Intercountry Adoption Photolistings 1 Running Head ... · AdoptUsKids.com, takes a hopeful stance when describing the child’s challenges by stating, “With services from the Regional

Intercountry Adoption Photolistings 1

Running Head: INTERCOUNTRY WAITING CHILD PHOTOLISTINGS

Intercountry Adoption Programs and Waiting Child Photolistings

by

Laura S. Bogardus Harmon

Master of Arts

Human Behavior and Conflict Management

Columbia College

2008

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

For the Degree of Master of Arts in

Human Behavior and Conflict Management

For the Graduate School

Columbia College

2008

_______________________________

Mary L. Bryan, JD

Faculty Advisor


Dedication

This work is dedicated to

The Lord our God, who makes all things possible.

“Then he said to them,

“Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me;

and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.

For he who is least among you all – he is the greatest.”

Luke 9:48 (New International Version)


© 2008 Laura S. Bogardus Harmon

Requests for reproduction should be made to the author at [email protected]


Abstract

Internet-based waiting child photolistings are used within the United States to help recruit

permanent families for adoption-ready children, especially children with special needs. Waiting

child photolistings featuring domestic children, such as AdoptUsKids.com, appear to be guided

by a set of best practices. Yet in the case of intercountry adoptions, no set of standards or best

practices appear to be in widespread operation. This content analysis, conducted between

January 19, 2008 and February 28, 2008 examines the use of Internet-based waiting child

photolistings by private adoption agencies with intercountry adoption programs. Results indicate

limited and inconsistent use of photolistings featuring children available for intercountry

adoption. The author suggests further research regarding the ethical use of intercountry waiting

child photolistings.


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction ..................................................................................................... Page 6

Chapter I: Literature Review ......................................................................... Page 9

Chapter II: Research Design ........................................................................ Page 14

Chapter III: Research Findings ................................................................... Page 16

Chapter IV: Discussion ............................................................................... Page 18

Chapter V: Conclusion ................................................................................ Page 20

References ..................................................................................................... Page 22

Appendices .................................................................................................... Page 25

Appendix A: Data Collection Form ................................................. Page 25

Appendix B: Results: Tables ........................................................... Page 26

Table 1 .................................................................................. Page 26

Table 2 ................................................................................. Page 30

Table 3 ................................................................................. Page 32

Appendix C: Results: Figures ........................................................ Page 33

Figure 1 ................................................................................. Page 33

Figure 2 ................................................................................. Page 33

Figure 3 ................................................................................. Page 34

Figure 4 ................................................................................. Page 34

Figure 5 ................................................................................. Page 35


Introduction

The development of this research study evolved from my personal quest to adopt a child

into my family. My search began with information gathering and naturally I turned to the most

popular research tool of my age, the Internet search. With this tool I instantly gained access to

both domestic and intercountry adoption information from a variety of agencies and

organizations. After minimal exploration, I came across a host of photos with narrative

descriptions of children in need of families and “waiting” for adoption. These photos and

narratives are known in the adoption field as waiting child photolistings. Spurred onward by

curiosity, I perused waiting child photolistings showcasing domestic and international children

posted by both public and private adoption agencies. What I discovered became the foundation

of this study.

In my opinion, American-born children listed as “waiting” through the U.S. public

adoption system were photographed and described in a consistently positive manner. Photos

generally appeared to be good quality head and shoulder compositions. Sibling groups were

photographed together and children appeared well-groomed. Narrative descriptions seemed to

focus on children’s individual characteristics, highlighting the positive qualities each child could

bring to a family. Though children’s challenges such as medical, developmental, emotional or

behavioral issues were often stated in narratives, I felt they were primarily written with tact and

what appeared to be sensitivity toward the children. This excerpt from a child’s narrative on

AdoptUsKids.com, takes a hopeful stance when describing the child’s challenges by stating,

“With services from the Regional Center, Nicholas is making great stride with his cognitive

development. He is learning to have positive social interactions” (Adoption Exchange

Association, 2007, ¶ 7).


