In Clark County, we consider the pathway from fostering to adoption a natural continuum when no relatives are able or available to care for the child or teen. This can provide the best support to children under the temporary care of Department of Family Services. If you are interested in adopting a child from our Find My Forever program directly through Clark County Department of Family Services, please email dfsfindmyforever@clarkcountynv.gov.
However, as a foster caregiver, there is no guarantee that you will be able to adopt the children, teens or sibling groups in your care. The goal of foster care is to return the child, teen or sibling group to their parents or relatives.
Fostering children before becoming an adoptive parent has many benefits.
- As a licensed foster parent, you receive specialized training such as the effects of childhood trauma, trauma-informed parenting, grief and loss, and working with the birth family. Our team at Department of Family Services will support you every step of the way, as you prepare to welcome children and teens from foster care into your family.
- Foster parents complete fingerprinting, background checks, and home inspections directly through Department of Family Services, with few, if any, costs incurred.
- You can be confident in your decision to grow your family and try parenting youth from any age range- from infants to teenagers.
- Fostering first helps you determine a child’s or teen’s needs, and be better prepared advocate for supports and adoption assistance programs.
- Licensed foster parents receive a monthly reimbursement for each child or teen in their care, and the children/teens each receive Medicaid benefits.
- As you foster, you are building a relationship with Department of Family Services, making you a known candidate and adoptive resource for when a child or teen is deemed legally free” and available for adoption.
- Foster parents receive monthly updates on the children, teens, and sibling groups who are legally free for adoption in Clark County.
Please note that if you choose to adopt through foster care, the Department of Family Services encourages you to take children into care upon your foster care licensure. And, while children under your care may be available for adoption at some point, many children will not qualify for adoption. There are no guarantees that you will be able to adopt a child, sibling group, or teen in your home.
As a foster parent, you must understand the likelihood of the child or teen being returned to the birth family or being placed with a relative caregiver. You are also asked to actively support the birth family through visitation and communication when it is part of the reunification plan.
Once you are a licensed foster parent, you will work with specialists from Department of Family Services to care for children, teens, and sibling groups who would be a great match for your family. While you cannot directly select the children or teens you would like to care for, you can share preferences like age, size of sibling group, etc. Your licensing specialist will help in finding the best fit for both your family, and the children and teens needing foster care.
Our team at Department of Family Services, along with our compassionate group of foster caregivers, work together to help children in need Find My Forever.
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