Definitions – The following words and phrases, for purposes of this Part, shall have

Definitions – The following words and phrases, for purposes of this Part, shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly otherwise requires: 1. “Relative” (as it relates to Foster Care) means an adult who is related to a child or half-sibling of the child through blood, marriage, or adoption. 2. “Fictive Kin” (as it relates to Foster Care) means a person not related to the child legally or biologically but who is considered a relative due to a significant, familial-like and ongoing relationship with the child and family, including adults related beyond the third degree, godparents, friends of the family, or other adults who have a strong familial bond with the child. 3. “Relative/Fictive Kin Foster Home” means the home of an individual or family: a. Has received a license that permits a relative of the child to be approved as a relative/fictive kin foster parent and to receive reimbursement for the care of a child under the age of eighteen (18), or under the age of twenty-one (21) if the youth is attending school, vocational courses, or technical training and who entered foster care prior to their 18th birthday. This home could be either an expedited or child-specific home. i. Expedited Home – An Expedited Home is for licensing relative caregivers and court ordered non-relative placements to enable a child to be placed quickly with relatives/court ordered non-relatives upon entering foster care. The process shall take place in two steps, as an emergency process that enables a child to be placed with relatives as soon as the child enters placement, following an initial screen of the relative’s home and a full licensing process, to be completed no later than 90 calendar days after the child entered placement. ii. Child Specific Home – A home that is licensed for a specific child with a recommendation from MDCPS or the Youth Court with jurisdiction. This could include children from the Heart Gallery or children who are legally free for adoption. 4. “Home Study” means the process by which a family and their home are determined to be a suitable placement for a child for the purposes of temporary foster care or adoption. a. The Child Welfare Gateway assigns three purposes to the home study process: i. Educate and prepare the family for placement; ii. Evaluate the fitness of the family; and iii. Gather information that will help match the family with a foster child/youth whose needs the family can meet.