Child and family services
Encyclopedia
Child and family services is a government
and/or non-profit organisation designed to better the well being of individuals who come from unfortunate situations, environmental or biological. People who seek or are sought after to participate in these services, usually do not have stable homes and no other resource to turn to. Children might come from abusive
or neglect
ful homes, or live in very poor and dangerous communities. There are also agencies that cater to people who have biological deficiencies. Families that are trying to live in stable lives come to non-profit organisations for hope of a better future. Child and Family services cater to many different types of people whom are all in different situations. These services might be mandated through the courts via a governmental child protection agency or they might be voluntary. Child and family services may be mandated if:
. This placed the public responsibility for the poor in the hands of local townspeople. Parents were not held accountable for their children, which lead parent’s to tend to neglect their children and their duties as a parent. The attention of community leaders, philanthropists, and social reformers who were concerned about child abuse and neglect focused primarily on the children of the poorest families and on those who were orphaned, abandoned, or unsupervised.
d adults. The almshouses caused the children greater hardships because they were subject to disease and chaos.
The second half of the 20th century saw increasing criticism of the impacts the unsanitary, chaotic almshouses had on children, especially the very young, who suffered high mortality rates there. Due to this, private charities and religious groups began to establish orphanages or children’s asylums to separate needy children from adults and protect them from disease, maltreatment, and such. Many parents were losing custody of their children because the private organizations were able to prove they would be able to take care of the children in need better than their parents could. Children began to feel disconnected from their parents because they had been placed to grow up with other families.
and survival of many children and their families. However, years ago, many people relied on their community and religion to get them through tougher times. The community’s investment in the wellbeing of its children is reflected in the cultural mores and social norms, and in legal frameworks that permit intervention in individual families when children are abused or neglected.
In the United States, independence, privacy, and parental rights are highly prized. The legal system supports the right of families to rear their children according to their own values, and requires evidence of danger or harm before the state may invade the sanctity of the home to protect the children. Although parents can raise their children with specific values that they feel are important, too often, children are emotionally abused by their parent’s persistence to establish their parents’ identity. Parents need to better themselves and their children without causing physical and emotional harm to them. This is very tough for parents to do without adequate resources and education. Since parents usually pass down their values and morals from generation to generation, it is very hard for parents to tell what is right and what is wrong when they are repeating what that have seen over the years; the problem is, times do change and what was acceptable in the early 20th century is no longer acceptable today in the 21st century.
The formal system through which society responds to child abuse
and neglect
is now largely a governmental one. Today, primary responsibility for child protection is vested in public child protective services (CPS) agencies, which receive, investigate, and respond to reports of child abuse and neglect. These agencies are usually linked to child welfare departments with broader responsibilities which include foster care
and adoption
. Usually at this point, the parents lose their right to take care of their children because they are seen to be unfit parents. Today, it is against the law to not report child abuse if evident. Many parents do not realize that they are candidates for the potential loss their children to government agencies. Many parents do not realize this because of their own issues, such as poverty, mental illness, or neglect that they do in fact cause child abuse.
services, preventative services; foster care
, special needs
adoption
and after-hours protective services; residential treatment services for youth; special education
programs; domestic violence
prevention, treatment and intervention services; employee assistance programs
; and family life education
.
, industrialization, and immigration
placed on poor and working-class families in the late 19th century left many children unattended. Rural states relied on family placements to care for their own homeless or dependent children. This was a precursor for today’s foster care system.
As a general progressive agenda of social reform was adapted in the early years if the 20th century, the approach of assisting parents to care for their children was more widely endorsed. A new policy was issued stating: “No child should be removed from the home unless it is impossible to construct family conditions or to build and supplement family resources as to make the home safe for the child…”http://www.jstor.org.central.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/view/10548289/ap050019/05a00040/0?currentResult=10548289%2bap050019%2b05a00040%2b0%2cFFFF01&searchUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jstor.org%2Fsearch%2FBasicResults%3Fhp%3D25%26si%3D1%26gw%3Djtx%26jtxsi%3D1%26jcpsi%3D1%26artsi%3D1%26Query%3Dhistory%2Bof%2Bchild%2Band%2Bfamily%2Bservices%26wc%3Don
There is still evidence from the 19th century of abandoned children. A 137-year-old foundation for children called New York Foundling Asylum has recently discovered letters from the parents who had abandoned their children in front of the agency because they were unable to care for them. New York Foundling Asylum was a family service agency that cared for thousands of children who had no homes and needed help, otherwise they would have been left on the cold street. This foundation saved thousands of lives and set a tone for other private organizations to contribute as well.http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/03/nyregion/03foundling.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Over the last 15 years, federal child care assistance has more than doubled. Poor and low income families, however, have not benefited from this increased spending. Because the most significant child care subsidies are provided through the tax code
and not through spending programs, these increases have largely benefited middle and upper class families. Lower income families do not benefit because they hardly pay taxes in the first place. One would think that the low income families would need the support the most for their children and it should make it easier to receive help than for the middle to upper class.
