• You must be 21 years of age or older.
• You must be a citizen or legal resident of the U.S. – this includes all household members.
• You may be single or married, but if you are married you must have been married for at least one year.
• In order to be eligible for services through our Houston office, prospective parents must live in one of the following counties: Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Colorado, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Walker, Waller, and Wharton.
• In order to be eligible for services through our South Texas office, prospective parents must live in one of the following counties: Aransas, Bee, Brooks, Cameron, Duval, Hidalgo, Jim Hogg, Jim Wells, Kenedy, Kleberg, Live Oak, McMullen, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Starr, Webb, Willacy, and Zapata

You can contact us or attend an Orientation. During an initial screening, we will touch briefly on the process and go further in depth during an official orientation, where we explain what is involved in becoming licensed to adopt a child through Arms Wide. We will provide you with an application and answer any questions you may have about the process. We also provide adoption preparation classes and opportunities to meet with experienced adoptive parents. Contact us and start your journey today!

During the adoption process, we ask you for information such as personal references; identification (such as Social Security and driver’s license numbers); copies of marriage licenses and/or divorce decrees, if applicable; medical history; and proof of income. We also do criminal background and child abuse checks. We know this may sound overwhelming, but Arms Wide staff makes this process as straightforward as possible.

The process takes time and there are many steps involved.  It is best to contact an Arms Wide representative for a detailed explanation of the process.  In short, we look for the best family for each child and look at which families can meet a specific child’s needs. You will be contacted about a child(ren) that you would be a good match for based on their needs and your ability to meet those needs. At that point, you will learn as much about the child(ren) as Arms Wide can share. If you are interested in the child(ren) that your family has been determined a good match for, CPS and the courts must also approve your family before a potential adoptive placement can begin.

You are involved from the beginning by expressing what types of needs you feel you would be able to support as a parent. For example, if you do not feel you have the parenting skills to parent a child with severe developmental delays or fetal alcohol syndrome, etc., you have the opportunity to disclose this at the beginning of the process in order to inform the agency’s search for a family/child match.

We follow a specific process to ensure a positive and successful adoption experience for all involved.

• You and your family will attend our pre-service training and support groups in addition to making a family “life book” or album with photos of yourselves, your home, and significant people in your lives.
• An Arms Wide Adoption Coordinator conducts a home study to learn more about you and your family.
• The child is “introduced” to your family by viewing your “life book.”
• Visits between you and the child begin with the support of an Arms Wide adoption coordinator.
• Placement occurs, papers are signed and a transitional “ceremony” marks the move from foster care to adoption.
• For at least the next six months, the Arms Wide Coordinator visits you and the child to help with the adjustment period. You may also need help from therapists and other community resources during this transition and your Arms Wide Coordinator can help you connect with the appropriate supportive resources. Once the adoption is legally finalized, your family and the child are eligible for state-contracted post adoption services until the child is 18 years old. Arms Wide offers a full continuum of care, including free, state-contracted post adoption support to ensure adoptive families have all the tools they need to be successful once the adoption has been finalized.

Because we are a 501c3 non-profit organization, Arms Wide offers our Foster Care program at no fee to you. However, there are a few minor additional expenses in ensuring your home meets minimal safety requirements.

Yes! Once the adoption has been finalized, the Arms Wide post adoption staff confirm the family is eligible for services and meet face-to-face to develop a plan of service with the family. Then the post adoption staff work to find support services that will be helpful to the family and assist with connection to other adoptive families. The Arms Wide staff in the Houston area and in the South Texas area provide a variety of post adoption services aimed at ensuring the long-term success of all adoptive families. At Arms Wide, our compassionate staff are prepared to guide you toward the resources most needed for your family.

Yes, Arms Wide’s Post Adoption / Post Permanency staff recognize the importance of avoiding potential language barriers when services are delivered. There are English/Spanish bilingual staff serving families in the Houston area and in the South Texas area. The dedicated staff at Arms Wide will work with post adoption and post permanency families to find therapeutic community services, regardless of the family’s preferred language.

Any family who has an adopted child under age 18, who was in the custody of  Texas’ foster care system administered by DFPS at the time of the adoption and whose adoption has been legally finalized is eligible for post adoption services. A family who meets this criteria but has moved out of state after the adoption was finalized is also eligible for post adoption services.

Yes! We know that the completion of the court process is not the end of the road for families. To be successful, families who are granted PMC of a child/ren from DFPS are eligible to receive ongoing support, guidance, and resources until the youngest PMC child turns 18 years old. All services are provided without cost to the PMC family. Services are available in English and Spanish.

Post Permanency support may be provided to a family that lives in designated counties, has been appointed PMC of a child from DFPS, may or may not be a recipient of Permanency Care Assistance and the youngest child (PMC) is under age 18.

Because we are a 501c3 non-profit organization, Arms Wide offers our Post Adoption and Post Permanency services at no fee to families who qualify for them.

• You must be 21 years of age or older.
• You must be a citizen or legal resident of the U.S. – this includes all household members.
• You may be single or married, but if you are married you must have been married for at least one year.
• In order to be eligible for services through our Houston office, prospective parents must live in one of the following counties: Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Colorado, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Walker, Waller, and Wharton.
• In order to be eligible for services through our South Texas office, prospective parents must live in one of the following counties: Aransas, Bee, Brooks, Cameron, Duval, Hidalgo, Jim Hogg, Jim Wells, Kenedy, Kleberg, Live Oak, McMullen, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Starr, Webb, Willacy, and Zapata

Every situation is different. It is up to the family applicant and the matching process.

If the child is legally free for adoption, meaning that their birth parents’ rights have been terminated, foster parents may be considered for adopting their foster children. Your Arms Wide Coordinator will help advocate for you, but the decision is ultimately made by CPS and the judge.

Many families are interested in both fostering and adopting and understand that the children’s needs come first. In most cases, this means helping prepare children for reunification with their birth family or working toward a relative or kinship placement. Dual certification of parents to both foster and adopt speeds up the placement process, reduces the number of moves a child makes, and allows relationships to evolve with the initial placement process.

Yes! Adoptive families who are willing to accept placement of children who are not yet legally free for adoption but have a plan for adoption can also become certified as foster families. This dual certification increases the opportunities for successful adoptions.

Yes! This is the hallmark of our program. Arms Wide foster families have access to their respective coordinator 24 hours a day, including weekends. It is our belief that our foster parents should not be alone on this journey, and providing support is crucial to the care and well-being of our children. Arms Wide Coordinators speak to their respective parents weekly and see the children at least once a month.

Because we are a 501c3 non-profit organization, Arms Wide offers our Foster Care program at no fee to you. However, there are a few minor additional expenses in ensuring your home meets minimal safety requirements.