New Jersey Department of Children and Families
Office of Adoption Operations Kinship Legal Guardianship Subsidy Program

The New Jersey Adoption Subsidy Program provides support and assistance
to families after their adoption is finalized. Although a caseworker is no longer assigned to
your child, your family now has an assigned Subsidy Specialist to assist you with concerns or questions, and obtaining community resources. Your Subsidy Specialist can help with Medicaid, subsidy payments, address changes, and other issues important to your family.

Working With Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ) Families in Foster Care and Adoption

WHAT’S INSIDEGetting to know the LGBTQ communityLanguage and terminologyAdvantages of including LGBTQ familiesTips for effective recruitment/retentionChallenges faced by LGBTQ adoptive parentsPossible challenges professionals face while working with LGBTQ familiesTips for representing LGBTQ families as potential adoptive parentsSupporting transgender parentsThe basics of creating a welcoming agencyConclusionReferences
During the last decade, child welfare professionals and agencies alike have welcomed the increasing visibility of families headed by LGBTQ parents. A growing number of agencies in the United States, both public and private, have established more supportive practices and are becoming increasingly proactive in recruiting families within the LGBTQ community, which means a larger pool of highly motivated and qualified prospective parents for children who need them. As written in the American Academy of Pediatrics (2013) policy statement titled Promoting the Well-being of Children Whose Parents Are Gay or Lesbian, “Scientific evidence affirms that children have similar developmental and emotional needs and receive similar parenting whether they are raised by parents of the same or different genders.”

Frequently Asked Questions From Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ) Prospective Foster and Adoptive Parents

WHAT’S INSIDEHow do I find a welcoming agency?What States allow LGBTQ individuals or same-sex couples to foster or adopt?Should I disclose my sexual orientation or transgender status? If so, when?What about intercountry adoption?What should I expect from the home study or family assessment?What do I do if I think an agency is discriminating or being unfair?How do I find support during the waiting process?How do I connect with other LGBTQ waiting parents?What do experienced LGBTQ parents have to offer as advice?Conclusion

WHAT’S INSIDE Who must be included in the home studyAgency or person conducting the study Qualifications for adoptive parents Elements of a home study Grounds for withholding approvalWhen studies must be completed Postplacement study requirements Exceptions for stepparent or relative adoptionsRequirements for interjurisdictional placementsFoster to adopt placementsSummaries of State lawsTo find statute information for a particular State, go to https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/laws-policies/state/.
Laws and policies for approving prospective adoptive homes vary considerably from State to State. In all cases, the process involves conducting an assessment or home study of the prospective adoptive parent or parents. The home study process serves many purposes, including educating and preparing the prospective parents for parenting an adopted child, gathering information about the family in order to better match the parent and child, and evaluating the fitness of the adoptive family.