About Post Adoption Services
Adopted children who have been abused or neglected often need help coping with the effects of abuse and the loss of their birth family.
All families of children adopted through DFPS can get post adoption services. This service is available to families along with Title IV-E and state-paid adoption subsidies from DFPS. After a child has been adopted, services are provided to help the child and family:
- Adjust to the adoption.
- Cope with any history of abuse of the child.
- Avoid permanent or long-term removal of children from the adoptive family setting.
Some of the services available are:
- Information and referral.
- Casework services and service planning.
- Parent groups.
- Parenting programs.
- Counseling services.
- Respite care.
- Residential placement services in critical need situations.
- Crisis intervention.
Availability of services is dependent on funding and the individual child and family situation.
Local Assistance
The contact information for providers, liaisons, and other types of resources on this page are organized by DFPS regions so that you can get local assistance in your part of Texas. If you don't know which DFPS region you are in, you may find your region by looking up your county. A map of Texas counties and DFPS regions is also available.
Providers
Regions 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10 including the Beaumont, Lufkin, Lubbock, Abilene, Tyler, Austin, San Antonio, Midland/Odessa, and El Paso areas
Centers for Children and Families
3701 Andrews Highway
Midland, TX 79703
(432) 570-1084 – Main Line
(432) 570-0027 – Post-Adopt Line
Region 3 including the Dallas, Ft. Worth, and Arlington areas
CK Family Services
320 Westway Place, Suite 530
Arlington, TX 76018-1000
(817) 516-9100
Region 6 including the Houston area
Arms Wide Adoption Services
6925 Portwest Drive, Suite 110
Houston, TX 77024
(713) 681-6991, 1-800-460-6298
Region 11 including the Corpus Christi and Edinburg areas
Arms Wide Adoption Services
500 N. Water Street Suite 604, South Tower
Corpus Christi, TX 78410
(361) 850-8200, 1-800-460-6298
Liaisons
| Region | Name | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Micah Smith | (806) 507-4935 |
| 2 | Brandi Sharer | (254) 631-8388 |
| 3E | Kerry Garcia | (945) 223-8627 |
| 3W | Lusheka Christmas-White | (817) 502-1412 |
| 4 | April Pride | (903) 576-7297 |
| 5 | Lindsey Welch | (409) 728-9043 |
| 6A | Dalen DiLieto | (713) 394-4290 |
| 6A | Charline Toney (backup) | (713) 394-4224 |
| 6B | Latasha Hickman | (281) 658-9891 |
| 7 (Coryell and south counties) | Bonnie Rushing | (512) 878-7646 |
| 7 (McLennan and north counties ) | Carolyn Kaparich | (254) 717-3861 |
| 8A (Bexar County) | Ana Garcia | (210) 337-3513 |
| 8B | Julie Rosario | (830) 252-4871 |
| 9 | Tanya Berry | (915) 667-1470 |
| 10 | Tanya Berry | (915) 667-1470 |
| 11 | Keisha Cox | (361) 816-4281 |
Adoption Assistance
Adoption assistance is available to many families who adopt certain children with special needs to offset some of the costs of supporting and legally adopting and supporting these children. Assistance is available to help with the child's medical and financial needs. [learn more]
Eligibility
The child and placement must meet certain eligibility requirements to receive adoption assistance.
- 6 years of age or older,
- 2 years of age or older and a member of a minority group,
- have a diagnosed handicapping condition, or
- member of a sibling group or joining a sibling in adoption.
The adoption assistance agreement must be entered into and signed before the adoption is legally complete. You will want to discuss all the eligibility and application requirements with your adoption agency.
Who can get assistance?
Assistance is available to both children in the care of the state and certain children in the care of private, nonprofit licensed adoption agencies.
Reimbursement Program
The non-recurring adoption expenses program provides a one-time payment to reimburse adoptive families for some of the costs of legally adopting children with special needs. A family's expenses may be covered as much as $1,200 for each child with special needs. Receipts are necessary to determine reimbursement. Reimbursement is only made after the adoption is completed by the court. There are other eligibility requirements, so you will want to discuss the criteria with your adoption agency.
