Consider, for a moment, this story I recently discovered in court transcripts.
A paternal grandmother living in New York City learns that her 1-year-old grandson is in Michigan’s foster care system. Days after the child’s removal, she immediately contacts the child’s foster care worker, travels to Michigan, attends the court hearing and requests that the child be placed with her, instead of strangers.
It turns out that she raised the child for the first few months of his life, and the child’s parents both support the move. And if you weren’t convinced already, she happens to be both a licensed foster parent and a foster care worker.
Easy, quick decision, right? Well, not so fast.
Under the Interstate Compact for the Placement of Children (ICPC) – a contract between the 50 states and territories meant to ensure the safe placement of youth – before a court can make an interstate placement of a child in foster care, the state in which the potential caregiver lives must conduct and approve a home study.
[For more of this story, written by Vivek Sankaran, go to https://chronicleofsocialchang...en-foster-care/32395]
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