Evening star., 1944-10-29

P|dcennentRu|es
Agencies Must Meet
Rigid Requirements
Of Responsibility
The Commissioners announced
yesterday they had approved a de-
tailed set of regulations prescribing
standards of placements, care and
service to be required of child -plac-
ing agencies" in the District, which
were drawn up by a special commit
tee named by them.
Each child-placing agency must
make an application for a license
annually and 1t is recommended
that they be incorporated as nom
profit organizations.
The rules and regulations use the
word must" where the standards
are required and the word should"
where the standards are recon-
mended. The committee was named
on the recommendation of the
Board of Public Welfare, under the
terms of the so-called baby broker
bill, approved by Congress on April
%.
Requirements Cited.
The governing board of incor-
porated agencies must be controlled
by "a responsible board or local
governing authority" and the agen-
cies must satisfy the Board of Wei
fare that they have adequate f.
resources TO maintain the
standards of service required by
The executive of AN agency must
have had experience in children's
work; case work supervisors must
have completed a minimum of one
year in a graduate school of social
work. plus three years in an agency
by the welfare board and
case workers must have had one
year in a graduate school of social
work. During the war emergency,
provisions have been made for re-
laxing the qualifications.
The regulations require that a
complete record be kept of appli-
cations and investigations for care
Of children and of foster families,
and the number of children super
vised by one caseworker must not
exceed So Before a child can be
accepted for foster care, a thorough
must be made of his
family and environmental condi-
tions.
Must Give Child Family.
In the case of foster homes, it
is recommended that the family
have IAN acceptable motive for TAX
ing child dependable income
sufficient to provide a comfortable
living, enjoy good health and be
without communicable diseases. The
neighborhod must be "healthful"
and the home should be near a
church and school.
In addition, the family should
have intelligence and emotional
maturity" realization of the
value of educational training and
cultural activities for children" and
an ability to share in the develop
ment Of children and the realiza-
ton of the differences of life ex-
perience."
Children should be placed for
adoption only when permanent
separation Of the child from his
or relatives is found by
careful investigation to be neces-
sary," the regulations state. Its
purpose is to give the child a family
Of his own."
"A child's own home and family
are his basic right and it is under
stood that only under these circum-
stances can he be assured of his
normal social personality develop
ment," said the committee prefac-
ing its regulations.
Emotional Shock"
Every child who is removed from
his own home suffers a severe emo
tional shock Therefore, no child
should be removed until every pos
sible effort has been made to bring
about an environment conducive to
the wholesome development of the
child. A complete, well-rounded
program of child welfare should be
provided for all children in the Dis
trict."
Those named in May by the city
heads to write the regulations were
Mrs. Milton w. King, who was at
that time a member of the Board
Of Public Welfare; DR.. Ella Open
heimer of the Health Department;
Miss Gladys Cook, formerly of the
Welfare Board; Mrs. Milton Harris,
chairman of the Child Welfare
Committee of Jewish Social Service
Agency: Miss Florence Murray, su-
pervisor, Catholic Charities: Seton
Darr. attorney, representing St.
AIMS Infant Asylum; Miss Mildred
Terrett, executive secretary, Chill
dren's Protective Association, and
Miss A, Patricia Morss, chief of
the children's services, welfare
board.
After Mrs. King left the board,
Mrs. Radford Moses of the welfare
board became a member of the
committee this summer and was
made its chairman.