Family KINnections
Family KINnections provides valuable resources to families that have kinship placements through OKDHS. We know how hard it is for kinship families. Whether it is needing clothing, beds, food or just someone to assist you while you walk through the DHS process, it is our job to help maintain placement. Click to view our resources
page for more info.
To contact us, call 405-858-2813
To contact us, call
405-858-2813
That’s equivalent to 621 children with increased stability and family permanency.
by Family KINnections who have not experienced a disruption (or change in placement) while receiving Family KINnections services
Or in other words, 239 children benefitted from our services.
0% of children in families served by FK experienced any maltreatment while in FK care. 97.4% of disruptions or changes in care for children placed into resource families receiving services-as-usual placement disruptions occurred due to the caregiver’s request compared to only 63.6% of FK placement disruptions, suggesting that FK positively impacts the placement stability.
A Community Resource Specialist (CRS) Qualitative Research Project qualitative evaluation was recently completed by the University of Oklahoma Health Science Center measuring the impact on kinship foster care to inform and improve the services. The results concluded: 100% of families reported positive aspects, such as support, helpfulness, and getting their needs met to foster placement. 80% of families reported the CRS provided a consistent level of quality services throughout the lifespan of the case. 100% of families reported that CRS provider maintained effective communication and collaboration support with their DHS case workers.
“Kinship Care” refers to the care of children by relatives or non-relatives (individuals with a relationship with the child). Relatives are the preferred resource for children who must be removed from their birth parents because it maintains the children’s connections with their families. Kinship care is often considered a type of family preservation service.
Kinship care may be formal and involve a training and licensure process for the caregivers, monthly payments to help cover the costs of caring for the child and support services. Kinship care also may be informal and involve only an assessment process to ensure the safety and suitability of the home along with supportive services for the child and caregivers.
2012-2015: Family KINnections received one of only seven national awards from the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).
March 2017 – January 2019: Grant awarded by the Arnall Family Foundation to support Family KINnections.
February 2019: Program transitions to primary funding from Oklahoma Human Services
