COLUMBUS, Ohio - When the call came asking her to care for a relative's baby, Heather Rouch of Perry County says she stepped up immediately. The plan was for her to keep the child until the parents got on their feet, and she ended up also taking two of their other children into her home.

Kinship-care arrangements increasingly are being made for children in Ohio. In her case, Rouch says, it was clear the children had not been getting proper care and attention.

"The 3-year-old, he didn't talk much; he wasn't potty trained. And the 2-year-old, he had no emotion at all - he never smiled, he wasn't talking, he wasn't walking. I mean, he was just like in a daze all the time."

Denise Bell, a social worker for Clark County Job and Family Services, says Rouch did everything she could to help the county reunite the children with their parents. After a year, however, it was determined that might not be the best choice for the children, and Rouch became the legal guardian of four children, all younger than age 4.

Today, Bell says, the children are flourishing.

"My goodness, we could see an amazing change in these children after the first month they were placed there as far as their effect - in their face, in their demeanor, in their behaviors. It was just a good kinship placement."

Clark County Job and Family Services received a federal Fostering Connections Kinship Navigator grant to build partnerships between public and private, community and faith-based groups to better serve the needs of kinship caregivers and families.

There is a time and place for foster care, says Kristie Heckman, supervisor of the county's Kinship Unit, but a friend's or relative's home is typically the best option for a child.

"They have a better ability to maintain connections with their parents, their other family members, their traditions, their identity, their culture. And we know that children in kinship care report feeling more loved than children in foster care."

Rouch's children are grown, so she sometimes feels as though she's starting all over again. But, she says "family is family," and encourages others asked to provide kinship care to go for it.

"A lot of people think that they can't do it. And I took on four of 'em - and they grow on you. They're like my own children now."

An estimated 100,000 children now are living in kinship-care situations around the state, an 18 percent increase in the past decade.


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Virginia's General Assembly is taking up a bill to address outcomes for kids in foster care.

Previous legislation either failed to pass or was watered down in favor of further research on the issues. House Bill 893 would require Virginia's Judicial Council to adopt new standards for attorneys to qualify to represent parents in child dependency cases.

Valerie L'Herrou, deputy director of the Center for Family Advocacy at the Virginia Poverty Law Center, described the impact it can have on families.

"When parents have better legal representation, the children achieve their permanency goal faster," L'Herrou pointed out. "On average, four months faster."

She pointed out the faster turnaround can reduce state foster care operation costs. Typically, Virginia spends $305 million annually on foster care. Most opposition to previous bills has subsided, in light of state research about the extent of the issue. The bill passed the House of Delegates and has been referred to the Senate Committee for Courts of Justice.

With more than 5,000 children in foster care, L'Herrou argued now is the time to act. She added if this bill passes, it could serve as a springboard for future improvements to the system.

"I think this will start giving judges information that they need in order to effectively decide cases," L'Herrou emphasized. "When a case goes to court, you're hearing from both sides, and if you only hear from one side, then you're getting an incomplete picture."

The bill would also raise the rate of compensation for attorneys taking such cases. In the meantime, L'Herrou stressed programs are providing parents with sufficient legal representation. The Family Preservation Project has been filling the gap by taking what she calls a "holistic approach" to family separation cases.

During February, which is National Parent Leadership Month, the nonprofit Parents Anonymous is celebrating the successful launch of the new National Parent and Youth Helpline.

The Helpline has received more than 19,000 calls in its first few months. On Saturday, the group cut the ribbon on its new headquarters in Pasadena.

Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., spoke at the event, saying National Parent Leadership Month is the perfect time to reassure families they are not alone.

"It is a time for them to learn that there are resources available," Chu noted. "You can change your life around and feel better yourself, but also help your children live better lives."

Parents Anonymous created National Parent Leadership Month 30 years ago. The nation's 174 million parents and young people who need emotional support can call or text 855-427-2736 or live-chat 24/7 on the website.

Antonia Rios, chair of the national and California parent leadership teams for Parents Anonymous and a mother of seven, said she overcame decades of trauma with the help of counselors at Parents Anonymous.

"Parents Anonymous has provided me the emotional support so that I felt safe to open up," Rios explained. "I didn't feel judged, or revictimized. I felt like I could talk about what it was like for me, and then move past it."

The federal Administration for Children and Families recently awarded Parents Anonymous a five-year, $10 million grant to launch and operate the National Parent and Youth Helpline.

Wisconsin is among the states without a defined formula for deciding alimony payments through divorce court proceedings.

A new report says without that predictability, some people might not be getting a fair shake.

Custody X Change, an online firm that helps families navigate divorce, is out with a new analysis of alimony laws across the country.

The company's Managing Editor Shea Drefs said only about a third of states have a formula on the books.

The remaining states, including Wisconsin, essentially give judges discretion to sign off on an amount without a guideline.

Settlement agreements often take shape beforehand, but Drefs said that's not always the case.

"If you can't reach an agreement, because many people who are divorcing aren't on super great terms," said Drefs, "and they go to a judge and they say, 'Okay, you decide what should the alimony amount be.' If that's you going in, you have no idea what to expect."

Drefs said this can be especially problematic for those who can't afford an attorney to guide them through negotiations.

The report also notes that of the states that do have a formula, only 10 have guidelines for how long payments should continue.

The authors recommend implementing policies in states where there are none, and for ongoing assessments of existing formulas.

Drefs said in cases where someone isn't able to secure fair terms, whether that's the person receiving the payments or the other half responsible for them, it can have a lasting effect.

"Having bad alimony arrangements can have an impact on each of the ex-spouses," said Drefs, "on their children - and it can have ripple effects."

That might include housing instability or other forms of financial hardships.

Drefs said while existing guidelines can help a judge make a decision, there's still flexibility to consider traditional factors, such as income levels for both spouses, their ages, and the length of the marriage.




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