Foster Care & Adoption

Open Your Heart, Open Your Home

You can make a positive difference in the life of child by becoming a foster parent or adopting.

Who Can Qualify and Become A Foster or Adoptive Parent? 

• You must be at least 21 years old 
• You can be married, single, or living in partnership 
• Have your own source of income 
• Have a bed for each child 
• Have working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors 
• Provide a safe and healthy home 
• Each person in the home 18 years or older must be fingerprinted and cleared through the Child Abuse Registry, FBI and Justice Center Registry

To talk to us about becoming a foster care or adoptive parent, call 845-486-3220 or email FosterCare@DutchessNY.gov.

Foster Care

Foster Care provides children age newborn to 21 with temporary, safe, loving homes, when their own families are unable to care for them.

• Foster Parents become part of a countywide team working together to support, nurture, and protect children.
• Becoming a Foster Parent is not a lifetime commitment to a child, it is a commitment that will have a meaningful impact on a child’s life.  

What are the Steps To Become A Foster Parent?

• Attend one of our monthly Orientation Meetings 
• Complete and return the Agency’s Registration Form 
• Attend a 10-week Foster/Adoptive Parent training program
• Have a Home Study completed by our agency

What Support is Provided to the Foster Parents?

• A stipend for food, clothing, and board, based on the child’s age and need for special services 
• Medicaid Managed Care insurance for the child  
• Payment for daycare for working parents 
• Support from individual caseworker 
• Ongoing training to learn about caring for children in foster care

Who Are The Children Who Come Into Foster Care?

• They are between the ages of newborn and 18 They can be any ethnicity  
• They are from Dutchess County  
• They may have been removed from their homes because of abuse, neglect, or maltreatment.  
• They may have been voluntarily placed by their parents who themselves were unable to provide for them.  
• They may have special physical and/or emotional needs  
• They may be very intelligent or need special schooling 
• They may be a single child or be with their siblings

Adoption

Visit the New York State Office of Children and Family Services Adopt A Child web page for more information regarding the legal regulations in New York State.

Were you adopted and are now looking for your birth parents or your birth records?
If born and adopted in New York State and are over the age of 18, you have the right under NYS law to request and receive your own pre-adoption birth records. You can reach out to the Adoptive & Foster Family Coalition, regardless of the state in which you were born. Visit https://affcny.org/family-supports/navigating-relationships/finding-family-with-adoption-records-in-new-york/  or call their helpline at: 1-888-354-1342.