes the activities of Project Succeed in Maryland from October 1995 to January 1996. The project's primary effort is to prepare parents and educators to address the educational needs of adopted children with special needs in Montgomery County, Prince George's County, Baltimore County, and Baltimore City. The report describes the programs, presentations, and activities conducted in these areas during the grant period. Begun in October 1993, the project has succeeded in establishing a model parent education program to prepare adoptive parents of children with special needs to more effectively address their children's academic and social-emotional needs. Parents are taught how to advocate for their children in the school system and work cooperatively with pupil services staff. An overview of each program jurisdiction is included, with total referrals, program topics, and description. A third objective was the development of a parent resource program for adoptive parents of children with special needs to include a resource specialist, resource library, quarterly newsletter, telephone help line, buddy system, and peer respite and professional referral program. All these objectives were met, with the exception of the peer respite program. But parents were able to network independently and provide their own "respite program." The report documents efforts to develop and implement a training program/curriculum to help elementary and middle school pupil services staff (counselors, school psychologists, nurses, and teachers) understand the experiences of adopted children and their families, address adoption-related issues, and provide adoption sensitive classrooms and schools. An inservice program developed by the Project is described. Information about Project Succeed was disseminated to appropriate parent support groups and adopted populations, school systems, and social services agencies serving children with special needs. Additional materials include a newsletter sample, promotional materials, and resource lists.Anderson, K. J.; Jacobs, A. G. (December 1996). Post Legal Adoption Training and Education (PLATE). Shaker Heights, OH: Bellefaire Jewish Children's Bureau.This final grant report describes a project to develop and implement a comprehensive post legal adoption training and education program for adoptees, their families, and adoption professionals from October 1994 to September 1996. The goal of the program was to strengthen and preserve families who had adopted children with special needs. Intensive home-based family therapy was provided to families in crisis, and crisis intervention training was provided to staff. The establishment of multi-family therapy groups was a particularly successful aspect of the program and required contracting the service to Adoption Network Cleveland during the second year, as the size and time commitment increased. Art therapy and expressive arts groups were established for families of adolescent adoptees with special needs. This program involved contracting with a therapeutic drummer to work with the adoptees. The single most successful aspect of the project was the establishment of psychotherapy groups for adolescent adoptees, allowing them to discuss adoption and learn how it affected many aspects of their development and behavior. The grant program allowed for the development and implementation of adoption educational modules for graduate schools in social work. One module was presented in each year of the grant. A newsletter program was the only objective not completely met. A comprehensive approach to adoption treatment was developed for this grant and remains in place, benefiting hundreds of adoptees and adoptive parents.Clemmons, M. P. (1991). Not the Last Word on Preserving Families Through Post Adoption Services. Springfield, IL: Illinois State Department of Children and Family Services.This final grant report describes the efforts of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to identify, structure, fund, and monitor essential post adoption support services to adoptive families and children coping with special needs. The ultimate goal of the grant project was to develop a State supported program for these families. Based on survey results, the program identified patterns of need and service use by adoptive parents, and made recommendations to overcome impediments to service delivery.Dyer, M. (1996). Post-Adoption Service Teams: Programmatic Accomplishments. Lincoln, NE: Nebraska State Dept. of Social Services.This final grant report describes a project to develop post adoption service teams (PAST teams) throughout the State for the purpose of educating adoptive families and others about important adoption issues, and to provide resources and assistance to adoptive families in crisis, especially those who were relinquishing their adopted children. An important goal of the project was to develop a statewide structure for planning and coordinating post adoption services. This was accomplished by establishing a protocol committee to oversee the project, coordinate first the training of the PAST teams, and then the teams' education and intervention efforts. Education workshops were held across the State for adoptive parents, for those experiencing crisis, and for those simply interested in more information on adoption. A family preservation curriculum written by the North American Council on Adoptable Children was used in 8-week workshops conducted by PAST teams for adoptive parents and children to provide peer counseling and education on adoption issues. Other PAST team workshops focused on attachment and boding issues. Surveys were used throughout the project to gain feedback and guide efforts.Edwards, C.L. (August 1997). Making the Pieces Fit: A New Paradigm for