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Home > Glossary - O
Glossary - O
Many child welfare terms are subject to interpretation. The Glossary identifies commonly held definitions for terms that can be found on the Child Welfare Information Gateway website. It defines common acronyms and includes links to information on major Federal legislation and related child welfare terms. The Glossary will be updated as new terminology emerges in the field, as new legislation is enacted, and as child welfare terms take on new meaning.
ombudsperson
An advocate or spokesperson for a targeted group of individuals who are served by an organization to ensure that the organization's obligations, ethical duties, and rules are being followed; investigate possible illegal, unethical activities or harmful unforeseen consequences of that organization's actions; and facilitate negotiations or actions toward satisfactory solutions.
open adoption/openness
An adoption that involves initial and/or ongoing contact between birth and adoptive families, ranging from sending letters through the agency or intermediary (sometimes called semi-open adoption), to exchanging names and/or scheduling visits. The goals of openness in adoption are to minimize the child's loss of relationships, to maintain and celebrate the adopted child's connection with all of the important people in the child's life, and to allow the adopted child to resolve losses with truth, rather than the fantasy that adopted children often create when no information or contact with their birth family is available.
orphan
Under U.S. immigration law, a foreign-born child who does not have any parents because of the death or disappearance of, abandonment or desertion by, or separation or loss from, both parents. A foreign-born child is also an orphan if his or her sole or surviving parent is incapable of providing care of the child and has, in writing, irrevocably released the child for emigration and adoption. For such a child to gain immigration benefits, an orphan petition must be filed before his or her 16th birthday. An orphan petition may be filed before the child's 18th birthday if the child is a natural sibling of an orphan or adopted child and is adopted with or after that child by the same adoptive parents. [As defined by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for purposes of Intercountry Adoptions]
orphanage
Institution that houses children who are orphaned, abandoned, or whose parents are unable to care for them. Orphanages are rarely used in the United States, although they are frequently used abroad.
outcome
The anticipated or actual effect of program activities and outputs. An outcome constitutes changes or improvements in the target populations being served or the target systems being affected. The Child and Family Services Reviews incorporate the following seven outcomes in evaluating State child welfare programs: (1) Children are, first and foremost, protected from abuse and neglect; (2) children are safely maintained in their homes whenever possible; (3) children have permanency and stability in their living situations; (4) the continuity of family relationships and connections is preserved for children; (5) families have enhanced capacity to provide for their children's needs; (6) children receive appropriate services to meet their educational needs; and (7) children receive adequate services to meet their physical and mental health needs.
out-of-home care
An array of services, including family foster care, kinship care, and residential group care, for children who have been placed in the custody of the State and who must reside temporarily away from their families.
outreach
Activities to bring services or information to people in their homes or usual environments.
overrepresentation
Inclusion of a disproportionate number of observations in a target population relative to the general population. In child welfare, the term usually refers to the disproportionate number of children of color in the child welfare system. Also see racial disproporationality.
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