Any child welfare expects for Wisconsin?

[katied]

I jsut wanted to get a basic understanding of what the rules may be in Wisconsin with respect to physical placement of kids. We are potentially looking at a situation where both parents are homeless, and lack the basic ability to care for 2 kids, age 11 and 13. There have also be recent arrest records and other issues with the mother (who has 2 other younger children unrelated to us). We would like the kids (related to us) placed with us for the school year. We live in Minnesota, about 2 hrs away from either parent. The maternal grandparent (unrelated to us) would also support this placement. We're not sure of either parent's perspective, but the father does not himself want the kids full time. Any idea of our options? I know this is really complicated, and ultimately we'll need to talk to an attorney, etc. The kids would prefer to stay with us also, but wanted to have a basic feel what we might be looking at.

Then, there are the issues of what legal status we would need to enroll the kids in school here, etc.

 

[2manyprincesses]

Sorry, have no advice for you. But God bless you for being willing to take in these children and Good Luck!

 

[Disney1976]

Not in child welfare in Wiscosin, but I am a Florida lawyer with some experience in family law. You'll likely have to petition the courts there for guardianship of the kids, even if it's just a temporary one. You might want to contact Children and Family Services in Wisconsin and talk to someone first, to see what assistance they can provide you in this regard.

I know there are other attorneys on this forum, hopefully there's someone here with more experience in family law and guardianship who knows more about the process.

 

[PinkJade]

I work at a social service agency in IL, so not sure if there are similarities or not. I would contact the agency that is involved in the case. ( I am assuming that the parents have an active case) It is very likely they will work with you in the placement of the children however they do not like to break up a sibship if possible (so if there is someone who would take all of the children they would place them there).

However if the mother has her full parental rights and there is no active investigation, I would think it would be highly unlikely you would receive guardianship of the children unless the mother was agreeable. I suppose another option would be to call in your concerns to DCFS. However being homeless and having an arrest record in most cases is not enough to remove the children to protective custody. However there may be more information you did not post.

Hope that helps.

 

[CLR4321]

It would be hard to guess how things would go without talking to either a family law specialist and/or someone with the local childrens services department.
I do know that family is a first consideration no matter where you are as far as having a child who is going into foster care. It is usually in the best interest of the child to stay with family versus a stranger if someone is available.
Good luck with the courts!

 

[katied]

Yes, there are quite a bit more details I'd prefer not to post, but there are active scoail services cases. The baby (unrelated to us) has been placed in temporary foster care. I know one of the fathers has already taken custody of his child, leaving the 2 related to us - one is already with us for the summer, and the other is in a camp right now we're paying for, so no immediate action has been taken with either of them. We are planning to call a family attorney tomorrow to start seeing what we can do. Also, the grandmother of the children is planning to meet with her daughter and former son-in-law this weekend to see if she can convince them to volunatry give us temporary guardianship. That would be the best case, but I would still want something legal in place to minimize the disruption to the kids as much as possible.

Thanks all.

 

[smylie1]

Please keep us posted. I think there is a special place in heaven for people like you. It takes alot to step up and take on this responsibility. Many prayers going up for you and your family.

 

[limace]

I'm in child welfare in a different state, but here's my two cents. If the kids are wards of the court, placing them in another state becomes much more complicated, due to federal law governing interstate placements and to the court's need to promote visits between these kids and their parents and siblings. Let their social worker k ow asap that you want to be a resource.

If the parents still have legal custody and are willing for the kids to come live with you, then this can be pretty simple and is something families do all the time for a variety of reasons.

 

[katied]

Thanks. The parents do still have legal custody, so it looks like we're looking at temporary guardianship, and we'll see how long temporary lasts. We'd like to set it up to be renewable by school year, just to minimize disruption to the kids. Thankfully, the mom and dad of the kids have both agreed that the best option is for the kids to stay with us, so we'll still work with an attorney to get some paperwork done so we have the right to enroll the kids in school, take them to the doctor, etc. Now, the only thing to figure out is heathcare - I can't put them on my plan since I don't have full legal custody, so right now they are uninsured.

 

[MomTo4+more]

The children are lucky to have you in their lives.

I am with a program called Safe Families for Children. They may be able to help you. I am in IL, where Safe Families started, but they have branches in many states now. Safe Families is for children who are in crisis but have not yet been made wards of the state. As a Safe Family parent you take short-term guardianship of the children while the family addresses the issues that caused the crisis. There is no court involvement. It works well in most cases because the parents feel empowered to address their issues. 85% of the children return to their parents. The average length of stay in the program is 45 days. They may be able to help you take guardianship of these two if their parents agree. I would guess they would prefer the children being with you in Safe Families instead of taken by social services. PM me if you want the contact info on Safe Families, or do a google search and see if there is a branch in your area.

I hope the children can stay with you so they can be safe and happy.

 

[limace]

Thanks. The parents do still have legal custody, so it looks like we're looking at temporary guardianship, and we'll see how long temporary lasts. We'd like to set it up to be renewable by school year, just to minimize disruption to the kids. Thankfully, the mom and dad of the kids have both agreed that the best option is for the kids to stay with us, so we'll still work with an attorney to get some paperwork done so we have the right to enroll the kids in school, take them to the doctor, etc. Now, the only thing to figure out is heathcare - I can't put them on my plan since I don't have full legal custody, so right now they are uninsured.

That's great news! Sorry my earlier post was so short; I was on my iPhone and it's a total PITA to write very much.

In my state, relatives in your situation can go down to the local welfare office (called something different in each state) and apply for a "non-needy caretaker grant"; it's only about $200 a month per kid, but does, I believe, include enrollment in the state's health plan for children. It is not based on need of the caretaker relatives. There might be something similar in your state; I'd do some googling to see if your state has any advocacy programs for children's health care and they should be able to give you direction.

 

[katied]

Thanks. I've started to do some digging, and it looks like there may be programs to help with uninsured children in Minnesota, which is nice. I'll keep working on it, but I appreciate all the advice.