STATE HEARING SET FOR ADOPTION AGENCY

Akron Beacon Journal (OH)

Dateline: COLUMBUS

A Copley Township adoption agency will appear at an administrative hearing Monday in its attempt to keep its state license.

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services is seeking to shut down A Child's Waiting, citing numerous violations that include placing a child in an uncertified foster home and not documenting background checks.

The state notified the agency in March that it wouldn't renew its certification and planned to revoke its license.

A Child's Waiting appealed the decision and is continuing to operate pending the outcome of the administrative hearing.

Both sides are expected to present evidence.

The hearing officer will then make a recommendation to the director of Job and Family Services for a final ruling. There is no timetable for a final decision to be made.

Working Mother magazine last year named the agency as one of the nation's best 25 small companies because of its family-friendly culture.

A Child's Waiting has handled about 1,400 adoptions since it was founded in 2000.