Neighbor To Family, Inc.

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Neighbor To Family, Inc. is a private, not-for-profit foster care organization focused on keeping siblings together.

Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, Neighbor To Family also has programs in Miami and Orlando in Florida; Atlanta and Augusta, Georgia; Baltimore, Maryland; Hampton Roads, Virginia; and Haywood County, North Carolina. The organization cares for about 2,000 children every day and has an annual budget of about $30 million. Neighbor To Family was founded in 1998 by Gordon Johnson, M.Ed., LLD who serves as its President and CEO.

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[edit] History

In the 1980s, Johnson headed the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services for seven years and repeatedly saw children being removed from their homes and their parents, and then further traumitized by being torn from their brothers and sisters when placed in foster homes. Even today, most foster homes are unable to accommodate sibling groups, especially three or more children.

Johnson became convinced that the separation of siblings reduced the likelihood of reunification with parents, impaired a child's ability to bond with adoptive parents, and increased the need for treatment of emotional and behavioral disorders.

There are more than 500,000 children in foster care in the United States at any given time. Studies indicate between 65% and 85% of children in foster care have at least one sibling; only an estimated 25% of these children are placed with all their siblings. Below is the percentage of children placed in foster care with all siblings:

  • 2 Children 54.5%
  • 3 Children 38.7%
  • 4 Children 27.1%
  • 5 Children 17.0%
  • 6+ Children 11.2%

(Statistics on Siblings in Out-Of-Home Care update 2002, Casey Family Programs).

[edit] Sibling Foster Care

Johnson left DCFS in 1990 to become President of the Jane Addams Hull House Association in Chicago. There, in 1994, a sibling foster care program was developed called, Neighbor To Neighbor, with attracted national attention in child welfare circles. In 1998, Florida child welfare officials invited Johnson to bring the program to Daytona Beach, and legislation authored by State Representative Evelyn Lynn mandated a sibling foster care program and initial funding from the state's Department of Children and Families.

Core values of Neighbor To Family:

  • Sibling groups would be placed together in a single foster home;
  • Birth parents would be supported while being held accountable for their children;
  • Foster parents would be professionalized, with a monthly salary and benefits;
  • Involving, and being accountable to, funding agencies;
  • Planning for reunification or permanency would be a team effort involving the parents, foster parents, staff, family, friends and the community.

Special emphasis is given to achieving permanency goals for children within 12 months of placement. While the national average for length of stay in foster care is 32.6 months, Neighbor To Family’s average is 7.2 months (U.S. Children’s Bureau, Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System, 2006; NTF study of 1,204 closed cases, 1998-2005).

An independent evaluation of Neighbor To Family by The Ounce of Prevention Fund of Florida reported:

  • 100% of sibling groups remained together while in NTF placement
  • 94% of children served were in compliance with the age appropriate immunizations
  • 91% of the children served made progress towards developmental milestones
  • 100% of the children increased self esteem as measured by pre/post testing
  • 79% of the children increased academic performance
  • 67% of the children increased their social skills
  • 99% of the children placed in foster care did not experience any verified or indication of maltreatment during services
  • 92% of the children served have no verified or indication of child maltreatment within 12 months post-program services

[edit] Professional Foster Care

Neighbor To Family employs professional foster caregivers who receive salaries and respite time, 40 hours of annual training and 24-hour support and consultation from NTF staff.

[edit] Role of Foster Parents

Neighbor To Family foster parents are required to make regular reports on the progress of their children and their relationship with birth parents, to do outreach and mentoring for birth parents, to help coordinate therapy and medical care for children and to be an integral part of the therapeutic team that is making decisions about the future of the children.

As a professional member of the team, foster parents have access to training and support services to assist in their care for sibling groups.

[edit] Birth Father Involvement

Active outreach to birth parents provides better opportunities for reunification. In addition to birth mother involvement, Neighbor to Family also works to find and involve birth fathers when appropriate.

[edit] Recognition of Sibling Foster Care

The importance of keeping siblings together when placed in foster care received more national exposure in 2006, when the Alliance for Children and Families honored Johnson's work with Neighbor To Family with the Samuel Gerson Nordlinger Child Welfare Leadership Award at its national conference. The award recognizes contributions to the field of child welfare and national public policy to advance the quality of services for children and families.

In 2007, The Second Annual Purpose Prize, awarded by Civic Ventures of San Francisco, recognized Johnson as one of five top innovators over the age of 60, “For developing programs to prevent the separation of siblings in foster care.”

[edit] Mission Statement

Contributing to a better society by supporting the family unit with focused programs to keep siblings together through strong partnerships with families, foster parents and communities.

[edit] References

[edit] External links