In stark contrast, I found the photolistings of non-U.S. born children available for

intercountry adoption to be highly inconsistent and often lacking in sensitivity. It seemed that

only a small number of countries that sanction intercountry adoption appeared to allow their

countries’ adoptive children to be photolisted on U.S. adoption agencies’ publicly accessible

websites. Some agencies with photolistings required visitors to acquire a password from the

agency prior to viewing the listings online. Several included detailed narratives but no

photographs. Some included photos with extremely short narratives, such as, “Female. Mental

retardation, cerebral palsy, developmentally delayed” (Adoption Associates, Inc., 2007). Others

included photos and HIV status, such as, “[Child] is HIV-positive but extremely healthy, thanks

to daily A.R.V. treatments. We are seeking families who have their home study completed and

USCIS approval” (Carolina Adoption Services, 2007). Some photolistings contained

information about a birthparent, such as this narrative posted Bethany Christian Service: “The

mother’s rights were terminated. She abused alcohol and didn't take care of her children. Father

unknown” (n.d.). Some included the manner in which the child was relinquished: “She was

found on the porch of an apartment house when she was just approximately 3 months old” (Kids

To Adopt, n.d., ¶ 33). Some children’s photolistings consisted only of a detailed highly personal

medical history and appeared to be written by a health professional. Still others appeared to

plead with prospective parents, such as this example from a Celebrate Children photolisting:

“This is just a darling baby boy. He is in need of a forever family. Please don’t make him wait

forever and ever. Can you consider adding him to your family?” (2008). Some listings seemed

to be advertising a sale on waiting children, such as: “GRANT FOR INTERNATIONAL

FEE!!!!” (Kids To Adopt, n.d., ¶ 10).


These initial findings fueled my inquiry into the ethics of publishing Internet-based

waiting child photolistings and the privacy rights afforded to children and birth families involved

in adoption. I sought to understand the purpose for agency development of photolistings and

consequently the reasoning behind publishing children’s personal information to the public using

photographs and descriptive narratives. Finally, my search led me to question the differences

between photolistings featuring American children and those featuring children from other parts

of the world.

This study serves to provide insight into actual use of Internet-based waiting child

photolistings by agencies with intercountry adoption programs. The study provides a snapshot of

the prevalence of photolisting use in six Southeastern U.S. states, the ease of public access to

viewing them, and the types of child-specific information available within photolisting

narratives.


CHAPTER I

Literature Review

“This active 4 year old loves to play with other children and is quite intelligent. It is hard

to believe that he is living with the challenge of being HIV positive" (Adoption Alliance, 2008).

This short narrative, accompanied by the child’s photograph and basic statistics including his age

and country of origin, appear as one of 454 waiting child photolistings available for public

review at RainbowKids.com. It is one of several Internet sites providing waiting child

photolistings to the public to promote domestic and/or intercountry adoption candidates.

(RainbowKids.com, n.d., ¶ 1). A waiting child as defined by Dillon International adoption

agency is, “a child who does not have a permanent family yet, but who is legally free for

adoption and whose adoption papers are ready” (n.d.). Similarly, waiting children are defined by

the U.S. Child Welfare Information Gateway as, “Children in the public child welfare system

who cannot return to their birth homes and need permanent, loving families to help them grow

up safely and securely” (n.d., ¶ 1). Many waiting children are also classified as having special

needs due to a range of factors such as being an older child, being part of a sibling group, having

special medical needs, having developmental or emotional delays, or a combination of these

factors (Dillon International, n.d., ¶ 1). Often children with special needs may have a more

challenging time being successfully matched with an adoptive family than children without such

needs (Child Welfare Information Gateway, n.d., ¶ 15; North American Council on Adoptable

Children, n.d.).

Adoption professionals have sought to address family recruiting challenges by creating

child-specific recruitment methods using various media outlets such as television, newspapers,

and the Internet to increase children’s exposure to potential adoptive parents, thereby increasing


their likelihood of adoption (Freundlich, 2000, p. 109; Freundlich & Gerstenzang, 2004). The

Internet-based waiting child photolisting is an example of child-specific recruiting with the

potential to reach volumes of prospective families as well as the general public simply by the

click of a few computer keys. According to Freundlich and Gerstenzang, “Photolistings,

particularly as used on the Internet, have dramatically increased outreach to prospective

adopters.”

Waiting child photolistings are used throughout the United States and its territories to

promote the adoptability of American-born children available through U.S. states’ departments

of social services. Currently more than 3,500 cases ranging from individual children to sibling

groups are photolisted through AdoptUsKids.com, a national database maintained through a

cooperative agreement between the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children & Families,

the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, and the Adoption Exchange Association

(AEA, n.d., ¶ 1). According to the AEA (2007) over 8,000 children featured on

AdoptUsKids.org were placed with adoptive families and nearly 40,000 prospective parents

inquired about becoming licensed to foster or adopt during the first five years of the

collaboration.