Although middle and upper class families are at an advantage, the total federal and state funding for child welfare and working families has increased dramatically since the welfare reform
, from $2.8 billion in 1995 to $8 billion in 2000. Although it is being made easier now for low income families to benefit from the welfare reform, they are less likely to be enrolled in high quality programs due to uneven access to high quality options in their neighborhoods. Less than one quarter of all eligible families use child care subsidies, and usage varies widely across states and local areas reflecting various barriers to access and scarcity of quality center-based care.
One could also argue that the middle and upper classes are the ones that are paying for the welfare programs through taxes, while the poor are not. Child welfare
and income assistance programs serve low income populations. Income assistance is targeted specifically at low income families, and the strong association between poverty and reported child maltreatment means that child welfare agencies deal primarily with low income clientele. However they are not the clientele that are receiving the most funding.
The problem is these funds go increasingly to the least needy among us.
A shocking proportion of these funds go to middle and upper income families: Nearly half go to families with incomes above the median. In 1985, less than 1% went to families with adjusted gross incomes below $10,000, and only 13% of adjusted gross incomes below $15,000. So few lower income families can benefit from the credit and less than half of all working mothers claim it.
Since the lower class endures financial strain, this leads to child maltreatment. Parents are giving their children the bare minimum for survival in hope that the government won’t take their children out of the home. The welfare agencies would rather take the children out of their homes and put them in foster agencies which costs almost triple the amount that the parents would need for their children to be healthy and happy if they were just cut a check every month.
Perhaps child care should be universally-available to all families, regardless of their income—like public schools. But that is a long run question, as the proper role of the federal government
is establishing such a system, which would call for an enormous increase of public spending. U.S. citizens do not want to pay more taxes, and the middle to upper classes would in tern be paying for universal child care…which they previously were receiving money for anyway.
on how to do so. Social Welfare is important in the United States to guarantee safety
, health
, equal opportunity
, and social justice
.
The Office of Family Assistance (OFA) is located in the United States Department of Health and Human Services
, Administration for Children and Families and oversees the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
(TANF) Program which was created by the Welfare Reform Law of 1996. TANF became effective July 1, 1997, and replaced what was then commonly known as welfare: Aid to Families with Dependent Children
(AFDC) and the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) programs. TANF was reauthorized in February 2006 under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005
. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
(TANF) provides assistance and work opportunities to needy families by granting states the federal funds
and wide flexibility to develop and implement their own welfare programs. Citizens may apply for assistance at their local TANF agency.
, industrialization, and immigration
placed on poor and working-class families in the late 19th century left many children unattended. Rural states relied on family placements to care for their own homeless or dependent children. This was a precursor for today’s foster care system.
As a general progressive agenda of social reform was adapted in the early years if the 20th century, the approach of assisting parents to care for their children was more widely endorsed. A new policy was issued stating: “No child should be removed from the home unless it is impossible to construct family conditions or to build and supplement family resources as to make the home safe for the child…”http://www.jstor.org.central.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/view/10548289/ap050019/05a00040/0?currentResult=10548289%2bap050019%2b05a00040%2b0%2cFFFF01&searchUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jstor.org%2Fsearch%2FBasicResults%3Fhp%3D25%26si%3D1%26gw%3Djtx%26jtxsi%3D1%26jcpsi%3D1%26artsi%3D1%26Query%3Dhistory%2Bof%2Bchild%2Band%2Bfamily%2Bservices%26wc%3Don
There is still evidence from the 19th century of abandoned children. A 137-year-old foundation for children called New York Foundling Asylum has recently discovered letters from the parents who had abandoned their children in front of the agency because they were unable to care fro them. New York Foundling Asylum was a family service agency that cared for thousands of children who had no homes and needed help, otherwise they would have been left on the cold street. This foundation saved thousands of lives and set a tone for other private organizations to contribute as well.http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/03/nyregion/03foundling.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Child welfare agencies—both private and public—have focused in providing substitute child-rearing environments for children whose parents are unable or unwilling to give them the care they need. With escalating concerns about the effects on children spending long periods of their childhood in temporary foster homes, interest has grown in efforts to preserve families and maintain bonds of both kinship and community.
