Adoption Center of Illinois FAQ

1. Tell us a little about the founding and development of your organization?
   It all began in the mid ‘80s with a group of people whose lives were touched by adoption -- men and women who had placed children for adoption, adults who were adopted as children, adoptive parents, and community members interested in the field of adoption. Together they shared a common interest in an approach to adoption that differed from then current practices. Embracing the belief that people are capable of making informed decisions for themselves rather than being told what to do, and that birth parents have the right to take an active role in choosing the family that would adopt their child, they set out to create a new kind of agency. It was out of these innovative ideas that Family Resource Center was founded in the summer of 1988 and opened its first office in the Uptown Bank Building on Broadway in Chicago. By creating an oasis of understanding and providing a safe environment that engendered trust, FRC built a reputation for being welcoming, responsive and accessible. Its volunteer board of directors continued to include birth parents, adoptive parents and people whose lives had been touched by adoption. Through the years under the FRC banner, the agency placed more than 1500 children for adoption, including many with complex medical issues. In addition it participated in another 2,000 adoptions by providing professional guidance and home study services. In 2013, in conjunction with its 25th anniversary, FRC began operating under the name Adoption Center of Illinois at Family Resource Center. The organization’s leaders felt that in an era when social media and Internet communication was increasingly important, that the agency’s name should say what it does to remain aligned with its mission and vision. Today, the agency continues to embrace its founding belief that people can, and should, make informed decisions for themselves. What’s more, Adoption Center of Illinois continues to evolve the conversation about adoption and its meaning in people’s lives.
2. How are your adoption home study and your organization unique?
   Our philosophy of open communication with adoptive parents and operating under the philosophy that “people are best able to manage their own lives” makes us unique in the adoption community. We offer a wide variety of adoption services and allow potential adoptive parents to simultaneously pursue multiple resources to build their family.
3. Why are you passionate about adoption and the home study process?
   Today, the agency continues to embrace its founding belief that people can, and should, make informed decisions for themselves. What’s more, Adoption Center of Illinois continues to evolve the conversation about adoption and its meaning in people’s lives.
4. How long is an adoption home study valid?
   Depending upon the type of home study, a minimum of one year. In the case of international home studies, they remain valid during the approval timeframe of USICS
5. Approximately how much time is necessary to complete an adoption home study by your organization?
   Home studies are typically completed within 90 days, but the adoptive parent has the ability to speed up, or extend the time period.
6. Can adoptive parents use a home study completed by your organization to adopt a child born in another state?
   Yes, absolutely!
7. If you complete my home study, do you also have to complete my post-placement visits?
   We do not have to, but the home study fee includes the post-placement visits and reports so we typically do.
8. How many post-placement visits does your organization require?
   It varies depending upon the type of home study and the placing agency. We do require at least one, and more frequently two.
9. What is some advice you can give to potential adoptive families about the home study process? What should they be prepared for?
   It’s a cooperative process. It’s an inquiry, not an inquisition. We are readily available at any time to answer any and all of your questions. Families report that home study was a comfortable, non-threatening process.
10. What do your home study social workers look for in a home and a family when they visit potential adoptive families' homes?
    We do not have any arbitrary criteria and look at families individually. We need to be able to state that the home will offer a safe, loving, nurturing and stable environment for a child.
11. Are you Hague accredited, and if not, does your international home study comply with Hague International Standards?
    Yes
12. Do you have experience in completing the home study and working with international placement companies?
    We have been Hague Accredited since 2008 and have completed 100s of international home studies for both Hague and non-Hague countries.
13. Are there other services and benefits you would like to share about your company?
    We have a new program, our Waiting Child Services program that supports families to adopt older children from the foster care system, both here in Illinois and from any other state.