Institutionalizing Adoptive Family Preservation Services. Richmond, VA: Coordinators/2, Inc.This final grant report describes Making the Pieces Fit, a 2-year demonstration project funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from October 1994 to September 1996, with an extension through March 1997. The project was a collaboration between Coordinators/2, Inc. (C/2), a private, nonprofit adoption agency in Richmond, and United Methodist Family Services of Tidewater, a private, nonprofit child welfare agency. The purpose of the project was to institutionalize post legal adoption services in Virginia, focusing on service delivery, outreach, training, and resource development. The most difficult and time consuming goal undertaken was to develop a working model for community-based funding of adoptive family preservation and support services. Efforts toward this end included identifying funding resources at the time of intake and family assessment, providing each family with a funding plan and a service plan. In addition to working individually with families, several activities were undertaken to identify and educate other funding sources about the needs of adoptive families and why funding for adoptive family preservation and support (AFPS) services is critical. These activities included meeting with community and business leaders, serving on State-wide committees and boards, and participating in a teleconference. By the end of the grant period, the AFPS program at C/2 had been institutionalized and was able to hire a full-time regional coordinator without using grant funds. Most of the efforts to ensure funding also served the second major goal, which was to conduct a public education and advocacy campaign to expand the definition of family preservation services to include post legal adoption services. Presentations were made to numerous organizations encouraging them to look for ways in which adoptive families could be included in their program and/or services. Another objective of the project was to increase the adoption and cultural competence of service providers, funding sources, and service delivery systems. A team approach was used for each family receiving AFPS services and served as an effective tool for educating professionals about adoption. Training curricula were also developed--one for administrators and supervisors, and a second more skill-based training for direct providers. The report also describes the information dissemination activities, including program brochures and flyers, a resource questionnaire for parents and professionals, fact sheets, and picnics.Franz, K.; Boerio, W.; Brooks, M. (February 1995). Northeast Ohio Adoptive Parent Leadership Circle: Final Report. Warren, OH: Northeast Ohio Adoption Services.This report describes a 2-year demonstration project designed to develop the leadership skills of adoptive and foster parent leaders in 15 counties in northeast Ohio from October 1993 to September 1995, with an extension to November 1995. Recognizing that adoptive and foster parents are in a unique position to advocate for both the children in their care and the children in the system, training for this project was developed collaboratively with parent leaders and designed to meet their needs and interests. The project was successful in meeting all the objectives of the original grant application. The report describes how adoptive parent support groups in the area were initially contacted and their level of development assessed. A needs assessment was conducted for both adoptive parent groups and for their leaders. The report describes how leadership development training was offered to adoptive parents in response to the needs identified. Newsletters, mini-grants, and technical assistance were provided as support to the parent support groups. The final objective was the formation of a network of adoptive parent support groups in the area.Groze, V.; Basista, M.; Persee, L. (October 1993). Strengthening Resources and Decreasing Stressors in Adoptive Families: The Post-Legal Special Needs Adoption Family Preservation Treatment Team Project. Cleveland, OH: Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences.Many stressors affect the adoptive family. These can stem from the community, from agencies or welfare services, from the family system, and from the adopted child. High-quality post-adoption services to help combat these stressors are crucial for adoption preservation, and the services required vary drastically from family to family. This paper evaluates a project, originally funded by the Department of Health and Human Services, designed to help families who have adopted children with special needs. The project involved 41 families in Illinois and Iowa who were referred either for clinical services or information and support services. Of the adopted children, 27% were non-white. Pre- and post-testing of both parents and children was used to assess program results and measured various aspects of the parent-child relationship, child behavior and self-concept, family functioning (cohesion and adaptability), and family stress, as well as an array of adoption risk factors. Ecomaps, social network maps, and placement genograms were used as tools for assessment and intervention. The project demonstrated that there is a continuing need for post-placement, adoption-sensitive therapy and mental health services, which are most effective when they are family-based and focus on integration into the family system rather, than on individual or family psychopathology. Families are most successful when they increase their repertoire of coping strategies and resources, learn to plan for crisis, and understand how their family system is affected by the child's pre-adoptive placement