The changes in the welfare system over the last few centuries, has created much better environments for children and their families. Through government agencies, officials keep close eyes on children in making sure that they are adequately taken care of. There are now many programs for children to ensure safety, morals, values, and educational success. Children’s parents are also given opportunities through agencies and programs to participate in more positive ways in their children’s lives, and in return more positive lives for themselves.
Non Profit Organization
Administration for Children and Families
Past, Present, and Future Roles of Child Protective Services
Glimpses of Heartache, and Stories of Survival
Federal Child Care Assistance: A Growing Middle-Class Entitlement
Welfare Reform and Child Care Options for Low-Income Families
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
and/or non-profit organisation designed to better the well being of individuals who come from unfortunate situations, environmental or biological. People who seek or are sought after to participate in these services, usually do not have stable homes and no other resource to turn to. Children might come from abusive
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
or neglect
Neglect
Neglect is a passive form of abuse in which a perpetrator is responsible to provide care for a victim who is unable to care for himself or herself, but fails to provide adequate care....
ful homes, or live in very poor and dangerous communities. There are also agencies that cater to people who have biological deficiencies. Families that are trying to live in stable lives come to non-profit organisations for hope of a better future. Child and Family services cater to many different types of people whom are all in different situations. These services might be mandated through the courts via a governmental child protection agency or they might be voluntary. Child and family services may be mandated if:
- There is domestic violence in the home
- There is abuse or neglect in the home
- Constant negativity amongst family members which could lead to violent behavior
- Physical abusePhysical abusePhysical abuse is abuse involving contact intended to cause feelings of intimidation, injury, or other physical suffering or bodily harm.-Forms of physical abuse:*Striking*Punching*Belting*Pushing, pulling*Slapping*Whipping*Striking with an object...
- Emotional abuse
- Physical abuse
Historical overview
The history of the nation’s response to child abuse and neglect has been marked by a tension between two missions:- an emphasis on rescuing children from abusive or neglectful families on the one hand
- and efforts to support and preserve their families on the other.
18th and 19th centuries
The legal basis for efforts to protect needy children in colonial times rested on the English Poor Law of 1601Elizabethan Poor Law (1601)
The Act for the Relief of the Poor 1601, popularly known as the "Elizabethan Poor Law", "43rd Elizabeth" or the "Old Poor Law" was an Act of Parliament passed in 1601 which created a national poor law system for England and Wales....
. This placed the public responsibility for the poor in the hands of local townspeople. Parents were not held accountable for their children, which lead parent’s to tend to neglect their children and their duties as a parent. The attention of community leaders, philanthropists, and social reformers who were concerned about child abuse and neglect focused primarily on the children of the poorest families and on those who were orphaned, abandoned, or unsupervised.
20th century
During most of the 19th century, destitute children were sent to institutions operated by private charitable organizations. Many poor or abandoned children were sent to live in almshouses—facilities established in the 19th century in many large cities to house the very poor of all ages. Almshouses provided minimal standard of care to orphaned or needy children and to impoverished, insane, or diseaseDisease
A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...
d adults. The almshouses caused the children greater hardships because they were subject to disease and chaos.
The second half of the 20th century saw increasing criticism of the impacts the unsanitary, chaotic almshouses had on children, especially the very young, who suffered high mortality rates there. Due to this, private charities and religious groups began to establish orphanages or children’s asylums to separate needy children from adults and protect them from disease, maltreatment, and such. Many parents were losing custody of their children because the private organizations were able to prove they would be able to take care of the children in need better than their parents could. Children began to feel disconnected from their parents because they had been placed to grow up with other families.
Evolution
Child and family services have significantly evolved over the last few centuries. Many different forms of help for children and families in need were offered throughout the community. Today we have many different agencies to help with the welfareQuality of life
The term quality of life is used to evaluate the general well-being of individuals and societies. The term is used in a wide range of contexts, including the fields of international development, healthcare, and politics. Quality of life should not be confused with the concept of standard of...
and survival of many children and their families. However, years ago, many people relied on their community and religion to get them through tougher times. The community’s investment in the wellbeing of its children is reflected in the cultural mores and social norms, and in legal frameworks that permit intervention in individual families when children are abused or neglected.