Adoption Assistance Contacts
Lubbock Area / Region 1
Joann Moreno
(806) 742-9482
Potter, Deaf Smith, Moore, Childress, Gray, Hutchinson, Dallam, Sherman, Hansford, Ochiltree, Lipscomb, Harley, Robert, Hemphill, Oldham, Carson, Wheeler, Randall, Armstrong, Donley, Collingsworth, Parmer, Hall
Deanna Tagle
(806) 742-9491
Castro, Swisher, Briscoe, Bailey, Lamb, Hale, Floyd, Motley, Cochran, Hockley, Lubbock, Crosby, Dickens, King, Yoakum, Terry, Lynn, Garza
Abilene Area / Region 2
Cheryl Hutchinson
(940) 864-1126
Dallas Area / Region 3E
If the adoptive parent last name begins A-C, G-L, S-U and Y
Robin Jones
(214) 689-7240 office
(512) 902-2555 cell
Collin, Ellis, Fannin, Grayson, Hunt, Kaufman, Navarro, Rockwall
If the adoptive parent last name begins with D-F, M-R, V-X and Z
Kelly Mounger
(214) 689-7314 office
(512) 460-8385 cell
Collin, Ellis, Fannin, Grayson, Hunt, Kaufman, Navarro, Rockwall
Dallas Area / Region 3W
If the adoptive parent last name begins A-K
LaCarol Gilton
(817) 255-8748 cell
Cooke, Denton, Erath, Hood, Johnson, Palo Pinto, Parker, Somervell, Tarrant, Wise
If the adoptive parent last name begins with L-Z
Gloria Arredondo
(940) 247-1217 cell
Cooke, Denton, Erath, Hood, Johnson, Palo Pinto, Parker, Somervell, Tarrant, Wise
Breanna Richmond
(469) 236-0317 cell
Cooke, Denton, Erath, Hood, Johnson, Palo Pinto, Parker, Somervell, Tarrant, Wise
Tyler Area / Region 4
Paula Gipson
(936) 569-5326
Jessica Proctor
(936) 569-5429
College Tuition and Fee Waiver, Name Changes,
Attorney Set-up, attorney Reimbursement, Missing Payment,
Payee Name changes, Cancel/Reissues Forms, SS Questions,
Verification letters, Address Changes, Questions
Beaumont Area / Region 5
Jana McNeil
(936) 569-5336
Jessica Proctor
(936) 569-5429
College Tuition and Fee Waiver, Name Changes,
Attorney Set-up, attorney Reimbursement, Missing Payment,
Payee Name changes, Cancel/Reissues Forms, SS Questions,
Verification letters, Address Changes, Questions
Houston Area / Region 6
If the adoptive parent last name begins with A-C or G-L or W-Z
Tracy Johnson
(713) 394-4121
If the adoptive parent last name begins with D-F or M-R or S-V
Timiko Simonton
(713) 394-4112
If the adoptive parent last name begins with B or S-Z
Vacant
(713) 394-4119
Austin Area / Region 7
If the adoptive parent last name begins with A-L
Rebecca Castillo
(512) 834-3806
If the adoptive parent last name begins with M-Z
Raevn Works
(512) 289-7078
San Antonio Area / Region 8
If the adoptive parent last name begins with A-Esc
Bianca Elizondo
(210) 337-3375
If the adoptive parent last name begins with Esd-Ler
Bonnie Gonzales
(210) 304-3926
If the adoptive parent last name begins with Les-Rob
Maria Longoria
(210) 337-3172
If the adoptive parent last name begins with Roc-Z
Peggy Gonzales
(210) 337-3347
Midland/Odessa Area / Region 9
Jenifer Guebara
(325) 657-8961
El Paso Area / Region 10
Teresa Castrejon
(915) 521-3873
Edinburg Area / Region 11
Maria Torres
(956) 316-8128
Heart Galleries of Texas Resources
The Heart Galleries of Texas is working with 42 community partners and post-adoption service providers across Texas to provide additional supports to help adoptive families thrive and to reduce the number of adopted children returning to DFPS Conservatorship. The following array of services will be provided by these community partners and service providers:
- Support groups (caregivers, parents and teens)
- Family camps
- Counseling (individual, family, sibling)
- EMDR
- Respite
- Legal services
- Parent training
- Educational support
- Medication management
- Psycho-education
- Virtual IOP
- Parent TBRI training
- Mentoring
- Tutoring
Note: All services are not provided by every community provider. They are subject to availability within the region or county the family resides.
Resources by Region
Tuition and Fee Waiver
The Texas state tuition and fee waiver provides exemptions at state supported institutions of higher education to certain youth who were formerly in foster care, adopted youth, and youth in permanent managing conservatorship. Learn more.
Federal Income Tax Credit
Some adoptive families may be eligible for federal income tax credits that help offset the cost of adoption. Check with IRS or your tax advisor to see if your adoption qualifies.
Options available if you are unable to care for your adopted child
If you find that you are unable to continue parenting your child:
- Your first step is to contact your local post-adopt provider, listed above, or other community resources (YES Waiver Inquiry Line by County) to see whether professional intervention can help maintain your family structure. In limited circumstances, your post-adopt provider can help you in seeking the assistance of DFPS to provide out-of-home placement for your child when therapeutic or behavioral needs cannot be met in the family setting, or behaviors are too dangerous to others in the home for the child to live in the home.
Note: You must reside in Texas and have adopted directly from DFPS in order for your post-adopt provider to explore this option with DFPS. - Other legal options could include transferring legal custody to a relative or seeking a private adoption. According to Texas Family Code, §162.026 it is illegal to informally transfer the custody of an adopted child to a person, unless the person is a relative or stepparent of the child or an adult who has a significant long-standing relationship with the child, or the transfer of custody is a formal transfer of custody of the child through a court.