Some links and description of how they might be interesting or useful :)

In the fast changing times and with new definitions, meanings, and structures to family, people whose marital status is single and choose to adopt should not be discriminated against when trying to adopt a child and should have the same chances as a couple would when trying to adopt.

"Adoption Faq.". Department of Social Services, 

 <http://www.childsworld. c a.gov/PG1302.htm>. This article is from the state of California and it goes over what it takes to adopt a child, the kind of process a person or couple might go through, how to find a child and even gives a few generalizations about how much it might cost someone to adopt a child. It gives a good definition of adoption when it says “Adoption is a legal process which permanently gives parental rights to adoptive parents. Adoption means taking a child into your home as a permanent family member. It means caring for and guiding children through their growing years and giving them the love and understanding they need to develop their full potential.” It talks about how single parent adoption is not illegal but it usually looked at as a absolute last resort and at times the single parents are looked over and are moved to the bottom of the list of potential adopters and the children end up staying in the foster care system, which will just cost the state more. If we were to create a law giving a single person the same rights as a couple when it comes to adopting there would be a lot less children in the foster care system or even if we could just see what a prominent change in the definition of family has occurred then maybe single people who chose to live their life against social norms can adopt without having to jump through hoops just to become a parent.

"Adoption: Single with Children."Single Parenting and Adoption. Family Education,<http://life.familyeducation.com/adoption/nontraditional-families/45788.html>.

This article starts out pointing out the point that single parent adoption isn’t illegal but how it is looked down upon by many adoption agencies it says this by saying, “Every state in the United States allows single people to adopt. As a result, marital status isn't a legal barrier to adopting a child anywhere at least, not officially. Many adoption agencies and attorneys, however, still perceive the married couple as the ideal choice for the children they place. So sometimes the single man or woman drops to the end of the adoption line when it comes to priorities”. This quote is the basis for what I want to make known in society about how it’s not illegal but still looked down upon because it is not up to our usual norms. This article also has a pros and cons list of adoption while you are single. It gives a lot of good information about why a single person may or may not want to adopt when they are single. This article though not academic in nature still gives a lot of insight because it does look at both sides of the controversy.

Baker, Joshua K. "Marital Preference in Adoption Law: All 50 States.". <http://www.marriagedebate.com/pdf/iMAPPmarriage.adoption.pdf>.In this article it gives a break down or comparison of each state and its laws on adoption. It states that currently the only state with a law against single parent adoption is the state of Utah which states a preference of a married couple when adopting. It also states how some states have in fact made laws that keep adoption agencies from discriminating against single people who are adopting. Which leads one to think why not make it a federal law instead of just by state. It also goes over saying that adoption laws are put into place to protect the child and to ensure the adoptive parent’s rights are protected. This article also states that how single parenting might not be ideal but in most cases it is better for the child to have a single adoptive parent then to have no parent at all. This article is very both sided and adds a lot of interesting things to be brought up.

Devin, Joseph. "Single Parent Adoption."Parenting: Single Parent Blog. . <http://singleparent-s.blogspot.com/2009/12/single-parent-adoption.html>.

This is a blog that goes over the process of adoption and what a perspective parent can look forward to when it comes to adoption. It also goes over frequently asked questions about adoption to help put to rest the myths that come with single parent adoption but again since this is a blog it can be biased and not all experiences are going to be the same so everything in there may not be as accurate as would be ideal, but at the same time it is important to see someone’s experiences and know what kind of barriers can be expected when trying to adopt when your single. It even says in there that the most important and first thing that anyone adopting needs to do is research which is what looking at these blogs and legal documents is.

Doughterty, Sharon Ann. "Single Adoptive Mothers and Their Children." National Association of Social Workers <http://ezproxy.missouriwestern.edu:38 26/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=55cdd2d9-daef- 4413-ae17-7a077eb9ab81%40sessionmgr115&vid=1&hid=110>. This article is more specific to women and what type of women are single parent adopting and some of the common characteristics that those women have in common. It also goes on to talk about how most of the time the women that want to adopt are more than capable and financially stable enough to adopt and are choosing the choice of parenthood and its rewards and also accepting the financial and emotional burden that comes with raising a child. But, still many more are still at the bottom of the list when it comes to trying to get a child. It goes on to say that a single parent house hold can be just as good as any dual parent household can be. Now this is an older academic journal but it is still important to see the way things used to be compared to the way they are now to see how society’s views can change over time along with the change in what it means to be a family.

