Children’s Administration Operations Manual Chapter 4000-Non Discrimination-Minority Affairs (http://www.dshs.wa.gov/CA/pubs/mnl_ops/chapter4.asp)

4100 DSHS NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY Children’s Administration (CA) shall comply with the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) non-discrimination policy and plan. ……

A. No person shall be subject to discrimination because of race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, creed, martial status, disability veteran or Vietnam era veteran status, disability, or sexual orientation. This policy applies to every aspect of CA programs, practices, policies, and activities, as well as to those of its contractors and licensees.

Families Like Ours, Inc. interprets this policy to cover protection from discrimination towards foster youth besides foster and adoptive families, and all adults in the areas stated in the policy. Families Like Ours, Inc. considers this policy to cover (but not limited to) the following:

• DLR-DCFS & Private Agency licensed Foster family: Foster families that can be shown to have, or are discriminating against a foster youth, foster family, current or perspective adoptive family, biological family member, or anyone on the professional team would be considered to be involution of this policy.
• Individual case aids, social workers, trainer, therapist, doctors, counselors, CASA/GAL’s, legal representative, or court commissioners that conduct work for, employed or volunteer for the purpose of, or are contracted to provide services to, or on behalf of any foster youth, foster family, adopt-foster family, biological family member, that can be shown to have, or are discriminating against a foster youth, foster family, current or perspective adoptive family, biological family member, or anyone on the professional team would be considered to be involution of this policy.
• Any private (profit or nonprofit regardless of religious affiliation and policy) agency licensed to provide foster care home study services, child placement services, contracted to provide any type of recruitment and retention services, transportation services, case aid services, or any type of therapeutic programs and services to, or on behalf of any foster youth, or current and perspective foster and adopt-foster families that can be shown to have, or are discriminating against a foster youth, foster family, current or perspective adoptive family, biological family member, or anyone on the professional team would be considered to be involution of this policy.

Violations of this policy may be subject to reporting requirements and case management by Families Like Ours, Inc.