When a child is placed in the state’s care, foster care parents open their homes and hearts to them. This goes beyond the basics of shelter, food and clothing, as a foster parent creates a safe and stable home environment while their biological family works to resolve the issues and/or disruptions that caused the child to be removed.
In Kansas, there are over 9,000 children in need of care and less than 2,000 foster homes. This often means that children have to be placed away from their communities, which can be detrimental to their development and sense of connection to the people they leave behind. And placement isn’t always easy, especially for the 24% of children in need who are teenagers. Add in that it isn’t always possible to place sibling groups in the same home — our state’s current need is 400 foster homes for larger sibling groups — it’s imperative to find people who are willing to open their homes and hearts to these children.
This starts with people like you.
Requirements
To qualify to be considered for the foster parent program, you must meet the following requirements:
- Be at least 21 years old with an outside source of income
- Have a permanent residence and space in the home to provide a separate bed for each foster child
- Complete the free Partnering for Safety and Permanent-Model Approach to Partnership in Parenting (PS-MAPP) training
- Provide three (3) personal references
- Pass the Kansas Bureau of Investigation fingerprinting and Child Abuse Registry background checks
- Pass a home inspection by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment
As a foster parent, you may be asked to:
- Provide temporary care, love and nurturing to children, while being a mentor to their parent(s).
- Serve as a legal guardian, while maintaining connections with the child’s kin, culture and community.
- Adopt children, while maintaining connections with the child’s kin, culture and community.
If you believe you can meet all these requirements, complete the state’s online application to receive a packet of information about the foster care process. Also, apply to our in-house online application.
Don’t qualify, but still want to help? Consider making a donation.
Training
Pathway Family Services offers the most comprehensive training programs in the state. Before you can get a license, you’ll receive training on a variety of topics and complete the PS-MAPP which lays out the basic building blocks of good parenting and the requirements and expectations for foster parents. We provide Title IV-E training in conjunction with the Children’s Alliance of Kansas to ensure all foster parents receive all the assistance and accreditation to succeed in our program, with options for continuing education.
Support
With Pathway Family Services, you are never alone. We provide the following services to help you succeed:
- 24 hour on-call support
- Free, comprehensive initial and ongoing training
- Multimedia resource library
- A nearby service location
- Respite care
- Professional and consistent personal Case Coordinator
- Reimbursement payments
Thank You
It takes a special family to open their homes and hearts to a displaced child. We appreciate the community support from people like you, who make our program work and support the children in need in our state.
Have Questions?
If your question isn’t covered, you are always welcome to contact us directly.
So, when you’re ready, please let us know by filling out our online application today!