South Carolina Code of Regulations › Chapter 114 - DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES › Article 49 - CHILD PLACING AGENCIES REGULATIONS › Section 114-4910 - Child Placing Agencies; Definitions and Application Procedures

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 6, June 28, 2024
A. Definitions
(1) "Adoptive home" means a household of one
			 or more persons which has been approved by a licensed child placing agency to
			 accept a child for adoption.
(2)
			 "Case plan" means the goal oriented, time limited individualized plan of action
			 for a child and his family developed by the child placing agency in cooperation
			 with the family and/or referring agency for the child.
(3) "Caseworker" means a person employed by
			 the Agency who has a minimum of a Baccalaureate or an Associate degree and
			 related experience.
(4) "Casework
			 Supervisor" means a person who has a Masters in Social Work or a Baccalaureate
			 in a related field approved by the Department with a minimum of two years of
			 directly related casework experience in a Child Placing Agency.
(5) "Certified adoption investigator" means
			 an individual, self employed or employed by an agency, corporation, or
			 association who prepares a document addressing issues of concern and
			 information necessary for a court to make a decision in adoption matters and is
			 certified pursuant to applicable statutes and regulations.
(6) "Child" means a person under eighteen
			 years of age.
(7) "Child placing
			 agency" means any person or entity which is licensed under the requirements of
			 20-7-1650(e), Code of Laws of South Carolina.
(8) "Client" means the individual(s) to whom
			 a child placing agency is providing services. This includes, but is not limited
			 to children, foster parents, biological parents, and adoptive
			 parents.
(9) "Commissioner" means
			 the chief administrator of the Department of Social Services.
(10) "Department" means the Department of
			 Social Services.
(11) "Foster
			 Family home" means a private household of one or more persons who provide full
			 time care under licensure of the Department of Social Services for one (1) or
			 more children living apart from their parent(s), guardian(s), or relative(s). A
			 foster family home shall not be licensed for more than six (6) children,
			 including the foster parents' own children and/or other children who are
			 household members.
(12) "Foster
			 home licensing/relicensing study" means an assessment of whether or not the
			 applicant or licensee meets foster home regulations.
(13) "Home study" means the joint assessment
			 process entered into by the child placing agency and/or adoptive or foster
			 family for the purpose of assessing the family's strengths, and how they could
			 best serve the children that the child placing agency has available for
			 placement, and whether or not the applicant complies with the approval
			 standards.
(14) "Person" means an
			 individual, partnership, joint stock company, business trust, voluntary
			 association, corporation, governmental organization, court operated program or
			 any other type organization or profit or nonprofit business
			 enterprise.
(15) "Post placement
			 services" means to provide support, education and assistance to the family from
			 the time of adoptive placement through consummation.
(16) "Substitute care" means twenty four (24)
			 hour care provided to a child who must be separated from his/her own
			 family/parents for a specific purpose and for a planned period of time. This
			 could take the form of a foster family home, group home, child care facility,
			 emergency shelter, residential treatment program, independent living program,
			 wilderness camp or maternity home.