In the United States, independence, privacy, and parental rights are highly prized. The legal system supports the right of families to rear their children according to their own values, and requires evidence of danger or harm before the state may invade the sanctity of the home to protect the children. Although parents can raise their children with specific values that they feel are important, too often, children are emotionally abused by their parent’s persistence to establish their parents’ identity. Parents need to better themselves and their children without causing physical and emotional harm to them. This is very tough for parents to do without adequate resources and education. Since parents usually pass down their values and morals from generation to generation, it is very hard for parents to tell what is right and what is wrong when they are repeating what that have seen over the years; the problem is, times do change and what was acceptable in the early 20th century is no longer acceptable today in the 21st century.
The formal system through which society responds to child abuse
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
and neglect
Neglect
Neglect is a passive form of abuse in which a perpetrator is responsible to provide care for a victim who is unable to care for himself or herself, but fails to provide adequate care....
is now largely a governmental one. Today, primary responsibility for child protection is vested in public child protective services (CPS) agencies, which receive, investigate, and respond to reports of child abuse and neglect. These agencies are usually linked to child welfare departments with broader responsibilities which include foster care
Foster care
Foster care is the term used for a system in which a minor who has been made a ward is placed in the private home of a state certified caregiver referred to as a "foster parent"....
and adoption
Adoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
. Usually at this point, the parents lose their right to take care of their children because they are seen to be unfit parents. Today, it is against the law to not report child abuse if evident. Many parents do not realize that they are candidates for the potential loss their children to government agencies. Many parents do not realize this because of their own issues, such as poverty, mental illness, or neglect that they do in fact cause child abuse.
Types of services
Non profit agencies offer a wide array of services for children and families who have environmental or biological hardships. These services include, family counseling, family mental healthMental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
services, preventative services; foster care
Foster care
Foster care is the term used for a system in which a minor who has been made a ward is placed in the private home of a state certified caregiver referred to as a "foster parent"....
, special needs
Special needs
In the USA, special needs is a term used in clinical diagnostic and functional development to describe individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. For instance, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the International...
adoption
Adoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
and after-hours protective services; residential treatment services for youth; special education
Special education
Special education is the education of students with special needs in a way that addresses the students' individual differences and needs. Ideally, this process involves the individually planned and systematically monitored arrangement of teaching procedures, adapted equipment and materials,...
programs; domestic violence
Domestic violence
Domestic violence, also known as domestic abuse, spousal abuse, battering, family violence, and intimate partner violence , is broadly defined as a pattern of abusive behaviors by one or both partners in an intimate relationship such as marriage, dating, family, or cohabitation...
prevention, treatment and intervention services; employee assistance programs
Employee assistance programs
Employee Assistance Programs are employee benefit programs offered by many employers, typically in conjunction with a health insurance plan. EAPs are intended to help employees deal with personal problems that might adversely impact their work performance, health, and well-being...
; and family life education
Family life education
Family Life Education is the effort made by American professional organizations, universities, and individuals to strengthen families through social science education.- Definition :The premier professional organization in the U.S...
.
- Constant negativity amongst family members which could lead to violent behavior
- Physical abusePhysical abusePhysical abuse is abuse involving contact intended to cause feelings of intimidation, injury, or other physical suffering or bodily harm.-Forms of physical abuse:*Striking*Punching*Belting*Pushing, pulling*Slapping*Whipping*Striking with an object...
- Emotional abuse
- Physical abuse
Progression
The demands that urbanizationUrbanization
Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
, industrialization, and immigration
Immigration
Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
placed on poor and working-class families in the late 19th century left many children unattended. Rural states relied on family placements to care for their own homeless or dependent children. This was a precursor for today’s foster care system.
As a general progressive agenda of social reform was adapted in the early years if the 20th century, the approach of assisting parents to care for their children was more widely endorsed. A new policy was issued stating: “No child should be removed from the home unless it is impossible to construct family conditions or to build and supplement family resources as to make the home safe for the child…”http://www.jstor.org.central.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/view/10548289/ap050019/05a00040/0?currentResult=10548289%2bap050019%2b05a00040%2b0%2cFFFF01&searchUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jstor.org%2Fsearch%2FBasicResults%3Fhp%3D25%26si%3D1%26gw%3Djtx%26jtxsi%3D1%26jcpsi%3D1%26artsi%3D1%26Query%3Dhistory%2Bof%2Bchild%2Band%2Bfamily%2Bservices%26wc%3Don
There is still evidence from the 19th century of abandoned children. A 137-year-old foundation for children called New York Foundling Asylum has recently discovered letters from the parents who had abandoned their children in front of the agency because they were unable to care for them. New York Foundling Asylum was a family service agency that cared for thousands of children who had no homes and needed help, otherwise they would have been left on the cold street. This foundation saved thousands of lives and set a tone for other private organizations to contribute as well.http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/03/nyregion/03foundling.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Child Care Debate
Why are the middle and upper classes getting so much financial help with child care assistance, when the lower class needs the help?Over the last 15 years, federal child care assistance has more than doubled. Poor and low income families, however, have not benefited from this increased spending. Because the most significant child care subsidies are provided through the tax code
Tax code
In the UK, every person paid under the PAYE scheme is allocated a tax code by HM Revenue and Customs. This is usually in the form of a number followed by a letter suffix, though other 'non-standard' codes are also used. This code describes to employers how much tax to deduct from an employee. The...
