The 'faces' of Chicago's foster children: High placement rates found in poor communities: as long as one abuse or neglect case exists in foster care, that’s one too many....

The 'faces' of Chicago's foster children: High placement rates found in
poor communities
by Melisse Hinkle
May 24, 2007

http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/....aspx?id=36953

When Brian Krueger arrived on the scene, he was appalled by what he saw.

A foster home with three or four hospital beds crammed into one room.

The beds placed around a television.

Children with special needs who required additional care.

Krueger, 40, a fireman and paramedic in the Northwest suburbs of
Chicago, and his wife, Carrie, decided after that call that they needed
to help.

“He was just so righteously angered by that,” said Carrie Krueger, 35, a
former police officer. “We thought, OK, we could be foster parents. We
knew there was a big need, even in our area.”

Residents of Mount Prospect, the Kruegers are currently parents of two
biological children, three adopted children and two foster children.
Over the past eight years, they have taken in nine children altogether
who needed substitute care.

“The thing that we realized is people say foster children, but for us it
has faces,” she added.

Krueger’s foster children are just a few of more than 16,000 faces
currently in substitute care in Illinois. Substitute care is defined as
temporary placement with foster parents, other relatives or in an
institution, group home or health facility.

As Foster Parent Appreciation Month comes to a close, the number of
children in substitute care has been on the decline in Illinois, down
from more than 51,000 ten years ago, according to the Illinois
Department of Children & Family Services.

Carrie and Brian Krueger originally thought they would be foster parents
for a short time. But their first two foster children stayed for two years.

When the children went back to relatives, the Kruegers were devastated.

“Our hearts were broken when they left and we didn’t think we’d ever do
foster care again,” Carrie said. But one month later, they got a call. A
pair of twins needed foster parents.

The Krueger family grew again.

“We do emergency placement,” Carrie Krueger said. “So, it’s always kind
of a crisis situation.”

“Within two hours our family expands,” she added.

But within the boundaries of Chicago, the Illinois Department of
Children & Family Services’ statistics show that a significant amount of
foster children are not being placed in middle-class areas comparable to
Mount Prospect.

Instead, the highest placement rates are in some of the city’s poorest
areas.

The 60636 zip code area, which encompasses West Englewood, as well as
parts of Gage Park and Chicago Lawn, currently has the highest placement
rate. This region has 46 children in substitute care per 10,000
residents, according to calculations performed using data from DCFS.

Residents in the 60636 zip code have a median household income of
$27,727, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s most recent statistics.
This places the area just several thousand dollars above the national
poverty threshold for a family of four with two children, which is
$20,444, according to 2006 census data.

Jimmie Whitelow, a spokesman for the Illinois Department of Children &
Family Services said he doesn’t know why the placement rates in areas
like West Englewood are among the highest in the city.

“I would only say that when DCFS receives an allegation of abuse or
neglect, no matter where that allegation comes from, we go out and
investigate it,” Whitelow said. “If necessary we take protective custody
of a child based on those investigations.”

The numbers may reflect a push from the Illinois Department of Children
& Family Services to place foster children in close proximity to their
original homes. This effort is intended to keep children within an
environment they know and facilitate a reintroduction with their
original parents, Whitelow said.

Keeping foster children close to home allows them to maintain places in
their communities through visits with relatives and attendance at
familiar schools, he added.

“It’s based on a specific desire on the department to minimize any
further trauma to the child as it relates to the disruption of their
biological home,” Whitelow said.

Other low-income Chicago neighborhoods also rank in the top 10 for
placement rates.

The 60624 zip code area, which comprises West Garfield Park, as well as
parts of East Garfield Park, Humboldt Park and North Lawndale, ranks
second with 39 children in substitute care per 10,000 residents.
According to the census, the median household income for this area is
$22,426.

Also ranking second with 39 children in substitute care per 10,000
residents is the 60620 zip code area, which encompasses Auburn Gresham
and parts of Ashburn, Greater Grand Crossing, Chatham, Washington
Heights, Roseland and Beverly. The median household income in this area
is significantly higher at $36,334.

