Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in Tennessee

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in Tennessee | InmateAid

Tennessee's **Relative Caregiver Program (RCP)** was built on a principle that the state has stuck with since 2001: children do better when they stay with family.

The RCP launched a **stipend program in 2023** for qualifying relative caregivers -- grandparents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters -- who take custody of children their biological parents cannot care for. In 2024, the Tennessee legislature expanded the program by lifting the income cap and making other changes to reach more families. Year-to-date through September 2024, the state had paid out approximately **$7.2 million** to help **2,275 children**. Of those children, only 33 had to enter state custody.

DCS's executive director of legislation and rules told lawmakers: "It's actually a really successful model in keeping those kids from coming into state custody."

Tennessee's TANF program is called **Families First**. For grandparents who have a Power of Attorney from the incarcerated parent and are relatives of the child, the **Families First Child Only Grant** through DHS may be available monthly. Apply at your local DHS office or through the One DHS Customer Portal at onestop.tn.gov.

Tennessee's Medicaid is called **TennCare**. Children in kinship care generally qualify based on income.

The child abuse hotline operates 24/7: **(877) 237-0004**. If you have any concerns about a child's safety, call it.

You did not plan for this. You raised your children. You got to the other side of it. And then your child was incarcerated and the grandchildren needed somewhere to go. You said yes.

The Decision You Already Made

You already made the hardest decision. The grandchildren are with you. Everything else in this article is about making that workable.

A few things to understand about your position in Tennessee right now:

If you are caring for grandchildren in a private arrangement with no DCS case: the Relative Caregiver Program is your primary support pathway. Contact your regional RCP provider (see below). Also apply for the Families First Child Only Grant, TennCare, and SNAP through your local DHS office or onestop.tn.gov.

If DCS placed the grandchildren with you (DCS has legal custody): ask your DCS Family Services Worker about kinship foster care, the Subsidized Guardianship Program, and what financial assistance applies to your situation.

Get a notarized parental POA from the incarcerated parent through TDOC (Tennessee Department of Correction) notary services. Contact the facility case manager. The POA strengthens your eligibility for the Families First Child Only Grant and enables school and medical authority.

Contact your regional RCP provider directly. They serve families whether DCS is involved or not.

Tennessee's Relative Caregiver Program (RCP)

The Relative Caregiver Program has been Tennessee's core kinship support structure since 2001. It is operated by contracted providers in regions across the state.

**Who qualifies for RCP:**

- Related within the first, second, or third degree to the parent or stepparent of the child

- Child is under the relative caregiver's primary care, control, guidance, and supervision

- The child's parent does NOT reside in the caregiver's home

- Income limit: historically 200% of the Federal Poverty Level (2024 legislation expanded qualifying caregivers -- verify current income threshold with your regional provider)

**What RCP provides (for families not already receiving kinship payments or subsidies):**

- Emergency one-time financial or start-up assistance

- Youth and teen support groups

- Educational workshops

- Referral services

- Caregiver and respite enrichment

- Caregiver support groups

- Help understanding and applying for TANF (Families First) and SNAP

- Assistance locating important child-related documents

**The Relative Caregiver Stipend:**

Launched in 2023 and expanded in 2024 after the legislature lifted the income cap. The stipend program reimbursements go to qualifying relative caregivers who have taken custody of children whose parents cannot provide care. The 2024 data showed $7.2 million paid to help 2,275 children with only 33 entering state custody -- a demonstration that keeping children with family keeps them out of the formal system.

**Contact your regional RCP provider:**

- **Hamilton County / Southeast Tennessee**: 1-866-735-8752 (Southeast Tennessee Area Agency on Aging and Disability)

- **Upper Cumberland Region**: 931-476-4123 (Upper Cumberland Development District)

- **Northwest and Southwest Tennessee**: 731-694-5860 (Wo/Men's Resources and Rape Assistance Program -- WRAP)

- **South Central Region**: 615-943-3822 (The Center for Family Development)

- **Mid-Cumberland Region**: 615-340-9725 (Family and Children's Services)

For other regions and updated contacts: tn.gov/dcs/program-areas/prevention/relative-caregiver.html or kidcentraltn.com.

Legal Authority: What It Is and How to Get It in Tennessee

**Power of Attorney**

A notarized parental POA from the incarcerated parent gives you authority for school enrollment and medical care. TDOC facilities have notary services -- contact the facility case manager. With a POA and a qualifying relative relationship, you may be eligible for the Families First Child Only Grant through DHS.

**Legal Custody (Juvenile Court or Circuit Court)**

Legal custody through Tennessee court gives you the rights and responsibilities to care for the grandchildren long-term. Biological parents can be ordered to pay child support when custody is awarded to a grandparent.

West Tennessee Legal Services (wtls.org; 1-800-372-8346) provides free civil legal help in West Tennessee. Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (tals.org) connects income-eligible Tennesseans to local legal aid programs statewide.

