Section 315.20  Definitions

 

"Administrative case review" means a review of permanency planning open to the participation of the parents of the child, conducted by a panel of appropriate persons at least one of whom is not responsible for the case management of, or the delivery of services to, either the child or the parents who are the subjects of the review pursuant to Section 475 of the Social Security Act (42 USCA 675).  The administrative case review is also open to the participation of other professionals involved in assessing or treating the child, any legal representative of the parent or child, and the foster parents as specified in Section 316.60 (Administrative Case Reviews) of 89 Ill. Adm. Code 316 (Case Reviews, Court Hearings and Permanency Hearings).

 

"Best interest of the child" has been defined by law to include the following factors:

 

the physical safety and welfare of the child, including food, shelter, health, and clothing;

 

the development of the child's identity;

 

the child's background and ties, including familial and religious;

 

the child's sense of attachments, including:

 

where the child actually feels love, attachment, and a sense of being valued (as opposed to where adults believe the child should feel such love, attachment, and a sense of being valued);

 

the child's sense of security;

 

the child's sense of familiarity;

 

continuity of affection for the child;

 

the least disruptive placement alternative for the child;

 

the child's wishes and long-term goals;

 

the child's community ties, including church, school, and friends;

 

the child's need for permanence, which includes the child's need for stability and continuity of relationships with parent figures and with siblings and other relatives;

 

the uniqueness of every family and child;

 

the risks attendant to entering and being in substitute care; and

 

the preferences of the persons available to care for the child. [705 ILCS 405/1-3]

 

"Children for whom the Department is legally responsible" means children for whom the Department has temporary protective custody, custody or guardianship via court order, or children whose parents have signed an adoptive surrender or voluntary placement agreement with the Department.

 

"Client service plan" means a written plan on a form prescribed by the Department that guides all participants in the plan of intervention toward the permanency goals for the children.

 

"Concurrent planning" means a process whereby the Department or its service provider works toward family reunification with a family whose children has been removed from the home while, at the same time, developing an alternative plan, if reunification with the family cannot be attained.

 

"Family" means one or more adults and children, related by blood, marriage or adoption and residing in the same household.

 

"Father" means a man presumed to be the natural father of a child if:

 

he and the child's natural mother are or have been married to each other, even though the marriage is or could be declared invalid, and the child is born or conceived during such marriage;

 

after the child's birth, he and the child's natural mother have married each other, even though the marriage is or could be declared invalid, and he is named, with his consent, as the child's father on the child's birth certificate pursuant to Section 12 of the Vital Records Act;

 

he and the natural mother have signed an acknowledgment of paternity in accordance with 89 Ill. Adm. Code 160 (Child Support Enforcement);

 

he and the child's mother have signed a petition to establish the parent and child relationship by consent of the parties in accordance with Section 6 of the Illinois Parentage Act of 1984.

 

A man can rebut a presumption of paternity before a court of jurisdiction. [750 ILCS 45/5]  Father also means a man who adopts a child or has been determined by court or administrative adjudication to be the child's father.

 

"Godparent" is a person who sponsors a child at baptism or one in whom the parents have entrusted a special duty that includes assisting the child if the parent cannot raise the child.  The worker shall verify the godparent/godchild relationship by contacting the parents to confirm the fact that they did, in fact, designate the person as the godparent.  If the parents are unavailable, the worker should contact other close family members to verify the relationship.  If the person is considered to be the child's godparent, in order for placement to occur, the same placement selection criteria as contained in 89 Ill. Adm. Code 302.60 (Placement Selection) must be met.  If the godparent is not a licensed foster parent, all the conditions currently in effect for placement with relatives in 89 Ill. Adm. Code 301.80 must be met.

 

"Guardian" means an individual person appointed by the court to assume the responsibilities of the guardianship of the person as defined in Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 [705 ILCS 405/1-3] or Article XI of the Probate Act of 1975 [755 ILCS 5/Art. XI].

 

"Individual Treatment Plan (ITP)" or "Treatment Plan" as defined in 59 Ill. Adm. Code 132 (Medicaid Community Mental Health Services) means a written document developed by the appropriate service provider staff with the participation of the client with a mental illness and, if applicable, the client's guardian, which specifies the client's diagnosis, problems, and service needs to be  addressed, the intermediate objectives and long-term goals for the services and the planned interventions for achieving these goals.

 

"Individualized Education Plan/Program (IEP)" means the document prepared by the local school district, as a result of a Multi-disciplinary Conference, that identifies the specific special education services that will be provided to the child.  The IEP also includes education goals, services, frequency,  quantity and duration.  IEP is further defined in 23 Ill. Adm. Code 226 (Special Education).

 

"Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP)" means a written working document developed for each child in order to facilitate the provisions of Early Intervention (EI) services.  The IFSP is created by the family, an inter-disciplinary team, the core EI agency, and the case manager (service coordinator).  The EI agency is responsible for coordinating the IFSP implementation.

 

"Minimum parenting standards" means that a parent or other person responsible for the child's welfare is able and willing to ensure that a child is healthy and safe, which includes ensuring that the child is adequately fed, clothed appropriately for the weather conditions, provided with adequate shelter, protected from physical, mental and emotional harm, and provided with necessary medical care and education required by law.

 

"Parents" means the child's legal parents whose rights have not been terminated and adoptive parents.  Biological fathers are considered legal parents when paternity has been established as required by the definition in this Section.

 

"Permanency goal" means the desired outcome of intervention and service, which is determined to be consistent with the health, safety, well-being, and best interests of the child. A permanent legal status is usually a component of the permanency goal.

 

"Permanent legal status" means a legally binding relationship between a child and a family as established by birth or by a court of law.

 

"Rehabilitative services plan" means a written plan developed in accordance with 59 Ill. Adm. Code 132.155 (Medicaid Community Mental Health Services), which includes identification of the problems to be addressed, the rehabilitative services to be provided and the outcomes to be achieved for eligible clients served by the Department pursuant to the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, the Children and Family Services Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.

 

"Relative", for purposes of placement of children for whom the Department is legally responsible, means any person, 21 years of age or over, other than the parent, who:

 

is currently related to the child in any of the following ways by blood or adoption:  grandparent, sibling, great-grandparent, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, first cousin, first cousin once removed (children of one's first cousin to oneself), second cousin (children of first cousins are second cousins to each other), godparent (as defined above), great-uncle, or great-aunt, or

 

is the spouse of such a relative, or

 

is the child's step-father, step-mother, or adult step-brother or step-sister through a current marriage.

 

Relative also includes a person related in any of the foregoing ways to a sibling of a child, even though the person is not related to the child, when the child and its sibling are placed together with that person.  [20 ILCS 505/7(b)]

 

"Service termination planning" means service planning that starts with the first contact with the family and which focuses on providing a smooth transition from Department guardianship or custody. It includes the receipt of child welfare services to discharge from guardianship or custody and the termination of Department funded services.

 

"Substitute care" means the care of children who require placement away from their families or private guardians.  Substitute care includes foster family care, care provided in a relative home placement as defined in 89 Ill. Adm. Code 301 (Placement and Visitation Services), Section 301.80 (Relative Home Placement), care provided in a group home, care provided in a maternity center or a child care, mental health or other institution, and care provided in an independent living arrangement.

 

"Termination of parental rights" means a court order that relieves the legal parents of parental responsibility for the child and revokes all legal rights with respect to the child.  The termination order also frees the child from all obligations of maintenance and obedience with respect to the legal parents.

 

(Source:  Amended at 26 Ill. Reg. 11765, effective August 1, 2002)