Across
the country, more than six million children -- approximately
1 in 12 children -- are living in households headed by grandparents
or other relatives. Colorado has more than 113,000 children
living in households headed by grandparents or other relatives.
In many of these households, grandparents and other relatives
are the primary caregivers (“kinship caregivers”) for children
whose parents cannot or will not care for them due to substance
abuse, illness and death, abuse and neglect, economic hardship,
incarceration, divorce, domestic violence, and other family
and community crises.
In response
to the growing numbers of these kinship care families, state
legislatures, public and private agencies, and grassroots
coalitions in Colorado and across the country have begun to
expand services and supports for children living with kin
inside and outside of the foster care system.
A Look
at the Numbers: Kinship Care in Colorado
The data below
show the numbers of grandparents who are living in households
with at least one grandchild under the age of 18, as well
as the numbers of grandparents who are the primary caregivers
for these grandchildren. These numbers were reported by the
2000 U.S. Census and are available for every place (as defined
by the U.S. Census Bureau) in the country, including cities,
towns, villages, and boroughs, on the U.S. Census website.*
| |
Grandparents
Living in Households with One or More Own Grandchildren
Under 18 |
Grandparents
Responsible for Meeting the Basic Needs of Grandchildren |
| Location |
# |
# |
| United
States |
5,771,671 |
2,426,730 |
| Colorado |
66,903 |
28,524 |
| Denver
city |
11,428 |
4,710 |
| Colorado
Springs city |
5,180 |
2,164 |
| Aurora
city |
5,423 |
2,278 |
*These data are taken from the
U.S. Census Bureau Table DP-2. Profile Selected Social Characteristics:
2000.
Kinship Care
Initiatives in Colorado
In Colorado,
public and private agencies and grassroots coalitions of grandparents
and other relative caregivers have begun working together
to expand the services available to kinship caregivers who
are caring for children outside of the foster care system.
Several of
the major kinship care programs and supports are listed below.
Additional support groups can be found through the AARP Grandparent
Information Center Database. Call 1-800-424-3410, e-mail information
requests to gic@aarp.org, or search AARP’s online kinship
care support group database at http://www.aarp.org/grandparents/searchsupport/
Information
and Referral for Kinship Care Families: Families First
provides the Family Support Line, available to kinship care
families and others seven days a week (from 10 a.m. to 10
p.m.). The listening line provides families with information
and referrals for parenting classes, support groups, and other
agencies working with grandparents and other relatives.
The Family Support Line also makes referrals for financial
assistance, mental health, legal, educational, and medical
support services. Contact: Sarah Hite, Coordinator,
at 1-877-695-7996 (toll-free in Colorado) or (303) 695-7996.
Statewide
Resource Guide: The Colorado Kinship Care Resource Guide
contains useful information for all relative caregivers—those
caring for children with or without legal custody and those
caring for children in the custody of the Department of Human
Services. The guide contains local and statewide information
on organizations and programs that serve relative caregivers.
Answers to questions on public benefits, legal options, educational
access, medical and mental health services, child care, support
groups, foster care and adoption, and interacting with incarcerated
parents are all provided. To download a copy of the
Resource Guide visit http://www.nsatraininginstitute.org/kinship.htm
Support
and Outreach in Weld County: Catholic Charities runs a
monthly support group for relative caregivers in the Weld
County area. The group provides child care during the
support group as well as ongoing case management services
for a limited number of caregivers. The case management
services include home visits, advocacy, referrals, and assistance
accessing social and legal services. Information and
referrals are also provided for all kinship care families
in the areas of housing and other social and legal support
services. Contact : Cheri Anderson, Supervisor, at (970) 353-6433
or ccncanderson@hotmail.com.
Comprehensive
Kinship Care Support in El Paso County: El Paso
County Kinship Support Services provide a wide variety of
supports to kinship care families inside and outside of the
child welfare system. The program provides casework
services and financial help in meeting the needs of children,
including summer camp, furniture, and moving costs.
A “grandparent advocate” works with both relatives receiving
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) payments and
those involved in the foster care system. The county
also provides kinship care support groups and offers a “warm-line”
to provide information and referrals to kinship care families.
The county has also recently created a subsidized custody
program. Contact: Betsy Fredrickson at (719) 444-5900 or elizabeth.fredrickson@elpaso.com.
A Range
of Services for Kinship Care Families in Denver County: The
Denver Grandparents and Kin Program assists relative caregivers
(within the fifth degree of kinship) in Denver County by providing
professional and peer support as well as informational, educational,
financial, and advocacy services. Support payments are provided
for eligible children in addition to a clothing allowance
and emergency financial assistance, as needed. The program
also makes referrals for legal assistance. Contact:
Twilla Stiggers, (702) 944-2116 or twilla.stiggers@dhs.co.denver.co.us.