**Guardianship**

Guardianship through Tennessee court creates a legal relationship giving the grandparent legal authority over the child.

**Subsidized Guardianship (Title IV-E)**

Tennessee has an approved Title IV-E Subsidized Guardianship Program for children exiting the child welfare system to guardianship when reunification and adoption are not feasible. Contact your DCS Family Services Worker about eligibility.

**Kinship Foster Care (DCS Cases)**

If DCS has legal custody, grandparents can become the kinship foster parent by completing foster parent training, a home study, and background checks. As a kinship foster parent, the child lives with you and DCS along with the Child and Family Team makes decisions about medical care and education.

**Adoption**

Adoption permanently terminates the biological parent's parental rights. Tennessee DCS can provide information on adoption assistance.

Money: What Tennessee Offers Kinship Caregivers

**Families First Child Only Grant (TANF)**

Tennessee's TANF program is called Families First. For grandparents who have a POA from the incarcerated parent and are relatives of the child, the Families First Child Only Grant provides monthly cash assistance. The grandparent's income is not counted for child-only grants.

Apply at your local DHS office or through the One DHS Customer Portal at onestop.tn.gov.

**Relative Caregiver Stipend**

For qualifying relative caregivers who have taken legal custody of children (not receiving other kinship payments). Launched 2023; expanded 2024. Contact your regional RCP provider.

**Emergency One-Time Financial Assistance (RCP)**

Available through the Relative Caregiver Program for families who are not already receiving kinship payments or subsidies. Income must not exceed twice the federal poverty guideline. Contact your regional RCP provider.

**TennCare (Tennessee Medicaid)**

Children in kinship care generally qualify for TennCare based on income. Apply through DHS. TennCare covers doctor visits, dental, prescriptions, mental health services, emergency care, and vision.

**SNAP (Food Assistance)**

Apply through your local DHS office or onestop.tn.gov. The grandchildren's presence increases your household food benefit.

**Child Care Certificate Program**

Assists Families First (TANF) participants and non-parental guardians in the Families First program who meet work/training requirements. Apply through the One DHS Customer Portal at onestop.tn.gov.

**Subsidized Guardianship (DCS Cases)**

Monthly financial assistance for grandparents who become guardians of children exiting DCS foster care. Contact your DCS Family Services Worker.

**Social Security**

If the incarcerated parent was working before arrest, the grandchildren may be eligible for Social Security dependent benefits. Call 1-800-772-1213. SSI may be available for grandchildren with disabilities.

Tennessee's Geographic and Regional Reality

Tennessee is 480 miles wide from Memphis to Bristol -- nearly the widest state east of the Mississippi. Memphis (Shelby County, southwest). Nashville (Davidson County, central). Knoxville (Knox County, East Tennessee). Chattanooga (Hamilton County, southeast). The Tri-Cities (Johnson City, Kingsport, Bristol -- far northeast Appalachian).

The RCP's regional structure reflects this geographic reality. Five provider regions serve different parts of the state. The contacts listed above connect you to your regional provider.

TDOC prisons are distributed across the state: Riverbend Maximum Security Institution (Nashville), Tennessee Prison for Women (Nashville), Northeast Correctional Complex (Mountain City, Johnson County -- far northeast Appalachian Tennessee), Bledsoe County Correctional Complex (Pikeville, Bledsoe County -- southeast Tennessee). For a Tri-Cities family visiting Northeast Correctional in Mountain City: about 45 minutes east. For a Memphis family visiting Northeast Correctional: about 8 hours.

Tennessee's opioid crisis hit hardest in East Tennessee's Appalachian counties -- Sullivan, Hawkins, Claiborne, Carter, Johnson Counties. The kinship care numbers in that region are tied directly to prescription and synthetic opioid devastation that preceded incarceration by years. The Northeast Tennessee regional RCP contact covers these communities.

The School Question

With a POA, legal custody, or guardianship, school enrollment in Tennessee is straightforward.

Without legal authority: use the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Tennessee schools must immediately enroll children in unstable housing situations, including children living with relatives due to a parent's incarceration. Ask the school district's McKinney-Vento liaison.

For children with IEPs, you will need legal authority or signed parental authorization from the incarcerated parent to participate in planning meetings. TDOC facilities have notary services -- contact the facility case manager.

Tennessee has a specific duty to report child abuse and neglect. If you have any concerns about a child's safety: **(877) 237-0004** (24/7).

Medical Authorization Before Court Paperwork Is Done

Get a notarized parental POA from the incarcerated parent through TDOC notary services. Contact the facility case manager.

Apply for TennCare for the grandchildren through your local DHS office or onestop.tn.gov. TennCare enrollment does not require legal custody.

What She Is Carrying That He Cannot See

You did not plan for this stage of your life. The grandchildren arrived and with them came school forms, doctor appointments, someone to be home, someone to sit with a child who is afraid.