Though no specific set of rules exist regarding which children should be publicized

online and what type of information should be included in the listings, certain best practices have

been identified and appear to be in use at AdoptUsKids.com (Freundlich & Gerstenzang, 2004;

Zemler, 2000). Marie Zemler, author of Guidelines for Success: Publicizing Waiting Children,

writes, “Protecting children from further victimization is of the utmost importance [when

preparing child-specific publicity]”. It is Zemler’s opinion that when agencies reveal extremely

personal information that may embarrass the child or even pose a safety danger, they do so in


violation of the child’s right to privacy. The writer should portray the child accurately,

personally, and with respect. Freundlich and Gerstenzang advise writers to avoid any statement

that may be hurtful to the child should he or she read it now or later as an adult. If the child is

able, he or she should be involved in the selection of photos and the content of his or her

narrative. Private details on the child’s or birth parent’s history should not be disclosed within

this public arena (Zemler).

Medical information should be treated with sensitivity. In the United States, federal law

prohibits sharing a child’s HIV status in a public forum such as a photolisting description

(Freundlich & Gerstenzang, n.d.). Though medical conditions and related information must be

accurately shared with families during the adoption process, the photolisting is not an appropriate

venue to disclose HIV status. According to Freundlich and Gerstenzang, the goal of the

photolisting is to personalize the child and provide next steps for potential adoptive families to

learn more about the child and the adoption process. Information sharing with adoptive families

should occur along a continuum, and the photolisting is the first step to introducing the child.

Introductions should be honest and balanced to present the child as a unique individual. They are

not meant to be all-inclusive in providing full disclosure of waiting children’s history or

information (Fruendlich & Gerstenzang).

While federal and state agencies in the United States appear to have reached some level

of consensus as far as domestic waiting child photolisting content, the same does not apply to the

waiting child photolistings of children from outside the U.S. who are available for intercountry

adoption. It is important to note that intercountry adoptions are not facilitated in the United

States by federal or state social service agencies. Facilitation of intercountry adoptions is a

service solely provided by private adoption agencies, though the practice is regulated to some


extent by the U.S. Department of State (U.S. Dept. of State, 2007). Therefore, private agency

collaboration is a requisite to the development of best practices pertaining to intercountry waiting

child photolistings.

No scholarly research on intercountry photolisting practice was found during this study’s

development. Some private agencies with intercountry adoption programs made reference on

their websites to self-imposed standards regarding waiting child photolistings. For example,

Dillon International writes that, “we feel a great responsibility to each child to protect their

privacy as much as possible within such a public forum” and, “we also strive to be careful in the

information that is posted about each child to protect their privacy while providing families with

enough information to make an informed decision” (n.d.) On a larger scale The Joint Council on

International Children’s Services, a professional organization comprised of U.S. intercountry

adoption agencies, states in their Standards of Practice that member agencies will, “Refrain from

posting photos of children on web sites if prohibited by the sending country” and “All efforts

shall be made to protect the privacy of listed children” (2006). On a global scale, the Office of

the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Convention on the Rights of the Child

asserts that States Parties must, “ Ensure that the child concerned by inter-country adoption

enjoys safeguards and standards equivalent to those existing in the case of national adoption”

(1989, Art. 21 C). Similarly, the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation

in Respect of Intercountry Adoption requires that, “…child[ren] shall enjoy in the receiving

State, and in any other contracting State where the adoption is recognized, rights equivalent to

those resulting from adoptions having this effect in each such State” (Hague Adoption

Convention, Art. 26[2]). The United States ratified the Hague Adoption Convention on


December 12, 2007 (U.S. Dept. of State, 2007), and is now responsible for ensuring equivalent

rights and other measures are taken to protect children involved in intercountry adoption.

Though the positions of individual agencies, national organizations, and international

conventions help provide a framework regarding the ethical treatment of children waiting for

intercountry adoption, such positions do not address U.S. best practices with regard to

intercountry adoption waiting child photolistings. The goal of this study is to contribute to the

development of best practices for intercountry waiting child photolistings by providing a content

analysis of photolisting use by U.S. agencies with intercountry adoption programs.


CHAPTER II

Research Design

A website content analysis was conducted between January 19, 2008 and February 28,

2008 utilizing the Child Welfare Information Gateway’s National Foster Care & Adoption

Directory (www.childwelfare.gov/nfcad), a comprehensive listing of public and private foster

care and adoption agencies. The Directory is maintained by The Children’s Bureau, one of two

bureaus within the Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Administration for Children

and Families of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Using this directory, an

online search was conducted of 101 agencies with international adoption programs, among other

services, located throughout the southeastern U.S. states of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina,

South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

The researcher sought to include agencies with functioning websites that provided

evidence of intercountry adoption program facilitation. Agencies with inoperable links to their

website addresses or with no website addresses were eliminated from the sample. Agencies

providing only pre- and post-placement intercountry assistance and those with websites lacking

evidence of intercountry child placement programs were also eliminated. Agencies with

multiple locations in the selected U.S. states were counted as single units, thereby eliminating

duplicate agency entries.

The content analysis focused on a sample of 52 agencies providing functioning links to

their websites and showing evidence of intercountry child placement facilitation service. A total

of 316 country-specific or geographical region-specific child placement programs were reviewed

within those agencies. The number of placement service programs per agency ranged from 1 to

15 (m=6).


Next, attention was focused on agencies providing public access to waiting child

photolistings within at least one or more of their country or region-specific placement service

programs. The researcher sought to identify the types of personal information disclosed within

country-specific or region-specific child placement program photolistings, such as the display of

children’s photographs and/or the presence of written narratives containing children’s personal

information. Personal information included names, ages, physical locations, birth family history,

relinquishment details, medical diagnoses or descriptions of medical conditions, and

developmental diagnoses or descriptions of developmental details. A collection form (Appendix

A) was developed to record the data.


CHAPTER III

Research Findings

The research found that 29 agencies (56%) with intercountry child placement programs

did not utilize waiting child photolistings or had no children listed on their waiting child

photolistings (see Figure 1). A total of 11 agencies (21%) created some form of barrier to direct

public access of waiting child photolistings. Barriers included password protected sites for

agency-registered prospective parents, requiring visitors to create online profiles, requiring

visitors to email the agency to request access, and requiring visitors to telephone the agency prior

to viewing waiting child photolistings. Direct links to waiting child photolistings were provided

with no barriers by 15 agencies (29%). Four agencies used two methods simultaneously, such as

direct access to photolistings of children from one or more of its country- or region-specific

programs, and a barrier technique for other country- or region-specific programs, resulting in a

total of 55 units (106%) counted from 52 agencies (see Table 1).

Further analysis was conducted using the sample of 15 agencies with direct links (no

barriers) to waiting child photolistings (see Figure 2). These agencies provided a combined total

of 110 country- or region-specific child placement programs. However, only 19 country- or

region-specific programs utilized direct links to waiting child photolistings, yielding a mean of

1.27 programs with photolistings per agency. The remaining 91 programs did not utilize

waiting child photolistings or did not provide direct Internet links to the public (see Table 2).

With the sample narrowed to 19 country- or region-specific programs, 477 waiting child

photolistings from seven countries or regions and four non-specified locations (see Figures 3, 4)

were reviewed and the presence of names, ages, specific locations, and personal photographs was

recorded (see Table 3). Images of children displayed on agency websites for purposes other than


to promote specific waiting children were not included in the study. Descriptive narratives were

then reviewed to identify the level of medical and developmental information disclosed, as well

as any information pertaining to birth parents’ relinquishment of the featured waiting children

(see Figure 5).

Based on this review, 10 programs (53%) used both photos and descriptive narratives as

part of their waiting child photolistings. Four programs (21%) used photos but no narratives, and

five programs (26%) used narratives but no photos. All 19 programs listed children’s ages, and

four programs (21%) listed the location of children by institution name and/or city name. While

10 programs (53%) listed children’s first names, many names were familiar English language

names such as Catherine or John, and therefore were suspected to be American pseudonyms. No

programs listed children’s last names.

Additionally, seven programs (37%) listed information pertaining to the relinquishment

of children by birth parents for one or more waiting children on their photolisting. Thirteen

programs (68%) provided detailed medical information or a specific medical diagnosis on

waiting child photolistings. Nine programs (47%) provided detailed developmental information

or a specific developmental diagnosis.