and not through spending programs, these increases have largely benefited middle and upper class families. Lower income families do not benefit because they hardly pay taxes in the first place. One would think that the low income families would need the support the most for their children and it should make it easier to receive help than for the middle to upper class.
Although middle and upper class families are at an advantage, the total federal and state funding for child welfare and working families has increased dramatically since the welfare reform
Welfare reform
Welfare reform refers to the process of reforming the framework of social security and welfare provisions, but what is considered reform is a matter of opinion. The term was used in the United States to support the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act...
, from $2.8 billion in 1995 to $8 billion in 2000. Although it is being made easier now for low income families to benefit from the welfare reform, they are less likely to be enrolled in high quality programs due to uneven access to high quality options in their neighborhoods. Less than one quarter of all eligible families use child care subsidies, and usage varies widely across states and local areas reflecting various barriers to access and scarcity of quality center-based care.
One could also argue that the middle and upper classes are the ones that are paying for the welfare programs through taxes, while the poor are not. Child welfare
Child welfare
Child protection is used to describe a set of usually government-run services designed to protect children and young people who are underage and to encourage family stability...
and income assistance programs serve low income populations. Income assistance is targeted specifically at low income families, and the strong association between poverty and reported child maltreatment means that child welfare agencies deal primarily with low income clientele. However they are not the clientele that are receiving the most funding.
The problem is these funds go increasingly to the least needy among us.
A shocking proportion of these funds go to middle and upper income families: Nearly half go to families with incomes above the median. In 1985, less than 1% went to families with adjusted gross incomes below $10,000, and only 13% of adjusted gross incomes below $15,000. So few lower income families can benefit from the credit and less than half of all working mothers claim it.
Since the lower class endures financial strain, this leads to child maltreatment. Parents are giving their children the bare minimum for survival in hope that the government won’t take their children out of the home. The welfare agencies would rather take the children out of their homes and put them in foster agencies which costs almost triple the amount that the parents would need for their children to be healthy and happy if they were just cut a check every month.
Perhaps child care should be universally-available to all families, regardless of their income—like public schools. But that is a long run question, as the proper role of the federal government
Federal government
The federal government is the common government of a federation. The structure of federal governments varies from institution to institution. Based on a broad definition of a basic federal political system, there are two or more levels of government that exist within an established territory and...
is establishing such a system, which would call for an enormous increase of public spending. U.S. citizens do not want to pay more taxes, and the middle to upper classes would in tern be paying for universal child care…which they previously were receiving money for anyway.
Problems and solutions
There are many families in the United States and in other countries who are in need of child and family services to guide them towards building a better future. These children and their families, more often than not, have the desire to create and live better lives, unfortunately they do not have the resources or educationEducation
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
on how to do so. Social Welfare is important in the United States to guarantee safety
Safety
Safety is the state of being "safe" , the condition of being protected against physical, social, spiritual, financial, political, emotional, occupational, psychological, educational or other types or consequences of failure, damage, error, accidents, harm or any other event which could be...
, health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
, equal opportunity
Equal opportunity
Equal opportunity, or equality of opportunity, is a controversial political concept; and an important informal decision-making standard without a precise definition involving fair choices within the public sphere...
, and social justice
Social justice
Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
.
The Office of Family Assistance (OFA) is located in the United States Department of Health and Human Services
United States Department of Health and Human Services
The United States Department of Health and Human Services is a Cabinet department of the United States government with the goal of protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is "Improving the health, safety, and well-being of America"...
, Administration for Children and Families and oversees the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families is one of the United States of America's federal assistance programs. It began on July 2, 1997, and succeeded the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program, providing cash assistance to indigent American families with dependent children through the...
