Pennsylvania Again Achieves Record Number of Foster Care Adoptions

'National Adoption Month' Serves As Reminder That Many Children Still Await Permanent Homes

HARRISBURG, Pa., Nov. 23, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- For the second year, Pennsylvania has set a record for the number of foster children who have found permanent homes through adoption, acting Secretary of Public Welfare Michael Nardone announced today.

"A record 2,388 children were adopted from foster care in the state last year – a 10-percent increase from the record 2,175 adoptions finalized the year before," Nardone said. "While we're proud to have such success two years running, we still have about 2,700 foster children in Pennsylvania awaiting permanent homes."

Noting that November is National Adoption Month, Nardone praised the dedication and hard work of adoption advocates across Pennsylvania and urged more Pennsylvanians to consider becoming "forever families" to foster children seeking a permanent home.

The 2,388 adoptions occurred from October 2009 through September 2010, the period dictated by the federal government for states to report the number of foster care adoptions that have been legally finalized.

The Department of Public Welfare assists the adoption of children from foster care through its Statewide Adoption and Permanency Network, or SWAN, a broad-based cooperative effort that brings together county children and youth agencies, juvenile court judges, foster and adoptive parents, private adoption agencies and other resources to work on behalf of children who need permanent homes.

"The comprehensive efforts of DPW and its partners have enabled more than 30,000 children to be adopted since SWAN began nearly two decades ago," Nardone said.

For more information about becoming a foster or adoptive parent, call toll-free 1-800-585-7926 or visit the Pennsylvania Adoption Exchange at www.adoptpakids.org.

Media contact: Michael Race, 717-425-7606 or 717-343-5087 (cell)

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare