Timing of Permanency Exits from Out-of-Home Care

Using DSHS data for children entering out-of-home care for the first time between 2001 and 2007, this study examines how children’s involvement in the dependency court process is related to the timing of reunification, adoption, or guardianship in Washington State. The study found that dependency court involvement varies considerably across the state and that this, in turn, influences variation in the median length of time to reunification within the Children’s Administration’s regions.