A Second Chance, Inc.
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Contact Information
8350 Frankstown Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15221
United States
Online Contact Form
Pittsburgh, PA 15221
United States
| Day | Hours |
|---|---|
| Monday | 8:30 AM-4:30 PM |
| Tuesday | 8:30 AM-4:30 PM |
| Wednesday | 8:30 AM-4:30 PM |
| Thursday | 8:30 AM-4:30 PM |
| Friday | 8:30 AM-4:30 PM |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
A Second Chance, Inc. (ASCI), is a nonprofit corporation established in 1994. Its mission is to provide a safe, secure and nurturing environment to children in the care of relatives or close family friends—formally called kinship care. ASCI is the largest provider of kinship support services to all of Allegheny County, Pa., where it is also headquartered. ASCI also has contracts in Westmoreland, Fayette, Mercer and Washington counties and a large office in Philadelphia County—where it provides a full range of services to families, youth, and children in cooperation with the Department of Human Services (DHS), which considers ASCI the provider of choice for kinship-related services—serving three additional contiguous counties.
ASCI is the largest foster care provider to the Allegheny County Department of Human Services’ Office of Children, Youth, and Families (CYF). In conjunction with the courts, CYF determines the appropriate placements for neglected, abused, or abandoned children before referring these families to ASCI to stabilize the placements, license the homes according to Department of Public Welfare (DPW) requirements and ASCI’s Gold Standard 60-day certification family approval process, provide crucial support services and ensure the safety, permanency, and well-being of the children in care.
A Second Chance, Inc., is the national leader in kinship care, which is family caring for family—a natural, out-of-home placement option for children.
Services and information
- Traditional Foster Care
- Emergency Foster Care
- Respite Foster Care
- Other
Requirements to become a foster parent
You must meet minimum requirements to provide foster care in Pennsylvania. Foster parents for children in need must:
- Be a minimum of 21 years old
- Pass a criminal background check with fingerprinting
- Have time and energy to devote to fostering
- Live in a safe and healthy environment
- Prove good health through a medical examination/physical
- Maintain financial stability
- Clear all home safety requirements
- Complete required pre-service training hours
- Finish the Home Inspection
After fulfilling all requirements during the approval process, licensed foster parents can welcome a foster child into their home. To maintain a valid license, foster parents must also participate in ongoing training each year.
All adults who are living in homes with foster children in Pennsylvania must pass a required criminal background check and fingerprinting. This includes adult children who are family members living at home.
There are other, more detailed requirements for foster homes, such as having a flushing toilet and an operable phone. Prospective foster parents will learn more details during foster parent orientation.
Once you've decided to foster, you can contact a public or private foster agency or the Pennsylvania State Resource Family Association. Foster agencies screen and train prospective foster families and ensure applicants are good candidates for foster care.
Ratings and Reviews
Average user rating
4.0 / 5| 5 | |
| 4 | |
| 3 | |
| 2 | |
| 1 |
Sep 28, 2020
First time the guard was very polite, observative, and helpful. He should give lessons to other guards.
Mar 17, 2020
Words cannot express my hatred for this company. I would give no stars if I could. They are paid through CYF/federal funds. They watch you at visits. Write down everything they say/do and use it to twist out lies in court. Anything to keep your child in the system to get more $$$. My advice to anyone who has to deal with this racket is don’t talk to the transporters. I think they get bonuses for every lie they tell in the kangaroo family court. They are in cahoots with CYF and Family Court. Don’t say you have not been warned. These are evil people who only want to fatten their pockets.
In response to you asking me to contact you:
Why do I want to contact you when the damage has already been done?
Aug 16, 2019
Attempting to obtain a fingerprint card for volunteering purposes, I was treated so incredibly poorly that I was kinda gobsmacked. The guy at the desk even mocked me. It is 2.5 months later, I've not received my prints, and when I can I get the run-around. Do yourself a favor and just punch yourself in the face, then go elsewhere.
Aug 12, 2019
Terrible
Aug 12, 2019
Things started out well, but slowly became a mess. Lack of communication between transport and parents/caregivers, plus birth parent and caseworker, need to be improved if reunification is the goal. Supervision of visits by transport is a farce. We love the concept of the organization but things got rough because of lack of contact with caseworkers and birth parents. One cannot remain focused when others are biased.
Transportation is unreliable, rude, and nasty. One staff person, that was supposed to supervise and transport, fell asleep for 2 hours. The babies were being quiet so they didn't "wake him up". We took pictures and sent them to
a supervisor.