(TANF) Program which was created by the Welfare Reform Law of 1996. TANF became effective July 1, 1997, and replaced what was then commonly known as welfare: Aid to Families with Dependent Children
Aid to Families with Dependent Children
Aid to Families with Dependent Children was a federal assistance program in effect from 1935 to 1996, which was administered by the United States Department of Health and Human Services...
(AFDC) and the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) programs. TANF was reauthorized in February 2006 under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005
Deficit Reduction Act of 2005
The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the budget, that became law in 2006.-Legislative history:The Senate's version passed after a tie-breaking vote was cast by Vice President Dick Cheney. The bill passed the chamber with no Democrats and five Republicans...
. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families is one of the United States of America's federal assistance programs. It began on July 2, 1997, and succeeded the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program, providing cash assistance to indigent American families with dependent children through the...
(TANF) provides assistance and work opportunities to needy families by granting states the federal funds
Federal funds
In the United States, federal funds are overnight borrowings by banks to maintain their bank reserves at the Federal Reserve. Banks keep reserves at Federal Reserve Banks to meet their reserve requirements and to clear financial transactions...
and wide flexibility to develop and implement their own welfare programs. Citizens may apply for assistance at their local TANF agency.
Progression
The demands that urbanizationUrbanization
Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
, industrialization, and immigration
Immigration
Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
placed on poor and working-class families in the late 19th century left many children unattended. Rural states relied on family placements to care for their own homeless or dependent children. This was a precursor for today’s foster care system.
As a general progressive agenda of social reform was adapted in the early years if the 20th century, the approach of assisting parents to care for their children was more widely endorsed. A new policy was issued stating: “No child should be removed from the home unless it is impossible to construct family conditions or to build and supplement family resources as to make the home safe for the child…”http://www.jstor.org.central.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/view/10548289/ap050019/05a00040/0?currentResult=10548289%2bap050019%2b05a00040%2b0%2cFFFF01&searchUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jstor.org%2Fsearch%2FBasicResults%3Fhp%3D25%26si%3D1%26gw%3Djtx%26jtxsi%3D1%26jcpsi%3D1%26artsi%3D1%26Query%3Dhistory%2Bof%2Bchild%2Band%2Bfamily%2Bservices%26wc%3Don
There is still evidence from the 19th century of abandoned children. A 137-year-old foundation for children called New York Foundling Asylum has recently discovered letters from the parents who had abandoned their children in front of the agency because they were unable to care fro them. New York Foundling Asylum was a family service agency that cared for thousands of children who had no homes and needed help, otherwise they would have been left on the cold street. This foundation saved thousands of lives and set a tone for other private organizations to contribute as well.http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/03/nyregion/03foundling.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Child welfare agencies—both private and public—have focused in providing substitute child-rearing environments for children whose parents are unable or unwilling to give them the care they need. With escalating concerns about the effects on children spending long periods of their childhood in temporary foster homes, interest has grown in efforts to preserve families and maintain bonds of both kinship and community.
The changes in the welfare system over the last few centuries, has created much better environments for children and their families. Through government agencies, officials keep close eyes on children in making sure that they are adequately taken care of. There are now many programs for children to ensure safety, morals, values, and educational success. Children’s parents are also given opportunities through agencies and programs to participate in more positive ways in their children’s lives, and in return more positive lives for themselves.
Non-profit agencies
- United Family ServicesUnited Family ServicesUnited Family Service is a not-for-profit, family service organization based in Charlotte, North Carolina, with offices in Concord, Huntersville, Monroe and Mooresville, NC. United Family Services is a member of United Way of Central Carolinas, Inc...
- Metis Child and Family Services SocietyMetis Child and Family Services SocietyMétis Child and Family Services Societies are individual, independent, charitable non-profit organizations that exist in areas of high Métis populations.-Lac La Biche:...
- Community Family Life Services
- EMQ Children and Family Services
See also
- Child welfareChild welfareChild protection is used to describe a set of usually government-run services designed to protect children and young people who are underage and to encourage family stability...
- Cinderella effectCinderella EffectThe Cinderella effect is a term used by psychologists to describe the high incidence of stepchildren being physically abused, emotionally abused, sexually abused, neglected, murdered, or otherwise mistreated at the hands of their stepparents at significantly higher rates than at the hands of their...
Non Profit Organization
Administration for Children and Families
Past, Present, and Future Roles of Child Protective Services
Glimpses of Heartache, and Stories of Survival
Federal Child Care Assistance: A Growing Middle-Class Entitlement
Welfare Reform and Child Care Options for Low-Income Families