Legal Authority/Introduction

LEGAL AUTHORITY:

• 922 KAR 1:100 Public agency adoptions.

Introduction  

The Kentucky Adoption Profile Exchange (KAPE) was established to facilitate permanency and adoptive placements for children.  Children shall be referred to the Adoption Services Branch to be registered with KAPE if:

• The child has the goal of adoption;
• Termination of parental rights (TPR) has been granted; and
• They do not have any identified adoptive families being considered.

Practice Guidance

The KAPE packet must include:

• The completed DPP-196 KAPE Referral form;
• KAPE Referral Presentation Summary;
• Current color photo (must be electronic in JPEG format);
• Child’s profile narrative (do not include any personal health information (PHI) or any negative comments to be placed on the KAPE and AdoptUSKids websites); and
• TPR order.

All of the items above, must be e-mailed together to the Adoption Services Branch.  Please call (502) 564-2147 to obtain the appropriate email address.

The KAPE specialist with Adoption Services Branch is responsible for:  

• Making the public aware of the child's availability for adoption through the use of in-state media including the internet (recruitment resources, adoption activities, and the KAPE and AdoptUSKids websites);and
• Utilizing technology and national resources to ensure timely adoptive placements and permanency for children enrolled in the KAPE.

A hold on a child is referenced when:

• It is not in the best interest of the child(ren) to recruit adoptive families at that time.  A memorandum signed by the service region administrator (SRA) or designee must be sent to the KAPE specialist outlining the justification to place the child on hold for this type of request;
• The child is placed with a family who has expressed interest in adopting the child but has not signed an DPP-198 Intent to Adopt or the DPP-195 Adoptive Placement Agreement.  A memorandum signed by the SRA or designee must be sent to the KAPE specialist outlining the current situation, how DCBS is supporting and assessing the placement, and the plan to monitor the family's commitment to adopting the child. 1

Children may only be placed on hold for six (6) months.  If additional time is needed, an updated memorandum must be approved by the SRA or designee and submitted to the KAPE specialist. 

A child will be listed as referred when:

• The KAPE specialist receives notification that an adoptive family has been identified and the child's adoption review committee is moving forward with adoption with the identified adoptive family.  KAPE central office staff receives a signed DPP-198 Intent to Adopt or the DPP-195 Adoptive Placement Agreement for an adoption that will be finalized. 

Withdrawal is requested when the:

• The KAPE specialist receives a signed DPP-195-Adoptive Placement Agreement for an adoption that will be finalized in Kentucky;
• Goal is changed from adoption; or
• The child turns age eighteen (18).

The SSW may contact KAPE central office staff to request a child be placed on hold or withdrawn from the KAPE program.

If a child’s situation changes after withdrawal from KAPE, the SSW may re-enroll a child following the guidelines of procedure #1 in this SOP.

Procedure

1. Emailing a KAPE packet (see below required documents) to central office (CO) and copying their FSOS. 
2. Providing the Adoption Services Branch staff and/or a member of the child's adoption review committee any requested information regarding the current status of a child enrolled in the KAPE program;
3. Contacting the foster parent (or caregiver) to obtain information about the child, as well as meeting the child within thirty (30) working days of the referral to KAPE to explain the recruitment process;
4. Developing an individualized recruitment plan within (ninety) 90 working days of the child's referral to KAPE; and
5. Updating KAPE as necessary.

Footnotes

1. The memo should be completed using the KAPE Referral Hold Request template.