A Full-Service Agency
Adoption
Ascentria is a full-service, licensed nonprofit adoption agency serving children and families since 1872. We offer services for birth mothers and adoptive parents.
Why Choose Ascentria Adoption Services?
When you choose Ascentria as your adoption agency, we will accompany you every step of the way.
Our Services
✓ Domestic Adoption
✓ Birth Parent Services
✓ Waiting Child Adoption (Department of Children Families Foster to Adoption)
✓ Home Study & Post-Placement
Getting Started
✓ Download an information packet
✓ Contact our adoption specialists
✓ Schedule an Adoption Information Meeting
✓ Learn about domestic and waiting children adoption options through our free meetings.
Call 508.580.6716 to schedule an appointment or
I'm Pregnant
If you are considering adoption for the child you are expecting, we have the understanding, compassion and experience needed to help you craft a plan that meets your needs.
I'm an Adoptive Parent
Ascentria Adoption is proud to connect adoptive parents to valuable resources.
I Want to Adopt
There are thousands of children in need of adoption across the United States, especially within the foster care system. Consider fostering to adopt.
Domestic Adoption
Infant Adoption
Ascentria is a full-service infant adoption program. We prepare prospective adoptive families through counseling and the home study process, and we assist birth parents in planning for the care of their unborn children. When adoption is the plan, we help birth parents select the family who will parent their child.
We encourage birth parents and prospective adoptive families to meet before the birth and determine together the extent of their ongoing contracts.
We can help you fulfill the legal requirements of Identified Adoption, in which prospective adoptive parents and expectant birthparents are matched. Many of our families network with friends and family to identify a birthparent who may wish to make an adoption plan.
In most instances, the newborn infant is placed in the care of the adoptive family upon discharge from newborn hospital care, and the adoption is finalized within six to eight months.
Children placed through the Ascentria infant adoption program are usually healthy newborns of Caucasian, African-American, Hispanic, or multiracial parents.
When you complete a home study and the approval process, your family profile is entered into the Ascentria pool of approved families and you’ll have an equal opportunity to be selected by any birth mother seeking a home for her child.
The wait for a placement may range from a few days to several months, or even a couple of years.
Relative, Step Parent and Co-Parent Adoptions
Ascentria Adoption Services is happy to help families complete relative, step-parent, and co-parent adoptions. In accordance with the laws of your state of residence, a home study, with supporting documentation such as police and protective services clearances, is generally required.
We can assist you every step of the way toward the legalization of your parent-child relationship, as in step-parent and co-parent relationships, and in fostering new family bonds in the adoption of infants related to the adopting family.
Depending on your needs, services may include:
- Counseling
- Termination of parental rights of the birthparents, if necessary
- Post-placement reporting, where required
- Preparation and submission of court documents and attendance at the finalization hearing.
Fees and requirements in adoptions vary from state to state.
We are happy to collaborate with any licensed placement agency of your choice in providing home study, adoption education, post-placement support and finalization services.
Home Study and Post-Placement
Ascentria’s Adoption staff provide comprehensive, compassionate case management that extends well beyond the time a child is placed in your arms. We believe in offering you choices and opportunities.
In addition to pre-adoption counseling, home study, and post-placement support services that fulfill the requirements of adoption programs everywhere, we offer ongoing support in many areas. These include parent preparation seminars, monthly pre-adoption support groups, and post-adoption services, such as adult discussion groups, seminars, activities for children and teens, and family social events.
All adoptions require that direct services, such as training, home study and post-placement services, be completed by a local state-licensed agency. Ascentria Care Alliance is licensed for the placement of children in Massachusetts.
Massachusetts residents may choose Ascentria home study and post-placement services with Ascentria domestic adoption programs or those of any qualified out-of-state agency.
Our staff will collaborate with the child-placing agency of your choice to prepare your home study and provide post-placement reporting to comply with legal requirements.
Come in and talk with us to consider available adoption resources. We can help you devise the best adoption plan for your family.
Whether Ascentria works with you from start to finish or serves you in cooperation with another agency, you have our commitment that we will do our best for you.
If You Are Pregnant
If you are considering adoption for the child you are expecting, we have the understanding, compassion and experience needed to help you craft a plan that meets your needs.
Birth Parent Services
When facing unplanned pregnancy, you confront some of the toughest decisions you will ever make…
What is the best plan for you?
What is the best plan for your baby?
Could adoption be the answer for both you and your baby?
We have the understanding, compassion and experience to help you craft a plan that meets your needs. Send us a text or call us from your cell phone: 774.275.4402 or contact us.
How We Help
If you decide to parent, we will help you get the services you need. If you decide on adoption, we will guide you through the process and support you after.
You don’t have to come to our office. We could meet you in a place that feels more comfortable, or chat by email or phone.
Whether you are certain adoption is for you or just want to learn more, we are here to help.
How Adoption Works
1. Talk With Us
When you contact us, our professional staff will answer your questions, listen to your concerns, and provide the information that will enable you to move forward.