history.Howard, J. A.; Smith, S. L. (1997) Strengthening Adoptive Families: A Synthesis of Post-Legal Adoption Opportunities Grants. Normal, IL: Illinois State University.This report synthesizes information on all post-adoption services grant projects from 1989 to 1994 that were funded through Adoption Opportunities. It identifies materials produced by grant projects and lessons learned so that future grantees could learn from prior grantees and access resources. This report describes the Consortium's model for providing a continuum of community-based services drawing on the expertise of adoptive parents, adoptees, and multiple professional disciplines. The model's framework is based on guiding principles and characteristics of many kinds of services: advocacy, family education, information and referral, financial supports, family and community support, reunions and record inquiries, and mediation and problem solving. This report examines the activities of approximately 65 projects funded through post-legal Adoption Opportunities grants. It provides an overview of the types of projects which have been developed and of the outcomes of the projects where those data are available. Problems or barriers are discussed where they were made known by project directors. An index provides brief information about each of the projects, with contact information.Illinois State Department of Children and Family Services. (September 1996). Project C.A.R.E. Springfield, IL: Illinois State Department of Children and Family Services.Project C.A.R.E. was a 3-year public-private collaborative effort of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and the Child Care Association of Illinois to respond to gaps in Illinois' existing post-legal adoption services. The project's goal was to increase the rate of successful adoptions through development of new types of post-adoption services. Specific needs were respite care, education and support groups for adoptive parents, and knowledge of and access to service providers. The project's main goals were to 1) develop a reciprocal respite care co-op run by adoptive parents; 2) form a series of culturally sensitive adoptive parent educational groups; 3) establish a centralized post-legal information and referral service, including a database; and 4) gather a group of volunteer advocates to aid in accessing educational and mental health services. The main barrier to respite care co-op was that most adoptive families were unable or unwilling to commit to the reciprocal nature of the co-op model, preferring to use paid respite services. The same lack of parental involvement precluded the formation of the volunteer advocate group. A major accomplishment was the development of social and educational activities attended by adoptive parents and ultimately providing informal respite opportunities. The database and post-legal referral system were also established and subsequently institutionalized as an ongoing service of the Adoption Information Center of Illinois. An evaluation of the reciprocal respite co-op objective is included, with detailed analysis of the effort's successes and failures. Information collection forms are provided.Institute for Black Parenting. (June 1997). Post Legal Transracial Adoption Services Project Evaluation. Inglewood, CA: Institute for Black Parenting.Transracial adoptions account for approximately one-eighth of all adoptions completed annually in Los Angeles County, with the majority involving White/Anglo Americans adopting non-Whites. This report describes a grant project by the Institute for Black Parenting (IBP) to provide post legal adoption assistance for families adopting transracially. The project period was from September 1994 to September 1996, with an extension through March 1997. The project targeted non-African American adoptive parents of African American adoptees, transracially adopted African Americans, and birth parents who relinquished racially mixed children. A major objective of the project was to increase adoptive parent's knowledge and skills in parenting an African American child and enhance their understanding of the importance of racial identity. A second objective was to expand adoptive parents' social networks to include African American peers. A third objective was to increase adoptees' knowledge and appreciation of their own race and culture. A fourth objective was to assist birth mothers of mixed-race children who had unresolved feelings about relinquishment. The project report presents detailed descriptions of the programs conducted to meet these objectives, including cultural competency training for adoptive parents, field trips, curriculum development, the development of a resource library, individual and group counseling, a 24-hour hotline, and assistance to adult adoptees searching for their birth parents. The report describes key accomplishments, analyzes factors contributing to the project's success, and describes problems encountered. Recommendations for the future include improving geographic accessibility, broader advertising, providing more activities and mentorships, and expanding to include Hispanic Americans.Kentucky State Department for Social Services. (March 1993). Strategic Plan for Post Legal Adoption Services in Kentucky. Frankfort, KY: Kentucky State Department for Social Services.This report presents a strategic plan for supporting families in Kentucky who have adopted children through State social service agencies, particularly families of children who have special needs. The concept of post-legal adoption services is discussed in terms of the need for such services, the structure for providing adoption and post-legal adoption services, types of post-legal adoption services, and Federal and State adoption assistance. Examples of voluntary