Ariel Clinical Services is dedicated to finding permanent, loving families for infants and children and works diligently to support all those who are involved in the adoption process. We help find forever families for children in foster care through our public or “Waiting Child” adoption program. We also facilitate private newborn adoptions and provide free, caring and supportive counseling and support to birth parents and expectant parents who are considering adoption for their infants.

Ariel Clinical Services believes that there is no single definition of “family.” We are proud to offer our domestic adoption services to everyone 21 or older, regardless of marital status, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnic background, home ownership, income or education. We believe that all qualified families should be able to adopt and that fees should not be an impediment to becoming a parent. We are dedicated to providing families with the highest level of service for the most affordable fees.

We do not do international adoptions.

Adoption Programs

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Ariel is a licensed adoption agency. We can facilitate Private Adoptions or Public Adoptions. Public adoptions are when children are in foster care and their parents have had their rights terminated. Private adoptions are when a birth mom comes to Ariel and chooses to relinquish her rights.

The Home Study, or Structure Analysis Family Evaluation (SAFE), is the assessment tool that Colorado uses to determine if a family is appropriate to do foster care and/or adopt. lt includes individual and joint interviews, interviews with all other members of your household and an inspection of your home. A home study is required for every family who will foster or adopt a child.

First step is to schedule a meeting to start the application process please fill out the form here. Talk to others who have adopted and start preparing your home.

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Adoption Programs

Ariel offers two ways to build your family through adoption- Private Adoption and Public Adoption.

Private Adoption Program

Ariel Clinical Services offers a full-service, private infant adoption program for families who are interested in adopting infants or very young children. In this program an expectant parent or birth parent selects an adoptive family for her child. Birth families choose adoption because they love their children and realize that they are not ready to be the kind of parent they want to be at this time in their lives. We encourage both birth parents and adoptive parents to thoughtfully consider what they are seeking, and then we work with them to develop a plan to meet their unique needs.

There are two types of infant adoption– Traditional and Designated. In the Traditional Infant Adoption Program, the birth parents and the prospective adoptive parents are not previously known to each other before coming to Ariel for services. In the Designated Program, the birth parent has identified a specific family with whom she wishes to place her child. Ariel can also help facilitate an Interstate Adoption if either the birth parent or adoptive family lives outside Colorado.

Considering adoption for your child? Learn more about the process at our Birth Parent Decision Making page.

Private Adoption FAQ

After you become certified and create a profile you wait for a birth mother to choose you as the family she wants to relinquish her rights to. Once chosen we walk the remainder part of the journey with birth mom. After delivery you take the child home and an Ariel worker visits monthly. Birth parents go before a judge to complete relinquishment of their parental rights and after six months we petition the court for adoption.

Once you are chosen and have the child in your home, the child is required to be in your home for six months to ensure attachment, development and well-being. After six months we petition the courts for an adoption hearing.

Each adoption is different. At Ariel, we work hard to keep our costs extremely competitive. Our goal is to make families. The basic expenses include up-front payment for the home study and licensing. Additional costs are incurred after the birth mom has chosen your family. Please make an appointment with us to discuss this option and learn more about the costs to determine whether this is the right decision for you.

Public Adoption Program

Through our Public or Waiting Child Adoption Program we help children and youth in the child welfare system find permanent, loving families. Approximately 400,000 children are in foster care in the United States right now. Of these, more than 100,000 will not be able to return to home and are waiting for families to adopt them. These children have been removed from their homes due to high-risk situations such as abuse, neglect, or abandonment. Ariel Clinical Services works with the Department of Human Services (DHS) to place these waiting children in adoptive homes that can meet their needs. The children are of all ages, ethnicities and backgrounds and may have special emotional, behavioral, developmental or medical needs. Many of the children are waiting for adoption with their siblings, looking for families who will keep them all together.

Please check our Adoption Process page for more information about what you can expect. Or see our FAQ below to view some of the most common questions we receive from adoptive parents.

Public Adoption FAQ

Most children in foster care are placed with the intention that their stay in foster care will be temporary. The hope is always that children can safely return to their birth parents or birth relatives when possible. In many cases however children do not have a safe alternative in their birth family and that is when the adoption from foster care can happen. The process to adopt from foster care must be carefully considered with the long- term well- being of the child always in the forefront. It can be very tenuous at times for the foster parents and the process requires patience and the ability to accept that a child you love may go to another birth family member if one is found. It can be very heart wrenching but so heartwarming if you can become the forever family to a child in need. It’s an incredible gift.

The process to adopt through foster care is unpredictable and it is hard to give an estimation of how long it will take. At a minimum, the child has to be legally available to be adopted (meaning that the birth parents rights have been terminated) and the child has lived with your family for at least six months. Depending on the situation of the particular child it may take up to a couple of years to complete the whole process. For younger children (five and under) there are laws to expedite the court process to one year. In this situation the courts understand that securing a stable family for young children is critically important for their development.

There are no costs to adopt from foster care. You are paid a foster care stipend until they are adopted. Once adoption is final each county has different policies in regards to adoption assistance and Medicaid.