Community-based
Kinship Care Services: Catholic Charities, Archdiocese
of Denver, Inc. offers community-based support groups for
relative caregivers in several communities throughout Denver.
Through the support groups, Catholic Charities provides caregivers
with information on how to lobby state and national legislative
representatives, resource referrals, and information on permanency
options and respite
care.
Child care is available during the support group. Contact:
Jenny Koch, Kinship Care Coordinator, (303) 742-0823.
Support
for Colorado Kinship Caregivers: The Grandparents
Resource Center offers a series of educational and informative
programs for kinship caregivers in the Denver area.
The Center offers Pro Se Litigation training for kinship caregivers
representing themselves in court, and a variety of seminars
on topics like “How to Survive and if You are Raising a Teenager”
and “Discipline and Behavior: How to Parent Your Grandchild.”
The Center also offers recreational activities and started
an annual Grandparent’s Fun Day which includes picnicking,
games, and dancing and recognizes all grandparent caregivers
and honors one caregiver as the Colorado Grandparent of the
Year. Contact: Shirley M. Berens, Director, at
(303) 980-5707 or GRC4USA@aol.com.
Grandparent
Support Program: The Family Empowerment Team of Pikes
Peak Family Connections has a grandparents raising grandchildren
support group which meets bi-weekly in Colorado Springs. Child
care is available during the meetings. The Team also
co-sponsors annual family events and provides information
and referrals for public benefits and legal assistance.
The Team assists grandparent caregivers in El Paso and Terler
Counties. Contact: Dee Thomas, Associate Director, (719)
520-1019 or ppfc@fctc.org
Kinship
Care and Colorado’s Foster Care System
Sometimes
children in the care of the states are placed in foster care
with grandparents or other relatives. In Colorado, the
Department of Human Services reports:
Number
of children in kinship foster placements: As of March
1, 2002, the Department of Human Services had a total
of 4,189 children in out-of-home placements. Of these children,
690 (16.5%) were placed with kin. (Note: This data only describes
children in “family-like” foster home settings and exclude
other types of out-of-home care placements).
Preference
for kinship placements: State policy requires that kin
be considered first when an out-of-home placement is sought
for a child under the Department’s care.
Licensing
for kinship foster parents: There is no separate licensing
program for kinship foster parents. Kin have to meet
the same licensing standards and requirements and receive
the same foster care payment rate as non-kin foster parents.
Subsidized
Guardianship: In addition to foster care payments and
other benefits available to kin raising children in the foster
care system, some states also have subsidized guardianship
programs. Most of these programs offer ongoing subsidies to
children who have left foster care to live permanently under
the legal custody or guardianship of relatives. Although there
is no state-wide subsidized guardianship program in Colorado,
there are a few counties that provide this type of subsidy.
State foster
care contact: Questions about kinship foster care placements
should be directed to Mary Griffin, at (303) 866-3546 or Mary.Griffin@state.co.us.
Other Supports
for Colorado Kinship Care Families
Children raised
by kinship caregivers are often eligible for a range of state
and federal programs. In most cases, kinship caregivers
may apply for these programs on a child’s behalf even though
they are not the child’s parents or legal guardians. Some
examples of these programs include:
Cash assistance:
Cash assistance may be available to children and their grandparents
and relative caregivers through the Colorado Works program
and other county-based assistance programs. Kinship
care families may also be eligible for food stamps to help
meet their children’s food and nutrition needs. For
more information about these programs, call (303) 866-2882
or log on to http://www.cdhs.state.co.us/oss/Self_Sufficiency.html.
Health
insurance: Grandparents and other relative caregivers
may apply for free or low-cost health insurance on behalf
of the children they are raising through the Colorado Baby
Care Kids Care or Child Health Plan (CHP+) programs.
In some cases, caregivers may also be eligible for free coverage
under Medicaid. For more information about how to apply
for Baby Care-Kid Care call (303) 692-2229 or 1-800-688-7777.
For more information about applying for CHP+ call 1-800-359-1991
or log on to http://www.cchp.org
State Laws
and Policies
Sometimes
kinship caregivers find it difficult to obtain services their
children need, such as medical care or education. In addition
to the state’s child guardianship and custody laws, the following
law may be helpful to kinship caregivers1:
Immunization
Consent Law: (Colo. Rev. Stat. 25-4-1704): This
law allows a parent, legal guardian, or person vested with
“legal custody or decision-making responsibility for the medical
care of the minor” to consent verbally or in writing, to a
child’s immunization to a stepparent or “an adult relative
of the first or second degree of kinship.” The adult
relative must tell the physician administering the shot of
any of the child’s health concerns.
Questions
about this fact sheet or recommendations for additions to
future versions should be submitted to Roseana Bess, The Urban
Institute, at rbess@ui.urban.org.
