What is a Grandfamily?
President Obama and Stanley Dunham, the grandfather who helped to raise him.
Grandfamilies live in every area in the country, represent all income levels and all cultures.
In our nation and here in Arizona, the number of Grandfamilies have increased dramatically over the last twenty years. In Arizona, 140,352 (8.7%) grandchildren are living with their grandparents. This number is considered to be low due to the increasing ability of the Department of Child Safety to locate family members and the fact that Grandfamilies often are not recognized in cases where permanency is achieved (parents rights are severed and adoption or guardianship is awarded) or when there is an informal) arrangement.
Grandfamilies most often come together during a time of crisis and for a variety of reasons. For example, the parents may suffer with mental illness, financial instability, substance abuse, be away on military deployment, be incarcerated or be deceased.
When children are removed by the Department of Child Safety, they will seek out relative placements before placing a child in non-relative foster care. Sadly, most of these children have experienced some form of trauma that resulted in estrangement from their parents
Advantages of placing a child in kinship care vs. traditional foster care are:
1. Reduces loss and attachment disorders buy reducing the trauma children may experience when being placed with persons unknown to them
2. Reinforces the child’s sense of identity and the self-esteem that comes with knowing about their family history and culture
3. Offers better chance of permanency, with less movement from home to another home (disruption)
4. Preform at a higher academic level and with fewer behavioral problems
5. Grandfamilies save taxpayers over 4 billion dollars a year by stepping up to care for these children
*According to research done by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia; Children removed from their homes after reports of maltreatment have significantly fewer behavior problems three years after placement with relatives than if they are put into foster care.
What do grandparents get out of raising their grandchildren? A strong feeling of purpose, a chance to make an investment in the future of a child, an opportunity to pass on the family history, and the love of a child.
In our nation and here in Arizona, the number of Grandfamilies have increased dramatically over the last twenty years. In Arizona, 140,352 (8.7%) grandchildren are living with their grandparents. This number is considered to be low due to the increasing ability of the Department of Child Safety to locate family members and the fact that Grandfamilies often are not recognized in cases where permanency is achieved (parents rights are severed and adoption or guardianship is awarded) or when there is an informal) arrangement.
Grandfamilies most often come together during a time of crisis and for a variety of reasons. For example, the parents may suffer with mental illness, financial instability, substance abuse, be away on military deployment, be incarcerated or be deceased.
When children are removed by the Department of Child Safety, they will seek out relative placements before placing a child in non-relative foster care. Sadly, most of these children have experienced some form of trauma that resulted in estrangement from their parents
Advantages of placing a child in kinship care vs. traditional foster care are:
1. Reduces loss and attachment disorders buy reducing the trauma children may experience when being placed with persons unknown to them
2. Reinforces the child’s sense of identity and the self-esteem that comes with knowing about their family history and culture
3. Offers better chance of permanency, with less movement from home to another home (disruption)
4. Preform at a higher academic level and with fewer behavioral problems
5. Grandfamilies save taxpayers over 4 billion dollars a year by stepping up to care for these children
*According to research done by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia; Children removed from their homes after reports of maltreatment have significantly fewer behavior problems three years after placement with relatives than if they are put into foster care.
What do grandparents get out of raising their grandchildren? A strong feeling of purpose, a chance to make an investment in the future of a child, an opportunity to pass on the family history, and the love of a child.
