Stability for Youngsters on the Edge
Bellefaire's Specialized Foster Care program serves children and youth, ages birth through 21, who have moderate health, emotional, and/or behavioral issues. Foster parents offer these youngsters supervision, emotional support, and nurture — needs that most likely have gone unmet. By providing love and stability, foster parents help troubled youngsters experience success at home, at school, and in the wider community.

Special kids. Special care.
Youngsters placed in specialized foster care have greater-than-average needs. Typically, as a result of past experiences, they are at mild to moderate risk for demonstrating characteristics such as aggression, suicidal tendencies, mildly inappropriate sexualized behaviors, and/or delinquency. Some of the children may have mild mental retardation. Most are able to attend public school, although they may need tutoring or other support.

Teamwork means you're never alone.
Specialized foster parents are members of a carefully coordinated team that includes a Bellefaire JCB case manager and, if necessary, a child psychiatrist, school personnel, and other professionals. Team members work to improve the child's anger management, socialization, and educational skills. Generally, two children — or more if they are in a sibling group — are placed in each specialized foster home. Plans for the child's future — whether reunification with his or her birth parents or adoption — are identified early. If appropriate, birth parents visitations may be part of the specialized foster care arrangement.

Bellefaire provides 24-hour support.
A Bellefaire JCB case manager has primary responsibility for defining and implementing each child's treatment plan. He or she meets with the child at least once per month and links him or her to needed mental health, medical, academic, and community-based services. These can include any combination of the following:

• Mental health counseling
• Medication monitoring
• Medical and dental care
• After-school programs
• Tutoring
• Appropriate social activities
• 24-hour crisis intervention

What do specialized foster families need to succeed?
Bellefaire takes special care to arrange the right "fit" between children and foster families. To best serve each child, specialized foster families must:

• Involve every member of the family in the foster child's treatment.
• Complete a 36-hour orientation program.
• Take 30 hours of foster parenting training each year.
• Have experience with children and/or youth.

To learn more, call Foster Care at Bellefaire JCB.
Cleveland area: 216-320-8518
Toll free: 800-205-8534
Or email infoFC@bellefairejcb.org