CHAPTER IV

Discussion

Waiting child photolistings highlight a limited number of children available for

intercountry adoption. In 2006, there were 20,679 intercountry adoptions by United States

citizens (U.S. Dept. of State, 2007). Yet in this study, only 15 of the 316 intercountry placement

programs reviewed offered publicly accessible waiting child photolistings. Most noticeably,

healthy infants and young children were not photolisted by sites reviewed as part of this study.

There are several possible reasons that may explain agencies’ limited use of photolistings

to promote children enrolled in their intercountry placement programs. Many countries do not

permit the use or limit the use of public waiting child photolistings. For example, no Russian

children were photolisted as part of this study, but 3,706 Russian children were adopted by

United States citizens in 2006 (US. Dept. of State, 2007, Table 1). Only children with special

needs from China were photolisted as part of this study, though 6,493 intercountry adoptions

from China were facilitated in 2006 (US. Dept. of State, 2007, Table 1).

Intercountry adoption agencies recognize that not all children available for intercountry

adoption are suitable to highlight in photolistings, such as children that are not yet legally free

and those that are already assigned to a family (Freundlich & Gerstenzang, n.d.). Many agencies

limit public access to their photolistings due to concern for children’s privacy rights. Agencies

may be hesitant to use photolistings when faced with difficulty in securing timely and accurate

photos and information about adoptive children. Language barriers and cultural differences may

also impact agency use of photolistings.

Still, this content analysis found 477 children featured via narratives, photos, or both on

publicly available photolistings. Physical locations, ages and first names were used to identify


children in some cases. Information about children’s relinquishment was often published in

narratives. Detailed medical and developmental information was available to the public. Most

disturbing from the author’s perspective was the questionable content of many photolistings.

Extremely personal information was easily found, such as this partial descriptive narrative

(without photo) of a listed child: “…He can be a behavior problem in school. He is hyperactive

and has a low frustration level. He was born out of an incestuous relationship” (Bethany

Christian Services, n.d.). This and other such statements may lead one to question the

effectiveness of photolistings as a recruiting tool to increase children’s chances of intercountry

adoption. Likewise, public statements about children’s HIV status or other medical condition

may no longer be allowable if the Hague Adoption Convention, which requires member nations

to afford rights equivalent to those enjoyed by children of domestic adoptions to children of

intercountry adoptions, is interpreted to include this type of adoption-related privacy concern

(Hague Conference on Private International Law, 1993).


CHAPTER V

Conclusion

Through federal and state collaboration, U.S. child welfare agencies have developed a

method for using waiting child photolistings to effectively raise public awareness of the need for

adoptive families and to generate more adoptions. Waiting child photolistings engage the efforts

of prospective adoptive families, meaning more people are exposed to and involved in children’s

adoption prospects. Freundlich and Gerstenzang state two key principles underlying photolisting

practice: “The privacy of the child and others in her life must be respected,” and, “Information

must be honestly disclosed” (n.d.). They have found it is possible to satisfy both principles while

promoting children through child-specific recruitment.

To be certain, intercountry adoption programs face unique and serious challenges of a

different nature than those typical of U.S. public adoption services. Cultural differences,

translation problems, differences in medical systems, understaffed and under funded foreign

child welfare institutions, and limited direct communication and access to waiting children pose

formidable considerations (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2003, Sect. 11; Narad & Mason,

2004). Despite these and other challenges, further research may reveal new avenues to

effectively adapt the best practices of U.S. child welfare agencies for use by agencies with

intercountry adoption programs. For example, the United States’ recent ratification of the Hague

Adoption Convention created the designation of the U.S. State Department as this nation’s

central authority for intercountry adoption oversight (U.S. Dept. of State, 2007). As part of the

State Department’s oversight, the ethics and privacy rights of parties to intercountry adoption

should be evaluated for areas of improvement. Collaboration between the State Department,

national professional organizations such as the Joint Council on International Children’s


Services, and the North American Council on Adoptable Children could result in best practices

tailored to the unique characteristics of intercountry adoptions. If agreed-upon standards are not

met, the State Department could refuse to authorize the licenses of private adoption agencies.

Ultimately, the result could be a renewed respect for the human rights of children in need, a

higher quality of outreach to the American public regarding waiting children in intercountry

adoption placement programs, and more placements of waiting children with adoptive families.


References

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APPENDIX A

Data Collection Form

Agency State: Date of Review:

Agency Name:

Website Address:

# Intercountry Adoption Programs: Country Names:

Ease of Access:

direct link from web password protected photolisting available after completing

online profile or requesting photolisting via email other

Agencies with Websites:

use of photos and narrative use of photos permitted but no narratives

use of narrative but no photos no photolistings in any form

# of children listed by country: birthdate or age listed

children’s’ first names children’s’ last names location of home or school specified

information about the manner in which child came to be available for adoption

Medical Information:

medical doctor report included specific reference to named medical condition

general reference to the presence of medical issue(s)

no reference to medical history or report of child as healthy and/or no medical problems

Education and Developmental Needs

educational or developmental specialist report included

specific reference to named condition affecting education or development

general reference to the presence of educational or developmental issue(s)

no reference to educational or developmental needs, or report of child as educationally or

developmentally normal or better, or no educational or developmental problems.

Other Notes:


APPENDIX B

Results - Tables

Table 1 (1 of 4): Review of Agency Websites, National Foster Care & Adoption Directory: FL, GA, NC, SC, TN, VA

State Agency Name Unit

No Website, Broken Link,

Programs Not Active,

No Evidence of Intercountry Programs, Pre- and

Post Placement

Only

No Photolistings

Displayed, No Children

Listed on Existing

Photolisting

Password Protected, Available

After Completion

of Online Profile or

Email Request

Direct Link to

Photolisting

Number of Intercountry

Programs

1 FL A Chosen Child 1 1

2 SC A Chosen Child Adoption Services 1 1 9

3 NC A Way for Children 1 1

4 GA AAA Partners in Adoption 1 1

5 VA ABC Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1 1

6 SC Adoption Advocacy, Inc. 1 1

7 FL Adoption by Shepherd Care, Inc. 1 1

8 VA Adoption Center of Washington 1 1 4

9 TN Adoption Consultants in Tennessee, Inc. 1 1

10 TN Adoption Counseling Services 1 1

11 VA Adoption Options / Jewish Social Services Agency, Inc. 1 1

12 TN Adoption Place, Inc. 1 1

13 TN Adoption Promises 1 1

14 NC Adoption Resource Center 1 1

15 VA Adoption Resources of Jewish Family Services 1 1

16 VA Adoption Services by Jewish Family Services (Richmond) 1 1

17 VA Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1 3

18 FL Adoption Source, Inc. 1 1 5

19 FL Adoptions by Family Creations 1 1 5

20 VA Adoptions From the Heart 1 1 7

21 VA Adoptions Together 1 1 6

22 NC Agape of NC, Inc. 1 1

23 FL All About Adoptions, Inc. 1 1

24 NC Amazing Grace Adoptions 1 1 1

25 VA America World Adoption Association, Inc. 1 1 6

26 TN Appalachian Family Outreach 1 1

27 TN Associated Catholic Charities, Inc. 1 1

28 VA Autumn Adoptions 1 1

APPENDIX B


Results – Tables






Post Placement

Only

No Photolistings


Listed on Existing

Photolisting


After Completion


Email Request

Direct Link to

Photolisting


Programs

29 FL Axis Adoption 1 1

30

GA, NC, SC, TN, VA Bethany Christian Services 1 1 15

31 FL Caring Heart Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1

32 NC, SC Carolina Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1 11

33 SC Carolina Hope Christian Adoption Agency, Inc. 1 1 6

34 NC Catholic Charities 1 1

35 VA Catholic Charities of Eastern Virginia 1 1

36 TN Catholic Charities of TN, Inc. 1 1

37 NC Catholic Social Services 1 1 2

38 SC Cherished Children International Adoption Agency 1 1 8

39 SC Child of the Heart 1 1 1

40 VA Children's Home Society & Family Services 1 1 1 16

41 FL Children's Home Society of Florida 1 1

42 TN Children's Hope International 1 1 1 6

43 GA Chinese Children Adoption International 1 1 1

44 NC Christian Adoption Services 1 1 9

