OKDHS.org - OAC 340:75-7-10. Recruitment of foster families

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340:75-7-10. Recruitment of foster families

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Revised 6-25-04

(a) Foster families. The recruitment of foster families is a crucial component for providing safe home environments for children requiring out-of-home placement due to child abuse, neglect, or other special circumstances. Diligent recruitment ensures children have access to foster families who:

(1) live in close proximity to biological families;
(2) can meet each child's unique needs;
(3) allow sibling groups to remain together; and
(4) reflect and understand the racial and ethnic diversity of local communities.

(b) Recruitment and retention. In order to impact the availability and diversity of resources, the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) implements recruitment and retention activities that are defined by each county. • 1

INSTRUCTIONS TO STAFF 340:75-7-10

1. Recruitment plan. Each county develops, implements, monitors, and refines a plan to increase the availability or diversity of resources to serve children in Oklahoma Department of Human Service (OKDHS) custody and retain current resources. The recruitment plan:

(1) is integrated within the county Program Improvement Plan (PIP);
(2) is developed with input from key stakeholders, including resource families and Child Welfare (CW) staff;
(3) is based on an assessment and prioritization of need. Needs assessments consider the:
- (A) proximity of available resources to families;
- (B) language skills of resource families;
- (C) racial and ethnic diversity of resources;
- (D) availability of tribal resources to serve Indian children who fall under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA); and
- (E) ability of available resources to provide care for sibling groups, older children, and children with special needs;
(4) includes at least one objective addressing local priorities for resource development based on the state PIP. County statistics of children in out-of-home care are used to develop the objective(s);
(5) incorporates strategies to retain current resources;
(6) is implemented under the direction of the county director;
(7) is monitored monthly by the county director. The results and status of implementation are reported in a prescribed format quarterly to the respective Field Operations Division services area office; and
(8) is modified as objectives are achieved or the need for different strategies is identified.

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