FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                            July 6, 2005

International adoption conference comes to Massachusetts

Focus on future for international adoptees

    Families for Russian and Ukrainian Adoption (FRUA) will hold its annual conference “Focus on Education and Development:  The Future for International Adoptees” on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 in Newton, Mass. in suburban Boston.  

The conference will feature some of the foremost international adoption experts from across the United States discussing topics ranging from sensory integration to learning disabilities to attachment issues.

This year’s conference comes at a time when the international adoption picture is evolving rapidly.  The number of foreign adoptions in Russia is down considerably in 2005 compared to 2004.  At the same time, the thousands of families created through international adoption over the last decade and a half continue to chart a course through issues like child development, socialization and education.

A featured speaker at the conference is Dr. Laurie C. Miller, M.D., director of the International Adoption Clinic at the Floating Hospital, Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston.  Dr. Miller will discuss her work to study the health, growth, behavior, academic achievements and family function of a group of 8-to-10 year old children adopted from Eastern Europe as infants and toddlers.  

“We found a wide variety of outcomes and surprisingly few predictors from early life.  The results of this study will be presented at the conference,” Dr. Miller said.  “The conference is an excellent opportunity for parents of international and domestic adoptees, as well as adoption caseworkers, medical professionals, social workers and therapists.”

Karen Klein Berman, FRUA chair, said: “The mission of FRUA is to support the whole life experience of Eastern European orphan children and strengthen the families created through adoption. By giving parents and professionals access to the latest research on international adoption and the opportunity to network, our conference in Newton helps us fulfill that mission.”    

The 2005 FRUA Conference takes place at the Boston Marriott Newton.  Participants registering before Aug. 1 receive an early registration discount.  Additional details on the conference and information on foreign adoption issues is available on the FRUA Web site at www.frua.org.  

FRUA is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit, all-volunteer organization founded in 1994.  It now has  2,300 members across the United States with 39 chapters and nearly 100 alliance members.  FRUA families have adopted children from Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Belarus, the Georgian Republic, Romania, Kazakhstan and neighboring countries.

For more information, contact John Perry, FRUA Advocacy and Outreach Chair, at (517) 256-8516 or via e-mail at John@frua.org.