Tennessee's opioid crisis changed this state's kinship landscape. In East Tennessee's Appalachian communities, in Memphis's urban neighborhoods, in the rural counties of West Tennessee -- the path from addiction to incarceration to a grandparent's door has played out at scale. The RCP's 2024 data showing only 33 of 2,275 children entering state custody is a testimony to what grandparents do.

You are also carrying your feelings about your child who is incarcerated. Those feelings do not have to resolve. You can love your child and be furious. You can hope for the release and fear what comes after.

The RCP caregiver support groups, the Knox County Grandparents as Parents Program, the Tennessee State University Cooperative Extension's resources for grandparents -- these communities of other grandparents doing what you are doing exist in Tennessee. Contact your regional RCP provider to find them.

Talking to the Grandchildren About Where Their Parent Is

The children know something is wrong. Silence does not protect them.

Use honest, age-appropriate language. For a young child: "Your dad made a mistake and he has to stay somewhere else while he learns from it. You are safe and I am here." For an older child: "Your mom is in prison. She did something against the law and a judge decided she needs to be there for a while. She loves you. She is not in danger."

Do not make promises about when the parent will be home that you cannot keep. Let the children have their feelings. Keep the parent present in appropriate ways: photos, letters, phone calls.

TDOC phone calls go through ICS Corrections / GTL. You control which numbers are approved. The grandchildren's relationship with their incarcerated parent is theirs.

TennCare covers mental health services for children. If the grandchildren are struggling, ask the school counselor for a referral or the child's TennCare primary care provider.

Your Relationship With Your Incarcerated Child

Your feelings about your child are complicated. You are raising their children because they cannot. Both things are true.

What the grandchildren need: to see that you are not punishing their parent through them.

What you need: a place to hold the complicated feelings that is not in front of the grandchildren. The RCP caregiver support groups, a therapist, a pastor, a trusted person -- any of these is better than carrying it alone.

What to Do First: A Practical Checklist

Contact your regional RCP provider. The five regional numbers are listed above; find yours at tn.gov/dcs/program-areas/prevention/relative-caregiver.html.

Get a notarized POA from the incarcerated parent through TDOC notary services. Contact the facility case manager. The POA enables school/medical authority and strengthens Families First Child Only Grant eligibility.

Apply for the Families First Child Only Grant, TennCare, and SNAP at your local DHS office or onestop.tn.gov.

Apply for the Child Care Certificate Program if you are working: onestop.tn.gov.

If DCS has an open case: contact your DCS Family Services Worker about kinship foster care, the Relative Caregiver Stipend, and Subsidized Guardianship eligibility.

Start the legal custody or guardianship process. Contact legal aid: West Tennessee (1-800-372-8346; wtls.org) or statewide (tals.org for local legal aid referrals).

Enroll the grandchildren in school using the POA. Use McKinney-Vento if needed.

Connect with the RCP caregiver support groups in your region.

Take care of yourself. The support is there. Call your regional RCP provider.

FAQ

**What is Tennessee's Relative Caregiver Program (RCP)?** Tennessee's primary kinship support structure for grandparents and relatives raising children whose parents cannot care for them. Launched 2001; stipend program launched 2023; expanded 2024. Provides emergency financial assistance, support groups, educational workshops, respite, referrals, and help applying for TANF and SNAP. Operated by contracted providers in five regional areas. Find your regional contact at tn.gov/dcs/program-areas/prevention/relative-caregiver.html.

**What is the Relative Caregiver Stipend?** Monthly reimbursements for qualifying relative caregivers who have taken legal custody of children whose parents cannot provide care. Launched in 2023; 2024 legislation expanded the income cap to include more families. As of September 2024, the program paid ~$7.2 million to help 2,275 children. Contact your regional RCP provider to apply.

**What is Families First?** Tennessee's TANF program. The Families First Child Only Grant provides monthly cash assistance; grandparent income is not counted for child-only grants. Grandparents with a POA and a qualifying relative relationship may be eligible. Apply at your local DHS office or onestop.tn.gov.

**What is TennCare?** Tennessee's Medicaid program. Children in kinship care generally qualify based on income. Covers doctor visits, dental, prescriptions, mental health services, emergency care, and vision. Apply through DHS.

**What is the Subsidized Guardianship Program?** Tennessee's approved Title IV-E Subsidized Guardianship for children exiting the DCS child welfare system to guardianship when reunification and adoption are not feasible. Contact your DCS Family Services Worker for eligibility.

**Can I enroll my grandchildren in school without legal authority?** Yes. Under McKinney-Vento, Tennessee schools must immediately enroll children in unstable housing situations including those living with relatives due to a parent's incarceration. A notarized POA from the incarcerated parent through TDOC provides more comprehensive enrollment authority. Ask the school district's McKinney-Vento liaison.

**How do I talk to the grandchildren about their parent being in prison?** Use honest, age-appropriate language without promises about when the parent will be home. Let the children have feelings. Keep the parent present appropriately -- photos, letters, TDOC phone calls through ICS Corrections/GTL. TennCare covers children's mental health services; ask the school counselor or primary care provider for a referral.