Groze, Vic. "Adoption And Single Parents: A Review." Child Welfare 70.3 (1991): 

 In This literary review he discusses what a single adoptive parent is and what are some of the characteristics of the single adoptive parents are. They also go over facts like the fact that single people are more likely to adopt older children which is a lot harder to find homes for these children and kids with special needs. Groze also talks about many studies done to show that children who are adopted by single people go through all the same growth and learning rates as children who went to dual parent households. He also quotes a longitudinal study of single adoptive parents by saying, “That adoption, particularly adoption by a single person, was an appropriate strategy for these children who could not grow up with biological parents. These adoptive homes provided continuity and stability, the family systems showed strength and changed appropriately, and most adopted children did well.” It also concludes by saying “Here is strong evidence that single-parent families can meet the needs of some children now denied adoption and assist the child welfare system in providing permanent homes for children waiting for adoptive placement.” Which is a point that many people need to realize but is often just looked over because it is not considered to be the ‘norm’ of society.

Hanson, Shirley M.H., and Michael J. Sporakowski. Single Parent Families. Family Relations. <http://ezproxy.missouriwestern.edu:3826/ehost/pdfviewer/

pdfviewer?sid=b8fbad15-17a1-403d-9d5e-985b072fdf7%40sessionmgr114&vid=1&hid=110>. In this article it goes over what different types of families there are out there and more specifically the single parent families are out there and how they either become single or chose to be single. It goes over a lot of information about what single people go through not just single adoptive parents, because when it gets down to it a single adoptive parent is still a single parent. It compares adoptive, divorced, and just single parent families with the pros and cons for all types. It also tells about commonly misunderstood facts about single parenting and what the truth behind those misunderstood facts is and why people assume these misinterpretations.

Howe, Ruth- Arlene W, "Adoption Practice, Issues and Laws 1958-1983." Boston College Law School <http://works.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi ?article=1047&context=ruth-arlene_howe&sei-redir=1&referer=http%3A%2F%2Fscholar.google.com%2Fscholar%3Fstart%3D10%26q%3D%2522single%2Bparent%2Badoption%2522%26hl%3Den%26as_sdt%3D0%2C26#search=%22single %20parent%20adoption%22>. This shows a lot of different views of adoption and some of the practices and issues with adoption that many people don't realize. It shows some history of adoption and its practices and the history of adoption and social work practices and its involvement in the adoption process. It basically gives a lot of different information on adoption whether it is about single parent or dual-parent adoption so you can see the differences and similarities between the two. It also talks about some of the older adoption laws and how they have changed over time and how they could change more in the future. If more people could see how the definition of what it means to be a family has changed and let go of the single parent stigma, single parent adoptions could be more predominate in society if allowed to be.

Reitz, Miriam, “Groundswell Change in Adoption Requires Anchoring by Research.” Child and

Adolescent Social Work Journal

<http://ezproxy.missouriwestern.edu:3826/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=b2e038f8-0312-48d7-9a47-6450f3fc0ba4%40sessionmgr114&vid=1&hid=110>. This article reviews changes in adoption laws in 1999. Things have changed a little since then which goes to show that times have changed and the definition of family has changed so it’s time that we make a law or change our viewpoint on single parenting so that it protects single people when it comes to them wanting to make the decision to adopt. I think it’s good to show how things were and compare them to how they are now and how they could be in the future. It could also give everyone a look at what could happen if things were changed and people were more accepting to the changing society.

Riley, Tracy. "The Adoption Authority." 

  <http://theadoptionauthority.blogspot.com/2009/04/im-not-married-can-i-still-adopt.html>.

This is a blog about adoption, so it does have a lot of different opinions in the comments and the blog writings. It does tend to lean more toward the side of being against single parent adoption which is good to show both sides but does however make it pretty biases which are needed since the argument is for single parent adoption so you want to see why people would be against. It does however give some reasons as to why someone would want to adopt when they are single but since it is a blog the information can be inaccurate and biased and cannot be fully trusted as being reliable.

Wilcox, W. Bradford, and Robin Fretwell Wilson. "Bringing Up Baby: Adoption, Marriage and the Best Interest of the Child."

 . edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi? article=1128&context=fac_pubs&sei-redir=1&referer=http%3A%2F%2Fscholar.google .com %2Fscholar%3Fstart%3D20%26q%3D%2522single%2Bparent%2Badoption%2522%2It6hl %3Den%26as_sdt%3D0%2C26#search=%22single%20parent%20adoption%22> 

  In this article it is concentrating more on what is in the best interest of the child when it comes to adoption. It does say that the ideal place would be with biological parents if at all possible or some other family member. But it also looks at the laws that are keeping some children in foster care and out of potential adoptive homes which would be what is second best to being with the biological parents. It does go over a lot of facts that compare adoption and it does say what can be good and bad about it. This would be best used to talk about positives in adoption in the best interest of a child. It brings up having one parent can be better than having no parent when it comes to a child because children need the security of a home so it gives you a lot to think about.

