Critical Issues in Child Welfare

Reconfigured for easier classroom use, this text begins with the issues facing at-risk children and families and then describes the intricacies of the child-welfare system and the role of protective services, family preservation, out-of-home care, foster care, adoption, and services for adolescents. New material addresses mental health and early childhood education in detail; the critical challenge of poverty and substance abuse; the importance of the community in shaping child welfare services; racial disproportionality; LGBT issues; family advocacy; emancipation; independent living; and changes to families’ legal and civil rights.