The Nebraska Foster & Adoptive Parent Association (NFAPA) offers two scholarships, one for an adoptive child and one for a foster, guardianship, or kinship child, who wishes to further their education beyond high school or GED. This can be either at college or university, vocational and job training or on line learning.

This year the scholarships was presented at our annual board meeting in Hastings. Watch our website for more information about next years scholarship!

 

 

NFAPA has responded to the changing needs of foster care and adoption by offering an array of supportive services and programs.

FOCUS Program

This program is a mentoring program designed to support resource families. Trained volunteer mentors are located throughout the state and offer information and resources to families in need.

                 Families First Newsletter

                This bi-monthly newsletter mailed to over 3,000 licensed and approved resource families, key  
                HHS staff, agencies, and lawmakers. The newsletter provides articles to better assist families in
                caring for Nebraska’s abused and neglected children, as well as an understanding of the foster
                care and adoption systems. Resource parents may receive 30 minutes of in-service training hours
                by answering a simple quiz in each newsletter.  Please see tab "Publications"  for the latest 
                issues.

Educational Trainings

NFAPA provides educational workshops throughout Nebraska to promote continued learning for resource parents. Foster/ Adoptive/ Kinship Parents are welcome to attend all trainings.  These trainings help foster families to understand issues their foster children may have and provide an opportunity to network with other foster/adoptive/kinshop parents. 

Publications
Contact NFAPA for these publications

Adoption: A Guide for Nebraska Resource Families was a collaborative effort between NFAPA and HHS and serves as a guide for potential adoptive parents interested in public adoption. The guidebook outlines laws and policies surrounding adoption, specifically those concerning subsidies, which have often been misunderstood at many levels within the system.

Resource Parent Handbook serves as a guide for all resource parents and is a useful in understanding the foster care system.

Child Abuse and Neglect Out-of-Home Setting Assessment Guide is a useful tool for resource families to understand the process in which Protection and Safety workers assess a resource family and/or home due to claims of child abuse and neglect.

Resource Parent Guide to Record Keeping is a resource developed by foster parents to help in gathering, documenting and sharing information that is crucial in organizing important information for each individual child living in foster care.  Cost for this book is $5. 

Recruitment and Community Education

NFAPA asssts the State of Nebraska with recruitment of new resource families throuh the management of the 1-800-7Parent Information Line. This number can only be contacted with an in-state phone number. Call and get a packet of information to begin the process of becoming a licensed Nebraska Foster Home.

Kits for Kids

Thousands of children and youth have entered the Nebraska foster care system because they cannot live safely in their birth parents home. Oftentimes, these children and youth are without any of their personal belongings when they enter a new foster home. "Kits for Kids" provides a bag for these children filled with items of comfort such as a blanket or stuffed toy, personal hygiene items, crayons and coloring books, and small gift certificates to purchase socks, pajamas, or clothing.

 

                 Kids Kloset
                 The Kids Kloset is full of gently used donated items where our Foster, Adoptive &    
                 Kinship families can shop for free for all of the children in their home.  The Kids Kloset is
                 available in Hastings.  Please contact Barb Nissen (308-379-5323) for Kloset hours or to make
                 a one on one appointment. 

 

                         Local Parent Support Group

                         As parents of foster and adopted children, there are challenges that parents have already
                         encountered or may encounter in the future. NFAPA encourages that families build support 
                         systems and have a safety net plan available before families need them to deal with crisis.
                         Support groups are a vital component to the safety net and NFAPA is organizing local parent
                         groups statewide.

phoneToll-Free Information Line

NFAPA has established a toll-free information line (1-877-257-0176) where current and prospective resource families can call for information and resources.

Become a NFAPA Member

The Nebraska Foster and Adoptive  Parent Association offers several membership levels to accommodate everyone in the foster care, adoptive care, and child welfare community.  Your membership supports the important mission of NFAPA.  See Home tab and click Donation page for more information.

      NFAPA Membership Form