45 NC Christian World Adoption 1 1 7

46 FL Commonwealth Adoptions 1 1 10

47 VA Commonwealth Catholic Charities 1 1

48 VA Coordinators2inc. 1 1 2

49 FL Cornerstone Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1 12

50 VA Datz Foundation 1 1

51 GA Edgewood Baptist Church New Beginning Adoption 1 1

52 GA Elina International Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1

53 GA Families First 1 1 10

54 VA Families United 1 1

55 FL Florida Home Studies & Adoption, Inc. 1 1 1 8

APPENDIX B


Results - Tables





No Evidence of

Intercountry Programs, Pre- and

Post Placement

Only

No Photolistings


Listed on Existing

Photolisting


After Completion


Email Request

Direct Link to

Photolisting


Programs

56 VA Forever Families Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1

57 GA Forever Yours Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1

58 NC Frank Adoption Center, NC 1 1 3

59 GA GA Baptist Children's Homes & Family Ministries, Inc. 1 1 2

60 NC Gladney Center for Adoption 1 1 9

61 TN Global Villages International Adoptions 1 1

62 FL Gorman Family Life Center 1 1

63 FL Heart of Adoptions 1 1 1

64 FL Heart to Heart Adoption Service, Inc. 1 1 7

65 TN Heaven Sent Children, Inc. 1 1 13

66 TN, VA Holston United Methodist Home for Children, Inc. 1 1 1

67 VA Holy Cross Child Placement Agency 1 1 1

68 FL Home at Last Adoption Agency 1 1 9

69 NC Homestudy Services of NC 1 1

70 GA Hope for Children, Inc. 1 1 5

71 GA Illien Adoptions International, Inc. 1 1 9

72 GA, NC Independent Adoption Center 1 1

73 FL Intercountry Adoption Center, Inc. 1 1 10

74 NC International Adoption Guides 1 1 4

75 TN International Assistance & Adoption Project 1 1 2

76 TN Jewish Family Service of Nashville & Middle Tenn, Inc. 1 1

77 FL Lifelink Child & Family Services 1 1 1 10

78 VA Loving Families, Inc. 1 1 1

79 NC, SC, VA Lutheran Family Services 1 1

80 NC Mandala Adoption Services 1 1 7

81 TN Mid-Cumberland Children's Services, Inc. 1 1

APPENDIX B


Results – Tables






Post Placement

Only

No Photolistings


Listed on Existing

Photolisting


After Completion


Email Request

Direct Link to

Photolisting


Programs

82 VA Miracles of Grace 1 1 6

83 TN Miriam's Promise 1 1

84 FL Mother Goose Adoptions of Florida, Inc. 1 1

85 NC Nathanson Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1

86 FL New Beginnings Family & Children's Services 1 1 8

87 NC Omnivision Community Services 1 1

88 GA OneWorld Adoption Services 1 1 8

89 NC Options-4-Adoptions 1 1

90 TN Porter-Leath Children's Center 1 1

91 NC Project Oz Adoptions, Inc. 1 1 3

92 NC Saint Mary International Adoptions 1 1 3

93 VA SFI Adoption Services 1 1 5

94 SC Small World Ministries 1 1

95 TN Small World, Inc . 1 1 5

96 TN The Center for Family Development 1 1

97 NC The Datz Foundation, Inc. 1 1

98 VA United Methodist Family Services of Virginia 1 1

99 FL Universal Aid for Children, Inc. 1 1 5

100 TN Williams International Adoptions, Inc. 1 1

101 SC Worldwide Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1 8

TOTALS 101 50 29 11 15 316

PERCENTAGE 50% 29% 11% 15%


APPENDIX B

Results - Tables

Table 2 (1 of 2): Live Agency Websites with Intercountry Adoption Programs

State Agency Name


Programs

No Photolisting, No Children

Listed on Photolisting

Password Protected,

Online Login, Email

Request

Direct Link to

Photolisting

1 SC A Chosen Child Adoption Services 9 1

2 VA ABC Adoption Services, Inc. 1 1

3 VA Adoption Center of Washington 4 1

4 VA Adoption Services, Inc. 3 1

5 FL Adoption Source, Inc. 5 1

6 FL Adoptions by Family Creations 5 1

7 VA Adoptions From the Heart 7 1

8 VA Adoptions Together 6 1

9 NC Amazing Grace Adoptions 1 1

10 VA America World Adoption Association, Inc. 6 1

11

GA, NC, SC, TN, VA Bethany Christian Services 15 1

12 NC, SC Carolina Adoption Services, Inc. 11 1

13 SC Carolina Hope Christian Adoption Agency, Inc. 6 1

14 NC Catholic Social Services 2 1

15 SC Cherished Children International Adoption Agency 8 1

16 SC Child of the Heart 1 1

