FOSTER CARE REVIEW BOARD

FOSTER CARE REVIEW BOARD GUIDELINES FOR PREPARING & CONDUCTING THE REVIEW

FCRB PROTOCOL & DEMEANOR The Board’s function is to make recommendations, which are in the best interest of the child, to the Court. Before the Review: • Comply with the attendance policy • Thoroughly prepare all cases being reviewed • Arrive on time for administrative business • Follow protocol to open a review During the Review: • Exhibit appropriate and unbiased behavior when interested parties are present • Ask APPROPRIATE & RELEVANT questions. Listen to other board members to prevent repetitive questioning. • Be mindful of the sensitivity and confidentiality of the information being discussed – especially when children are present • Do NOT lecture interested parties, practice law or therapy during the review • Even though there are volunteers appointed as the “Board Chair” and/or “Lead Questioner”, the Board functions as a group – compromise may be necessary • Be willing to accept redirection from your Program Specialist (PS) or fellow board members • Handle deficiencies in case management professionally • Be conscious of the amount of time designated for the review and staying on schedule After the Review: • End the review appropriately – Thank everyone for their participation • Do NOT dispose of review materials until the interested parties have left the room • Do NOT discuss cases outside of the meeting room (i.e., hallway, restroom, etc.)

RECEIVING YOUR PACKET • EACH BOARD MEMBER WILL RECEIVE THEIR REVIEW PACKETS 1 TO 2 WEEKS PRIOR TO THE REVIEW • YOUR PACKET WILL INCLUDE: • CURRENT AGENCY REPORTS • INITIAL REPORTS • COURT DOCUMENTS • SERVICE PROVIDER REPORTS • PLACEMENT REPORTS • PREVIOUS NOTES FROM PAST REVIEWS • BLANK NOTE SHEETS • REVIEW SCHEDULE • COPY PREVIOUS FCRB REPORT (if applicable)

WHERE TO BEGIN??? • Take one case at a time. • If you have never reviewed the case before or it’s a new case, read the INITIAL REPORT and DEPENDENCY PETITION first. • This will provide you with information such as the reasons why the child entered foster care, date of birth, gender, initial placement date, etc. • If you have reviewed the case before, read the current PROGRESS REPORT and/or ADDENDUM REPORT. • This will provide you with information about the progress of the case within the past 6 months, or since the last FCRB review. • There will be occasions where there will be more than 1 progress report per child in a six month period, or a different progress report for each child • Review the CASE PLAN • Identify the primary and concurrent case plan goal • Identify the target date (usually six months from the date the plan was developed) • Identify who is on the case plan and what the case plan requirements are for each person • Read the Court documents • Court documents will provide you with: • Information about what has happened at the court hearings • Who is involved in the case • Next court hearing • Case plan goals & placement information • Court documents will indicate if the case is an INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ACT (ICWA) case. • Court documents will indicate if the biological parents parental rights have been terminated. • Read any supplemental information such as PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATIONS, PARENT AIDE REPORTS, PLACEMENT REPORTS, PREVIOUS FCRB REPORT, Etc.

TAKING NOTES • There will be blank notes sheets included in your packet, which can be used for every case being reviewed. • While reading the documents for each case, it is important to take notes regarding the case and identifying any concerns or questions that you may have about a case.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO GATHER BEFORE & DURING THE REVIEW PERTAINING TO THE CHILD: • REASONS FOR ENTERING CARE (IF NEW CASE) • CHILDS GRADE & ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE • CHILD’S ETHNICITY / ICWA STATUS • CHILD’S PLACEMENT: PLACEMENT TYPE, CURRENT PLACEMENT DATE, INITIAL PLACEMENT DATE • SERVICES CHILD IS RECEIVING OR IS IN NEED OF • SIBLING / BIOLOGICAL PARENT VISITS • ANY DIFFICULTIES FOLLOWING VISITS? • MEDICAL & DENTAL NEEDS BEING ADDRESSED • IS THE CHILD DUALLY ADJUDICATED (PROBATION)? • IS THE CHILD COMPLIANT WITH PROBATION REQUIREMENTS? • IS THE CHILD ELIGIBLE FOR/PARTICIPATING IN INDEPENDENT LIVING SKILLS TRAINING? • ELIGIBILITY FOR A VOLUNTARY FOSTER CARE AGREEMENT • IS THE CHILD ON RUNAWAY? IF SO, HAS A PICK UP ORDER BEEN ISSUED?

IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO GATHER BEFORE & DURING THE REVIEW PERTAINING TO THE BIOLOGICAL PARENTS: • CASE PLAN REQUIREMENTS / CASE PLAN GOAL • WHAT SERVICES HAVE BEEN OFFERED? • IS THERE COMPLIANCE? • BE SPECIFIC FOR EACH REQUIREMENT. • IS THERE ANYTHING PREVENTING COMPLIANCE THAT THE AGENCY CAN RESOLVE? • PATERNITY ESTABLISHED? • WHEREABOUTS UNKNOWN – HAVE PARENT LOCATORS BEEN COMPLETED? • ARE THERE ANY UNRESOLVED LEGAL ISSUES / PROBATION REQUIREMENTS?

IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO GATHER BEFORE & DURING THE REVIEW PERTAINING TO THE PLACEMENT: • ARE FOSTER PARENTS /RELATIVE CAREGIVERS IN NEED OF SERVICES? • HOW OFTEN DO THEY HAVE CONTACT WITH CASE MANAGER? • DOES THE CASE MANAGER VISIT THE CHILD MONTHLY? • DO THEY SEE A NEED FOR ADDITIONAL SERVICES FOR THE CHILD? • HOW IS THE CHILD’S BEHAVIOR FOLLOWING VISITS WITH SIBLINGS/PARENTS? • IS THIS A POTENTIAL FOSTER/ADOPTIVE OR GUARDIANSHIP PLACEMENT? • HAVE LICENSING & SUBSIDIES BEEN DISCUSSED?

FINDINGS & DETERMINATIONS The FINDINGS & DETERMINATIONS are the Board’s formal response to issues mandated by federal or state law by the child welfare policy. • 10 questions that require a response from the Board. These questions assist the Board with identifying concerns that are further discussed in the “Observations/Comments/Concerns & Review Board Recommendations” section of the FCRB report. • Each Board member should take these questions into consideration when preparing for the review. • Each Board member will have a copy of the Findings & Determinations available during the review. PLEASE utilize the Findings & Determinations book in order to determine the most appropriate response to each question. • The PS is available to assist the Board with navigating through the Findings & Determinations to determine the most appropriate response to each question. The PS cannot answer for the Board.

REASONABLE EFFORTS Each Board must answer a question pertaining to whether or not the Agency has made reasonable efforts to implement the permanency plan or goal. The required responses include YES, NO, PARTIAL, & UNKNOWN. YES to Reasonable Efforts means that the Board agrees that the Agency is taking the necessary steps to ensure that services are in place, which will aide in progress towards the permanency goal. NO to Reasonable Efforts basically means that there are several areas of neglect which were caused by the Agency and as a result of this neglect, there is no progress towards the stated goal and the child’s needs and safety may not be ensured. ** Missing reports and/or no case manager participation in the review is not enough to say NO. PARTIAL to Reasonable Efforts means that there are areas of neglect that were caused by the Agency but may only affect certain individuals involved in the case. For example, there is more than one child whose needs are not being met, or one of the parents is not being offered services, etc. UNKNOWN to Reasonable Efforts can be utilized when there is extremely limited information about what the Agency has done to implement the permanency goal. This response is typically used when there are no reports, no case manager in attendance, or the case manager is unable to provide specific information about the case and services being offered. Consult your PS if you are unsure as to which response is most appropriate for the case being reviewed.

“OBSERVATIONS / COMMENTS/ CONCERNS & REVIEW BOARD RECOMMENDATIONS” This section of the report is where the Board can further explain their concerns or responses to the Findings & Determinations. • The Board is responsible for identifying what concerns and/or recommendations they want included in this section. • The PS can assist the Board with the “language” of each recommendation; however, they can not determine what concerns and recommendations should be included in this section for the Board. • The PS can also assist the Board with identifying the appropriate person who is responsible for addressing each recommendation and concern. • Try to include some observation, concern, and/or recommendation in every case. • Commendations for interested parties are always welcome – please include a specific reason why the Board wants to commend someone who is involved in the case.

MAKING GOOD RECOMMENDATIONS The FCRB has identified a specific writing style that it prefers to use when assisting the Board with developing their recommendations. This format provides consistency, making it easier for interested parties to read each recommendation. • CONCERNS – What is the Board concerned about? • Example:“The Board is concerned that the case plan goal is family reunification.” • WHY? All concerns must be supported by case details which can be received from statements made by interested parties and/or from information contained in the reports being considered by the Board. 1 to 3 supporting statements should be used for every concern listed. • Example: “The Board is concerned that the case plan goal is family reunification. The Board notes that the biological mother’s whereabouts are unknown. Additionally, the Board notes that paternity has not been established and the identity of the biological father is unknown.” • RECOMMENDATIONS – For every concern identified, there must be an action statement such as a recommendation or encouragement which is directed to a specific person and/or agency who is responsible for addressing the issue. • Example: “The Board is concerned that the case plan goal is family reunification. The Board notes that the biological mother’s whereabouts are unknown. Additionally, the Board notes that paternity has not been established and the identity of the biological father is unknown. Therefore, the Board recommends that the case manager change the case plan goal to adoption once the Agency’s time in care requirement have been met.”

FOSTER CARE REVIEW BOARD