Changing Times and Family: Single Parent Adoption

In the fast changing times with new technological advancements and new ways of thinking in society single parenting is something that is a lot more common in today’s times then it was 15 to 20 years ago.  Most of the time when you hear of someone being a single parent whether it is male or female you think that they are single because they either had a child out of wedlock or they may be divorced or widowed.  But with these changing times and more women and men becoming independent many of them are choosing to start their family a different way than the normal way of, marry then have kids.  Many are choosing to start their career get established and financial stable then start a family.  Many of the people in that group consist of single people who are choosing to adopt children while they are single rather than waiting for the traditional route to start a family.

To start out by being honest, I can say that I do have a slight biased on this subject because I am currently a Social Work student who happens to have an older sister who is trying to do this very thing; adopt while single.  By making this a known bias I am hoping you will be able to see why I see this as a problem in the first place.  Even though there is currently no law against a single person adopting they are still met with a stigma and many a people who will approve of everything else in their life and then when they see the box checked single next to marital status they are usually shot down or moved to the bottom of the list of people waiting to be adoptive parents.
First off let’s start out with the basics and what is adoption. Adoption is a legal process which permanently gives parental rights to adoptive parents. Adoption means taking a child into your home as a permanent family member. It means caring for and guiding children through their growing years and giving them the love and understanding they need to develop their full potential.  Now after reading what it means to adopt it makes you wonder what it really means to be a family and choosing to start a family when you are single is a huge decision to make.
There are many different reason that someone many choose adoption in today’s time instead of going about starting a family the traditional way.  We will list a few of the reasons here why someone might choose to adoption while single: They have no desire to marry, but don't want to forego parenthood.
  Now I know there are many other questions that someone may have when it comes to whether or not single people should adopt that I’m not addressing but by doing that this article would turn into a book so the ones I have addressed have been taken from some of the most frequent concerns when it comes to single parent adoption.
In current times as the stigma of single parenting lessens it’s important to have an open mind and not stick to your way of thinking that all single parenting is bad and that single parenting just leads to poverty and will put a child’s welfare at risk because that way of thinking is in fact out dated for the current times.  The goal of this article is to put the thought in to adoptive parents, adoption agencies, and birth parent’s heads so that maybe a change in thought can happen and we can continue to get down to what’s important, and that’s to find good stable homes and families for these children waiting to be adopted. 
Really what It comes down to and what I really want people to think about it is in these fast changing times in society and with new definitions, meanings, and structures to family, people whose marital status is single and choose to adopt should not be discriminated against when trying to adopt a child and should have the same chances as a couple would have when trying to adopt. It only seems fair.


They might like to marry but they haven't yet married, and they're afraid they might not ever find the right man or woman. However, they do know that they want to become parents. They may be gay or lesbian, and marriage isn't an available option for them. They are divorced and don't believe they will remarry—yet they don't want to forego parenting. They are infertile and want to become parents.
They want to provide families for children who need them now and single people are more likely to adopt older children which are desperately needed.  Any number of these reasons to want to adopt are perfectly reasonable for wanting to adopt a child for anyone single or married.
Now there are two sides to every story and there are many reasons someone could give as a reason not to let single people adopt.  Some of these reasons might include things like: What would happen if the single parent were to pass away? Would the child be left alone? How can a single parent be financial stable enough to afford a child? Is a single person able to provide everything emotional and physically that a child might need? If a child is with a woman how would the child get a male influence or vice versa?
 Anyone of these questions is valid when it comes to the safety and well being of a child. So let me take the time to address some of these concerns: If the single parent were to pass away they are required to make a will as should any parent that would state who would get the child.  These arrangements would all be don’t prior to any sort of even happening.  A single person is just as capable as a dual parent family financial.  Some single people are even better off than dual parent couples. Things like financial stability are gone over with single people and adoptive agencies prior to placement of a child. A child can be just as loved and feel emotionally safe with a single parent as with dual parents.  There have been many studies that show that children with single adoptive parents do just as well as children with two parents. Many times if the single adoptive parent is a woman they do have some sort of male influence in their life whether it be a brother, dad, grandpa, or friend either way a child will get a male influence even if it’s not by the normal route and vice versa with the single adoptive males.

Why Make a Blog About Single Parent Adoption?

My whole purpose for creating this blog is to make it known that, although not illegal in most states, when single people try to adopt they have a harder time trying to do so because of there martial status.  I feel that this discrimination is stemming from the long thought stigma of single parenting being a bad thing.  I'm looking at aiming this blog towards people who are trying to adopt while single or people who have adopted while single.  With this blog I hope to bring the people who are trying to adopt single together to help support each other, offer suggestions, or just to tell their single adoption story.  I feel that if more people see that this is a problem in today's society and they get together then maybe peoples minds can be changed.  Thoughts? Concerns? Opinions? or Questions?