Spotlight Articles Washington Foster Parent Association Joins Union Group
A new affiliation between the Foster Parent Association of Washington and the Washington Federation of State Employees draws national attention as foster parents nationwide demand recognition and respect
By Kim Phagan-Hansel
Nationally, foster parents have been looking for recognition and acknowledgement of the hard work they do on behalf of the children in their care. Washington state foster parents may have found a way to get the attention they've been craving. In May, the Foster Parent Association of Washington, or FPAWS, signed an affiliation agreement with the Washington Federation of State Employees, or WFSE, in the hopes of gaining recognition in their state as part of a national union organization. "What was once an informal affiliation for a number of years is now formal," said Tim Welch, director of public affairs at WFSE. "It made sense to pool our resources." With more than 38,000 members, WFSE will provide a sound support to the more than 6,400 foster parents in Washington with its new division on foster care. For that reason, it is hoped that this affiliation will encourage foster parents to become members of FPAWS. Already the numbers are adding up since the announcement of this joint venture. Foster parents across the state are hoping to finally have a voice in the foster care system they so diligently work within. "We're the ones who are the experts on the kids," said Daniele Baxter, co-president of FPAWS. "We now have a way to be at the table of decision-making." Baxter believes the time is now for change. Many of the FPAWS board members have worked as foster parents within the foster care system for more than 20 years. They realized it was time for a change, but were having difficulty being recognized by the system so they went looking for help elsewhere. "We needed to find something outside the system to help us change things," Baxter said. "Things don't seem to change fast enough for the benefit of children." One of the main goals of FPAWS is to improve the foster care experience for children, which is difficult when foster parents continually quit because of frustrations with the system. FPAWS believes that foster parents will continue fostering if they are viewed as a valuable participant in providing quality service to foster children. "We're looking at a group of foster parents who want to be professionals," Baxter said. "It's not about money, it's about recognition and respect." As professionals, Baxter would like to see different levels of certification for foster parents and a higher standard of training. Foster parents are required to complete several hours of training to be licensed and most receive continuing education credits annually. They often have to complete as many training hours as other professionals working within the child welfare system, yet they are still unrecognized as professionals who play an integral part of the system. Many of the children coming into the system have multiple needs, which require well-qualified, experienced foster parents. Because of the high foster parent turnover, agencies often place children in homes with inexperienced, new foster parents. "Over the last eight years I've seen a marked difference in the kids who remain in care," Baxter said. "It's creating a need for a better trained foster parent." Better training also includes teaching foster parents how to advocate for themselves, as well as their children. "Foster parents do not advocate for themselves - they do advocate for the children," Baxter said. The hope is that foster parents will learn to advocate for themselves and WFSE and FPAWS will advocate together on behalf of foster parents and children. They already are traveling the state to uncover the needs of foster parents statewide. WFSE and FPAWS hope to address the needs of each region's foster parents by visiting each of these areas. Baxter can already see the group unifying to create awareness. "They [foster parents] can say what they want to say and be heard and have that count for something," Baxter said. "It's a voice in unity. The group hopes the voice will be heard legislatively as well within the state. Some of the change FPAWS would like to see, or can only be accomplished through legislation. "We want to put foster care and children's services in general on the front burner legislatively," Welch said. Last year, prior to forming this union, FPAWS was able to draw attention to the needs of foster children who age out of the system at age 18. The group advocated to continue support of foster children until they are 21 because it is difficult for children to be self-sufficient by age 18. The group hopes to continue advocating on behalf of this often forgotten group of children. Their success last year only encourages them to do more and hopefully as part of a larger, unionized group there will be more attention drawn to such important issues. "They're getting a lot of attention and that's worth the price of admission," Welch said. "We're building a new enterprise that's never been done nationally." It's definitely drawn national attention. While the National Foster Parent Association, or NFPA, has not published an official statement on the new affiliation between WSFE and FPAWS, the organization is definitely interested and watching intently to see what becomes of the affiliation. "There might be a possibility for this to work in other states - that's why everyone's watching," said Karen Jorgenson, executive director of NFPA. "It's a plea for recognition and respect." That plea is being heard nationwide and Baxter hopes that the affiliation will bring voice to those who have so long been unheard. In the meantime, we will all have to wait and see what happens. A one-year membership to FPAWS is $20. For more information about the organization or the new affiliation, visit www.fpaws.org or call (800) 391-2273. For more information about WFSE, visit www.wfse.org. | 