The 60621 region, composed of Englewood and parts of Washington Park and
Greater Grand Crossing, falls toward the bottom of the top 10 with 32
children in substitute care per 10,000 citizens. This area's median
household income is $19,718, just below the poverty line.

Carrie Krueger said she suspects some of the children in these areas are
also in temporary care with relatives who live close to their biological
homes.

Yvonne Zehr, chief deputy at the Illinois Public Guardian’s Office, said
a foster home close to a child’s original home that would allow the
child to keep connections to the community could be a good thing.

“At the same time, the department still needs to emphasize what has to
come first is the ability of this particular foster home to meet the
child’s needs,” she said.

For example, Zehr said, if a child has special medical needs, the best
foster home may be with a foster parent who is a nurse and not
necessarily with a foster parent who lives close to the child’s
biological home.

“Sometimes certain aspects of a child’s needs may need to override that
consideration,” Zehr said.

To become a licensed foster parent in Illinois, an individual must be at
least 21 years old, be able to pass a background check, show good health
via a physician’s approval, submit acceptable character references,
demonstrate an ability to provide for the family financially,
participate in several training programs and pass a home inspection. The
licensing process can take up to six months.

Once licensed, a foster parent usually receives financial assistance and
other supportive services to help care for a child.

On average, Carrie and Brian Krueger receive less than $12 per child per
day, Carrie Krueger said.

The number of children a foster parent can take in depends on several
factors, including how many children are already living in the home.

“We want them to be able to provide the optimal amount of care to a
child that is placed in their home,” Whitelow said.

But despite the department’s efforts, Zehr said sometimes the system can
be overwhelming, particularly for foster parents with good intentions
who find themselves caring for more children than they can handle.

“Certainly children continue to, frankly, be abused and neglected in
foster care,” Zehr said. “And as long as there is a single incident [of
abuse or neglect] in foster care, something needs to be addressed.”

She said progress was made a few years ago when DCFS limited the number
of children in foster homes. For instance, the maximum numbers of
special needs children and infants in a home were decreased.

But, she added, as long as one abuse or neglect case exists in foster
care, that’s one too many.

“It’s hard to determine why sometimes these things happen,” she said.
“Certainly, the quality and level of monitoring of foster homes, the
screening of potential foster parents are important aspects ... someone
needs to be carefully looking at a family that comes forward and
exploring why they are interested in becoming foster parents. And then
once they’re licensed, someone should be checking in.”

Zehr said she has also seen foster parents who go out of their way for
the children they care for, providing them with items such as glasses to
see the chalkboard and music lessons to inspire them.

“When there are caring foster parents who receive the necessary
supportive services to provide care for children, it works very well for
children while they need to be away from their home,” she said.

Carrie Krueger said foster care has been a blessing for her family and
it has given her two biological children a different perspective from
most 8-or-10-year-olds. Krueger’s 8-year-old son dreams of opening an
orphanage someday.

“They’re not focused on getting a new video system because they know
there’s things that are more important than that,” she said.
Dashed line





CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NATIONAL
SECURITY AGENCY/CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WIRETAPPING PROGRAM....

CPS Does not protect children...
It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even
killed at the hands of Child Protective Services.

every parent should read this .pdf from
connecticut dcf watch...

http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf

http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com

Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US
These numbers come from The National Center on
Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN)
Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS

*Perpetrators of Maltreatment*

Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59
Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13
Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241
Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12
Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5

Imagine that, 6.4 children die at the hands of the very agencies that
are supposed to protect them and only 1.5 at the hands of parents per
100,000 children. CPS perpetrates more abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse
and kills more children then parents in the United States. If the
citizens of this country hold CPS to the same standards that they hold
parents too. No judge should ever put another child in the hands of ANY
government agency because CPS nationwide is guilty of more harm and
death than any human being combined. CPS nationwide is guilty of more
human rights violations and deaths of children then the homes from which
they were removed. When are the judges going to wake up and see that
they are sending children to their death and a life of abuse when
children are removed from safe homes based on the mere opinion of a
bunch of social workers.

BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF
REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES
TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY
ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION...