Building your family through adoption can mean a lot of questions and the resources on this page may help you find the answers you and your family need. We hope the information here will help you, support you, and encourage you–no matter what is happening in your family. As always, please contact us if you have further questions or would like additional information about adoption.

 

We believe that, even in the most difficult of circumstances, foster and adoptive parents want to be champions; a positive force for the children and youth in their care. And we know that there are times when that is just plain hard.

We have created Champion Classrooms to be a lifeline for all parents and caregivers. Learners in Champion Classrooms have access to ongoing training opportunities that can introduce new skills or simply sharpen those they already have. Each of the courses are designed to provide real-time support when parents need it the most. It’s available anytime–24 hours a day and seven days a week. Champion Classrooms offers a diverse range of educational offerings and engaging and interactive content. Learners can choose from beginner, intermediate, and more advanced courses, depending on their experience and needs.

In addition to online courses, learners in the Champion Classrooms will have access to:

  • Live, real-time webinars
  • Information about upcoming conferences
  • Links to related and relevant resources, such as informational tip sheets, newsletters, and guide books

We believe that, when parents have access to the resources on Champion Classrooms, they will also have the support they need to be there for their kids–no matter what.

The Coalition for Children, Youth & Families’ free lending library is a collection of books, tapes, and DVDs, as well as instantly downloadable newsletters and tip sheets, about a wide variety of topics related to foster care and adoption. Our library also includes:

  • Over 100 tip sheets: short informational resources on a variety of topics related to adoption, foster care, post-adoption, and caring for children and youth in general. Most tip sheets are three-fourd pages in length and include links to additional resources and information.
  • Partners Newsletter: Each issue of Partners focuses on a specific theme or topic related to adoption and foster care and includes articles, resources, success stories, and more for readers. Partners can be downloaded and printed for easy sharing.
  • Fostering Across Wisconsin Newsletter: Each issue of Fostering Across Wisconsin focuses on a specific theme or topic and includes such things as articles, resources, and stories for readers. Fostering Across Wisconsin can be downloaded and printed for easy sharing. If you’d like to sign up for an email notification when the latest issue has been published, you can do that here.

Wisconsin families and professionals are welcome to check out physical materials from our library for free (electronic items are available to all, for free, and on demand). Materials requested will be shipped to you with a postage-paid return envelope. You can help us serve more people by sending along a check for the amount of postage if possible. You may check out four (4) items at a time and keep them for three (3) weeks.

Our online calendar of events includes opportunities for learning and connection from the Coalition, as well as a number of other organizations. Events are included from across Wisconsin as information is made available to us.

As a school professional being faced with various scenarios daily, it may be a challenge to have all of the answers when a student confides in you that she (or his girlfriend) is pregnant. If you are interested, our staff of Resource Specialists are happy to make a presentation about adoption to the students you work with. We invite you to contact us at any time for more information or to request this service. We are also available to answer any questions you and your students have over the phone at 1-800-762-8063.

For children who were adopted, are in foster care, or are living with a relative who’s not their biological parent, certain school assignments can trigger feelings of sadness or loss. The Coalition for Children, Youth & Families created this short video that will offer suggestions for alternative assignments that are inclusive for all students. We encourage you to view this video and share it with other parents and colleagues. If you have questions, please contact us; we are here to help.