March 27, 2008 issue
Grandfather Home’s Foster Parent Retention Rates Surpass the Norm
According to a recent study conducted by Grandfather Home for Children, the Home’s foster parent retention rate during a 24-month time frame from 2006 to 2007 is an astonishing 88.5 percent. A 2007 report conducted in Oregon, Oklahoma and New Mexico by researchers J.B. Gibbs and D. Wildfire indicates that 47 to 62 percent of foster families quit fostering within one year of their first placement.
Jamie Brown, Grandfather Home’s director of Community Services for Children, stated, “This is a wonderful illustration of both our licensing and case management system and staff.”
The turnover rate for Grandfather Home’s foster families during the same 24-month time frame from 2006 to 2007 was only 11.5 percent. The turnover rate is defined as families that begin fostering compared to the number of families that quit fostering. This number includes families that have left after adoption was completed, meaning that some of the families no longer foster for a very positive reason.
Chief Executive Officer Jim Swinkola remarked, “I am not only proud of the quality of service to the children, but also that we have such satisfied foster parents.”
In the last decade, Grandfather Home for Children has expanded its services from the residential treatment center in Banner Elk to a statewide program that includes group homes, foster care and adoption services.
If you are interested in making the difference in the life of a child by becoming a foster care parent, click to www.grandfatherhome.org or call 828-898-5465.
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