NCJ Number
140803
Journal
New England Journal on Criminal and Civil Confinement Volume: 18 Issue: 1-2 Dated: (Winter-Summer 1992) Pages: 147-182
Date Published
1992
Length
36 pages
Annotation
This article examines how the Massachusetts foster care system works with incarcerated mothers, their children, and the foster parents who care for their children.
Abstract
The discussion begins with an examination of the establishment of the Massachusetts Department of Social Services, its goals, and its procedures for placing a child in foster care. The author then analyzes the procedures in Massachusetts for granting care and protection orders and termination of parental rights petitions. Emphasis is given to how these proceedings apply to incarcerated mothers. The article then examines the current attempt to "professionalize" foster parents in Massachusetts and how foster parents' increased power will provide for more open communication between incarcerated mothers, their children, and the children's foster parents. In Massachusetts, foster parents who care for the children of incarcerated mothers are trained to become involved in the maintenance and nourishment of foster children's relationships with their parents. The incarcerated mothers are given opportunities to visit with their children more often, learn parenting skills, and prepare to provide a more stable environment when the family is reunited. Foster parents can play a significant role in the preservation of an incarcerated mother's parental rights and in the reunification of the family upon the release of the mother. 293 footnotes