State again seeks to shut local adoption agency

By Rick Armon

Beacon Journal staff writer

State regulators again are seeking to shut down an adoption agency in Copley Township.

A Child's Waiting ran afoul with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services last year for child-welfare violations but was permitted to stay open as part of a settlement agreement.

The agency now has violated terms of that deal and should lose its certification, state spokesman Brian Harter said.

Among the findings:

• The agency took on three additional cases when not permitted.

• It failed to submit required monthly reports for children in its custody.

• Owners Jennifer Marando and Crissy Kolarik didn't step away from daily operations as required.

Job and Family Services notified the business last month that it planned to revoke the agency's certification, which would shut down the agency. A Child's Waiting successfully filed an injunction in Summit County Common Pleas Court this month, blocking the move.

The agency argues in the injunction that the state has failed to live up to the settlement and has conducted ''unlawful investigative activities.'' It doesn't detail those activities.

A Child's Waiting also is seeking at least $25,000 in damages.

The agency's attorney could not be reached for comment.

The state Attorney General's Office is handling the case.

''This case involves an adoption agency that is unwilling or unable to keep track of the children within its care,'' state attorneys wrote in response to the injunction.

A Child's Waiting got into trouble with regulators last year after amassing numerous violations, including placing a child in an uncertified foster home and not documenting background checks. At the time, the state said the violations also included a pattern of sloppy paperwork in the adoption process.

The state sought to close the agency, but the two sides reached the settlement. The agreement allowed A Child's Waiting to make the transition from an agency that has custody of children to one that only facilitates adoptions.

Rick Armon can be reached at 330-996-3569 or rarmon@thebeaconjournal.com