Even if you live outside New England, don’t hesitate to contact us. We are happy to speak with you via phone or email and are usually able to arrange local assistance for you through partner agencies.
2. Meet With Us
Our meetings are confidential, non-judgmental and sensitive to your needs. We help you cope with feelings. We provide you with useful information about the social, emotional and legal aspects of adoption. Then, if you choose, we help you to make an adoption plan that best suits your needs and those of your baby. We guide you to available resources that help carry out your plan.
3. Select an Adoptive Family
If you choose adoption for your child, you may also choose to:
- Select your child’s adoptive family from among families who have been pre-screened and approved for adoption by our staff
- Meet your child’s adoptive family
- Receive periodic visits, pictures and updates as your child grows
We help fulfill your plan by introducing you to families who meet your chosen criteria.
4. Birth and Beyond
The birth of your child is a challenging time, and so is the time after you leave the hospital. You can rely on your Ascentria representatives for support before, during, and after your hospital stay.
If You Have Adopted
Ascentria Adoption Services has partnered with the Evan B. Donaldson Institute in New York and the Kinship Center in California to answer this question: “How can we help children who have been transracially adopted form a healthy identity?”
Based on a study conducted by the Evan B. Donaldson Institute entitled “Beyond Culture Camp,” these organizations collaborated in designing a curriculum for families to use during the critical period when children form their identities.
This curriculum is well-informed, comprehensive, and based on research and analysis conducted by top people in the field
The Post Adoption Resource Center (PARC) offers comprehensive services to all adoptive families in need. PARC provides support groups and educational services, including online articles and resources. These resources come from trusted experts in the field of adoption.
The following websites provide articles, books and videos on a range of adoption topics, including parenting, education, older child adoptions, transracial adoptions, development and attachment.
- Adoptalk Articles & Publications – North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC)
- Introduction to Adoption – Child Welfare Information Gateway
- Downloadable Adoption Handouts – Adoptive Families Magazine
- Pact’s Resource Library – Pact: an adoption alliance
- Adoption Resources – Center for Adoption Support & Education (CASE)
- Education, Research & Publications – Evan B. Donaldson Institute
- Adoption Resources – Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota
- Celebrate National Adoption Awareness Month
Adoption in Schools
- Parenting Your Adopted Preschooler – Child Welfare Information Gateway
- The Great Back-To-School Kit – Adoptive Families Magazine
- Oil & Water: The Attachment-Disordered Child & School – Lawrence Smith, LCSW-C, LISCW
Adoption and Therapy
- Would Adoption Counseling Be Helpful to Your Family? – Moses Farrow, LMFT
- Choosing Adoption Therapist – MN Adopt
- Selecting and Working with A Therapist Skilled in Adoption – Child Welfare Information Gateway
Waiting Child - Foster to Adopt
Ascentria offers a full range of adoption preparation and support services to families wishing to adopt waiting children available through the State Child Welfare system.
Ascentria is a contracted agency for the Department of Children and Families to provide Massachusetts Approach to Partnership in Parenting (MAPP) training, home study and matching services for families that would like to adopt through the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF).
These children often have special mental, physical, or emotional needs stemming from a history of neglect or abuse. The children’s ages may range from toddlers to 18 years old. They may be Caucasian, Hispanic, African-American or of mixed racial background, sibling groups, or children whose permanent placement involves legal challenges. Placements are made in cooperation with DCF, and in most cases fees are paid by DCF.
Once you have completed the adoption training, home study, and approval process, you will be registered with Massachusetts Resource Exchange (MARE) as a family approved for placement of a child/children with special needs. We assist in networking with agencies to locate a child who is a suitable match for your family. The wait for placement depends on the needs of the children available for adoption and your ability to meet those needs.
Steps in the Process
Inquiry
Discuss with a social worker your interest in becoming an adoptive parent. We will answer any questions and help you get started. You can also attend an informational session.
Application
Ascentria will send you an application upon your request. Complete the form and return it to the agency. Ascentria will process your application, which includes running a background check. (BRC/SORI)
Safety Check
Your home must pass physical standards to ensure that your household is a safe environment for a child. A social worker will visit your home to complete your safety check.
Massachusetts Approach to Partnership in Parenting (MAPP) Training
You will be invited to attend a training program. You will learn about the needs of waiting children. The training covers topics like communication, building self-esteem, child guidance and understanding behaviors. Ascentria holds MAPP training four times a year on Saturdays. The training is 30 hours.
Home Study
A social worker will visit your home, interview your family, and request personal, medical and employer references from you. Applicants complete fingerprint checks.
Following the visits and reference checks, the social worker prepares a home study document. Once your home study has been completed and approved, your family becomes licensed.
Placement
Placement decisions are based on the ability of your family to meet the needs of a particular child or sibling group.
Ascentria provides child adoption assessments, home studies, and case consultation to the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families.
