Our Children’s Homestead
2011 - A year of success
The services we provide have grown and include foster care, foster parent training, professional and volunteer mentoring, LEAP, a Life Enrichment Alternative Program, and domestic adoption.
We are still experiencing much success with our Homestead Care program. We have effectively created a safe community in which our children and foster families can thrive. Eight families live in these homes with 26 children residing among them. This innovative approach benefits both the families and children through the community based support they receive from neighboring foster parents and OCH sponsored staff programming performed on site.
Geographically OCH serves over 60 communities in 12 counties. We are also the fiscal agent for the DuPage County LAN (local area network) contract, a group of social service agencies that serve at risk youth.
More numbers:
200 total children served
61 staff members are employed by OCH
44 new foster families were licensed this year
165 homes were active licensed foster families
13 or more is the average number of homes our children have lived in prior to coming to OCH
16 years is the average age of an OCH foster child
5% of our children are 5 years and under
53% of our children are 16 years and older
90% of our children are behind a level in school due to their prior circumstances
3-4 grade levels behind is an average for our children in school
7 children are enrolled in college
61% of our children have a Mentor
The #1 reason for children coming into our foster care program this year was due to failed adoptions, by previous adoptive homes that lasted an average of 10 years