DCS Celebrates Child Support Awareness Month In August

Recognizing Annual Child Support Awareness Month could benefit more than 250,000 Hoosier Children.

(Indianapolis, Ind.) - Indiana’s Child Support Program will spread the word about its support of Hoosier families this August in recognition of Child Support Awareness Month.

The month-long celebration gives program coordinators an opportunity to provide information about services and connect with the community. The public is encouraged to celebrate by wearing something green, the official color for Child Support Awareness Month, on the Aug. 3 kickoff.

The child support program is administered by the Child Support Bureau of the Indiana Department of Child Services. Custodial parties or non-custodial parents may enroll at no cost at their county prosecutor’s office.

The Child Support Program provides a number of services to assist in getting child support dollars to families, including:

• Locating non-custodial parents
• Establishing paternity
• Establishing and modifying child support and medical support orders
• Enforcing payment of child support

“The Child Support Program is an important function of how DCS serves Hoosier families and children,” said DCS Director Terry Stigdon. “We see this month as our chance to educate the public on all the ways we can offer support.”

Approximately 250,000 families participate in Indiana’s Child Support Program, but experts estimate that’s only half the number of families that could benefit.

“There are about 250,000 additional families with a child support order in place that aren’t receiving child support services,” said DCS deputy director Adam Norman of the Child Support Bureau. “They may not know about us or how to enroll, and we hope that child support awareness month can help spread the message that we’re here to help.”

For more information about the Child Support Program, visit www.childsupport.in.gov or call the Kidsline, Indiana’s child support customer service center, at 800-840-8757.