17 VA Children's Home Society & Family Services 16 1 1

18 TN Children's Hope International 6 1 1

19 GA Chinese Children Adoption International 1 1

20 NC Christian Adoption Services 9 1

21 NC Christian World Adoption 7 1

22 FL Commonwealth Adoptions 10 1

23 VA Coordinators2inc. 2 1

24 FL Cornerstone Adoption Services, Inc. 12 1

25 GA Families First 10 1

26 FL Florida Home Studies & Adoption, Inc. 8 1 1

27 NC Frank Adoption Center, NC 3 1

28 GA GA Baptist Children's Homes & Family Ministries, Inc. 2 1

29 NC Gladney Center for Adoption 9 1

30 FL Heart of Adoptions 1 1

31 FL Heart to Heart Adoption Service, Inc. 7 1

32 TN Heaven Sent Children, Inc. 13 1

33 TN, VA Holston United Methodist Home for Children, Inc. 1 1

34 VA Holy Cross Child Placement Agency 1 1

35 FL Home at Last Adoption Agency 9 1

36 GA Hope for Children, Inc. 5 1

37 GA Illien Adoptions International, Inc. 9 1

38 FL Intercountry Adoption Center, Inc. 10 1

39 NC International Adoption Guides 4 1

40 TN International Assistance & Adoption Project 2 1

APPENDIX B


Results – Tables

Table 2 (2 of 2): Live Agency Websites with Intercountry Adoption Programs

State Agency Name


Programs

No Photolisting, No Children

Listed on Photolisting

Password Protected,

Online Login, Email

Request

Direct Link to

Photolisting

41 FL Lifelink Child & Family Services 10 1

42 VA Loving Families, Inc. 1 1

43 NC Mandala Adoption Services 7 1

44 VA Miracles of Grace 6 1

45 FL New Beginnings Family & Children's Services 8 1

46 GA OneWorld Adoption Services 8 1

47 NC Project Oz Adoptions, Inc. 3 1

48 NC Saint Mary International Adoptions 3 1

49 VA SFI Adoption Services 5 1

50 TN Small World, Inc . 5 1

51 FL Universal Aid for Children, Inc. 5 1

52 SC Worldwide Adoption Services, Inc. 8 1

TOTALS 316 29 11 15

PERCENTAGE 55% 21% 29%

Note: Three (3) agencies utilize more than one method; each method used is recorded in Table 2. This is also reflected

in Appendix C, Figure 1. These agencies are: Children's Home Society & Family Services, Children's Hope

International, and Florida Home Studies & Adoption, Inc.



APPENDIX C

Results - Figures

Figure 1

Photolisting Use by Agencies with Intercountry Adoption Programs

No Photolistings

Protected Photolistings

Some Protected, Some Direct

Link

Direct Link to Photolistings

29 Agencies

56%

8 Agencies

15%

3 Agencies

6%

12 Agencies

23%

52 Agencies

Figure 2

Agency Programs with Direct Links to Photolistings

Photos & Narratives

Photos, No Narratives

Narratives, No Photos

19 Programs Within 15 Agencies

5 Programs

26%

4 Programs

21%

10 Programs

53%


Figure 3

Program Country / Region

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Chin

a

Not S

pecifie

dHaiti

Asia

Gua

temala

Eas

tern

Eur

ope

India

Bra

zil

19 P

rog

ram

s

APPENDIX C

Results - Figures

Program Country / Region

China 5

Not Specified 4

Haiti 3

Asia 2

Guatemala 2

Eastern Europe 1

India 1

Brazil 1

TOTAL 19

Figure 4

Children by Country / Region477 Total Children

020406080

100120140160180200

Bra

zil

Eas

tern

Eur

ope

Chin

aAsia

Not S

pecifie

dHaiti

Gua

temala

India

19 P

rog

ram

s

Children By Country / Region

Brazil 181

Eastern Europe 82

China 61

Asia 53

Not Specified 32

Haiti 29

Guatemala 26

India 13

TOTAL 477


APPENDIX C

Results – Figures

Figure 5

Level of Medical & Developmental Detail

Disclosed by Programs

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

DM=13 GM=2 NM=4 DD=9 GD=3 ND=7

Medical Developmental

19

Programs

DM = 13 programs with specific diagnosis / detailed medical information

DD = 9 programs with specific diagnosis / detailed developmental information

GM = 2 programs with general medical information

GD = 3 programs with general developmental information

NM = 4 programs with no medical information

ND = 7 programs with no developmental information

Documents

Intercountry Adoption Photolistings 1 Running Head ... · AdoptUsKids.com, takes a hopeful stance when describing the child’s challenges by stating, “With services from the Regional