St John's University Conference

Hope to see many of you at the St John's University Conference

Open Arms, Open Minds:

The Ethics of Adoption in the 21st Century

October 14-16th 2010

(Thursday evening to Saturday afternoon)

The 6th Biennial Adoption Conference will be held at:

St. John’s University in Manhattan.

The conference will take place in lower Manhattan at

St. John’s University
Manhattan Campus
101 Murray Street
New York, NY 10003

 I will be presenting on the 16th: "Defining Ethics in Domestic and Global Adoption Practice."  See full program here.

You can register at the door.

This is the sixth, biennial adoption conference at St. John’s University. Our first conference in 2000 was entitled, “The Adoption Journey: Psychological, Socio-Political, and Legal Challenges”; the second conference in 2002 focused on “The Lifelong Adoption Journey: Through the Eyes of the Adopted”; the 2004 conference was entitled, “The Dynamics of Adoption: A Three-Way Mirror;” the 2006 conference focused on “Families Without Borders? Adoption Across Culture and Race”; and the 2008 conference was entitled “Identity and the Adopted Teen: Surviving the Crucible of Adolescence.” In keeping with our goal to create conferences that address adoption themes relevant to the training of mental health professionals as well as to the personal growth and understanding of adoption triad members themselves, our sixth conference will focus on issues related to ethics of adoption in the 21st century.


The 2010 conference theme will highlight emerging changes in the practice of adoption since the start of the new century. The topics presented will include consideration of ethics and also address openness (or the lack thereof) in adoption. We are particularly pleased to include attention to issues of  search and reunion, third party reproduction adoption and openness to contact with donors and surrogates, GLBT adoptees and/or parents, contact between foster care providers and adoptive families, and clinical issues with various members of the triad, and open records legislation and adoption reform.