Foster Care

Statistics

Mandatory sentencing policies and “get tough” legislation has put greater numbers of mothers and fathers behind bars serving longer sentences with no regard for their children. Close to 1.5 million children in the United States have at least one parent serving time in a state or federal prison, while nearly 600,000 more have parents who are being held in county jails

Statistics show that approximately two-thirds of all women incarcerated in state prisons have minor children. Over 70% of those with young children lived with them prior to incarceration. At the same time, about 56% of men in state correctional facilities have minor children and approximately half lived with them prior to incarceration. About 50% of children with incarcerated mothers are cared for by grandparents with low incomes. A further 25% live with their father, and about 12% live with another relative. The remaining 13% reside in foster care. Close to 90% of children of incarcerated men live with their mother. Children of incarcerated [Page 337]parents often move back and forth between foster care and kinship care.

Adjustment to Foster Care

While incarcerated parents have to adjust to prison policy and a prison routine, children living in foster care also have to make significant adjustments to their new environment. Foster children bear the burden of adapting to a new set of parents, siblings, and extended family members. Roles and responsibilities connected to age, gender, and birth order are likely to change in their new family setting. Children need to master a new set of rules that revolve around bedtime, meal times, watching television, and doing homework. They often have to adjust to unfamiliar foods and food odors. Foster parents may speak a language they are not familiar with.

For some children, their new neighborhood may look very different from their old neighborhood. Children from urban settings might find themselves in a rural community and children from a rural community may find themselves in a city environment. Such changes of setting may require adjustments to noise, traffic, and outdoor vs. indoor recreation. At school, the children must face a new set of teachers and peers while enduring the stigma often attached to being in the foster care system. The religious practices of their foster family may seem unusual and participation at church services may lead to feelings of guilt. Similarly, some children may be required to change their hairstyle, style of dress, and even their style of communication. These imposed changes may raise identity issues for children that may be further compounded by multiple moves that demand multiple transitions.

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