efforts to support adoptive families are provided. Data on adoptive parents, adopted children, and special needs children are presented. Services discussed with or offered to adoptive parents are identified, as are the financial assistance and services used by adoptive families and the services not used but needed. A conceptual model for post-legal adoption services is described. This model assists in analyzing and planning services for children, families, and staff. It consists of two dimensions: the stages of the adoption process and the continuum of need experienced by adoptive families and adopted children. In addition, goals for upgrading post-legal adoption services are outlined, and strategies and activities for fulfilling these goals are presented. An appendix provides examples of post-legal adoption programs and an adoptive parent questionnaire.Mcnitt, M.L.; Wasson, S. (February 1996). Adoptive Parent Support Group Manual: A User Guide to Developing and Maintaining an Active Support Group to Help Adoptive Families and Children. Lansing, MI: Michigan Foster and Adoptive Parent Association.This manual was written by the Michigan Foster and Adoptive Parent Association (MFAPA) as a guide to developing and maintaining an active support group for adoptive families and their children. This comprehensive guide begins by defining what adoptive parent support groups are. Proceeding from this very basic level, the guide addresses such topics as organization, contacting families, and general operation. Specific topics include how to run meetings, plan for success, developing a vision, writing a mission statement. Several sections address specific adoption issues, and include resources. Subsidies for children with special needs are discussed in one section. This includes Michigan's answers to the survey on adoption subsidy management conducted by the North American Council on Adoptable Children. Other short sections include resources for adoptive parents on finalization, Medicaid, answering allegations of maltreatment, and adoption search and reunion.Montana Post Adoption Center. Montana Post Adoption Center: A Model For Organizing a Service Delivery Network in a Rural State for Children with Special Needs and Their Families. Helena, MT: Montana Post Adoption Center.The Montana Post Adoption Center (MPAC) established five major objectives: (1) to organize a non-profit corporation with a Board of Directors representing professionals and clients involved with adoption; (2) to promote training for mental health and education professionals to address clinical issues regarding adoption; (3) to enhance post-adoption agency services; (4) to develop an in-state post adoption information and resources clearinghouse; and (5) to advocate on behalf of adoption triad members and professionals serving them. MPAC accomplished all of these objectives.Moss, K.G. (January 1996). Adoption Opportunities: Continuum of Post-Legal Services for Adopted Children with Emotional and Behavior Problems, and Their Families. Cleveland, OH: Beech Brook.This grant funded training of Beech Brook staff, professionals, and adoptive parents, resulting in a renewed awareness and better skills in attachment theory and special needs adoption. The grant resulted in the development of a pilot project which included a number of attachment assessment tools. These assessment tools included the use of art therapy assessment, questionnaires, rating scales, and a client satisfaction survey. In addition, therapy was used as a resource for children with serious attachment problems and case management services were used to support and assist adoptive parents.North American Council on Adoptable Children. (March 1993). Parent-Group Based Post Legal Adoption Services. St. Paul, MN: North American Council on Adoptable Children.This final project report describes grant activities carried out by the North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC) from October 1990 through March 1993. Grant activity fell into three categories. Grants to adoptive parent groups were made through two separate competitions. The activities of sixteen recipient groups for 1991 and thirteen recipient groups for 1992 are described. Another grant activity was the development of an 8-week curriculum, "Family Preservation," designed for use by adoption workers and mental health professionals working with adolescents. The development process is described in detail. Training in the use of this curriculum was conducted at eighteen sites for a total of 539 co-facilitators.Pearson, B. T. (April 1994). Adoptive Parent Groups as Partners with Families in the Adoption of Special Needs Children. Seattle, WA: Northwest Adoption Exchange.This Adoption Opportunities grant final report describes the Leadership Development Project, which subsidized development and expansion of postadoption services for adoptive families of children with special needs by providing 22 small, competitively-renewed grants to adoptive parent groups in Alaska, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. Group projects were tailored to the unique needs of group members or specific communities. New adoptive parent groups were created, and specific groups as part of their project goals encouraged the creation of others. Parent groups and agencies worked together to develop and deliver services within their communities. Adoptive parents in remote rural areas, especially in Idaho and Alaska, benefited from expanded newsletters, bulletins, and other outreach support and advocacy services. Each of the 22 small projects is described in a brief statement.This material may be reproduced and distributed without permission; however, appropriate citation must be given to the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse.