Continuing education
Intercountry Adoption: Implementing the Hague Convention and the Intercountry Adoption Act
Program sessions
June 15, 2007
9 a.m.-3 p.m.
1001 West Franklin Street, Room 112
Richmond, Virginia 23284-2027
June 22, 2007
9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Northern Virginia Program
6295 Edsall Road, Suite 210
Alexandria, Virginia 22312
Course description and objectives
Adoption placement providers are responding to rapid changes taking place in intercountry adoption regulation under the Hague Convention for Intercountry Adoption and the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000. All agencies engaged in intercountry adoption placement activities must either comply with standards of practice or cease to provide such services. Agency accreditation will require a number of changes in practice that will ensure the rights of children, specifically preventing the sales and trafficking of children. This workshop will cover practice standards and what to expect when being evaluated for accreditation. In addition, real-life issues associated with global adoptions will be discussed, using case studies for critical analysis.
By the end of the workshop, participants will:
- Be knowledgeable about the HCIA and the IAA.
- Understand the HCIA in its historical context, drawing on case examples of global problems in intercountry adoption and child trafficking.
- Be able to identify key areas of HCIA and IAA implementation, especially as they relate to agency standards of practice.
- Be able to identify some of the potential problems associated with collaborating with professionals working in sending countries, including responsibilities for supervision.
- Identify ethical issues related to intercountry adoption, including exploration of “willful blindness.”
- Understand how the HCIA and IAA affect Americans adopting from other Hague signatory countries.
Continuing education units: 0.5
About the facilitator
Karen S. Rotabi, Ph.D., is an assistant professor at the VCU School of Social Work. She has more than a decade of adoption-related experience working as a permancy planning case manager and adoption consultation, including home studies. Rotabi has worked in a variety of international programs, including a child health project in Guatemala, provision of technical assistance to a children’s home in Belize and military social services in Europe. Among her current research interests is the implementation of the Hague Convention in the U.S. and Guatemala. Rotabi is currently a Hague Evaluator for the Council on Accreditation. She holds a doctorate in social work and master’s degrees in social work and public health.
Cost
CEUs: $100
Non-CEU $85
To obtain CEU credit, participants must pay a separate $15 processing fee the day of the program, via a check made payable to the VCU School of Social Work. No cash or credit cards will be accepted for this purpose.