Family Court in Jackson County is promoting a new program that is designed to reduce the amount of time babies and toddlers spend in the foster care system.
Called Cradles to Crayons, the program aims to make sure the most vulnerable children, from birth to three years of age, move quickly through the court system and into a permanent and safe situation.
Babies and toddlers need a stable environment, said Judge J. Dale Youngs, with the 16th Circuit Court of Jackson County.
"Permanancy has a lot of different meanings," Youngs said. "It can mean adoption, reunification, placement with a fit and willing relative, guardianship, so we want to get kids out of foster care as soon as we can."
Families in the program receive extra help toward reunification, including a mentoring program and extra hearings to make adjustments to custody and visitation.
Most cases take anywhere from 18 months to two years. Cradles to Crayons aims to reduce that period to one year at most, Youngs said.