The information in this program outline is provided by the program representative and edited by the CEBC staff. The Foster Parent College (FPC) program has been rated by the CEBC in the area of: Resource Parent Recruitment and Training.

• Types of Maltreatment: Physical Abuse, Physical Neglect, Emotional Abuse
• Target Population: Foster, adoptive, and kinship parents, as well as social workers and other mental health professionals who work with resource parents.

FPC is an online training venue for foster, adoptive, and kinship parents. Interactive multimedia courses offered through the site provide resource parents with both pre-service and in-service training on clinical aspects of and parent interventions for their child’s behavior problems. Instructional content is based on social learning theory and attachment theory. There are currently 31 courses on FPC, 15 of which address specific child behavioral and emotional problems. Course topics in the area of parenting strategies include safe parenting, positive parenting, resource parents’ marriage relationships, working with schools and birth parents, house safety, child safety and supervision, kinship care, culturally competent parenting, grief and loss in the care system, and substance-exposed infants. The first three courses in a planned series of pre-service training courses are now available, covering the topics of child abuse and neglect, the child welfare team, and parent-child attachment. Most FPC courses can be taken individually via computer or in groups via DVD. Two newer online courses are advanced parenting workshops that were designed to be conducted in a group setting, with a discussion board and homework assignments. In addition, agencies can adapt any of the self-paced individual courses for delivery as group workshops with a discussion board, adding their own homework assignments.

The goal of FPC is to strengthen agency efforts to support and retain foster parents by providing quick and easy access to expert help on specific parenting and behavioral challenges through online training.

Each individual, self-taught course on Foster Parent College:

• Is interactive and engaging, using an audiovisual multimedia learning format.
• Is taught by child welfare experts who are leaders in their fields.
• Includes a summary, a review questionnaire with interactive responses and a teaching component at the end, and a certificate of completion. Most include supplementary printable handouts.

Courses purchased on DVD include:

• The DVD, providing 30-40 minutes of interactive multimedia material.
• A Viewer’s Guide.
• A print copy of the same review questionnaire included at the end of each online course, along with an answer key. (The questionnaires can be duplicated for courses taught in a group setting.)

Foster Parent College (FPC) was not designed with a child component.

Foster Parent College (FPC) was designed with a parent/caregiver component that addresses the following presenting problems and symptoms:

• Parents of children with behavior problems or emotional disorders in foster children, including: anger, stealing, running away, wetting and soiling, sexualized behavior, sleep problems, lying, fire-setting, eating disorders, self-harm, RAD, ADHD/ADD/ODD, childhood anxiety disorders, and children with autism.

Foster Parent College (FPC) was not designed to be conducted in a group setting, and has not been tested for use in a group setting.

Recommended Intensity:

The average time it takes to complete an individual course, including completion of interactive exercises, reading handouts, and completing a review questionnaire, is 1-2 hours.

Recommended Duration:

Each course can be completed in 1-2 hours. Courses need not be completed in one session, but most people complete them in 1 or 2 days. Once purchased, courses are available to individuals for 30 days. Workshops are scheduled to be completed over a 3-week period.

This program is typically conducted in a(n):

• Adoptive Home
• Community Agency
• Foster Home

Foster Parent College (FPC) includes a homework component:

Individuals taking courses are expected to complete online interactive exercises and read printable handouts on the Web site.Workshop participants are expected to complete at least 7 of 9 homework assignments and participate in the discussion board 3 times a week for 3 weeks.

Foster Parent College (FPC) does not have materials available in a language other than English.

The typical resources for implementing the program are:

Individuals taking either the self-taught online courses or the advanced parenting workshops need a computer with high-speed Internet access and audio speakers. For agencies using the DVD version of the courses in a group setting, a single instructor or facilitator is needed, along with seating capacity for participants, a DVD player, and a large enough screen to be seen by everyone in the group.

Other options for viewing include using a projector from a laptop, or having individual laptops for everyone in the group. DVDs are also used in a lending library situation, requiring the parents to have access to a DVD player.

Practitioners accessing the online courses need to have minimal computer skills. When agencies use the course material in a group setting, the course facilitators need training and/or experience in social work or counseling with foster and adoptive families. To present the DVD version of a course, there are no minimum qualifications, although group instructional skills are desirable.

There is not a manual that describes how to implement this program; but there is training available for this program.

Training Contact:

• Laurie Coffman
  nwm@northwestmedia.com
  phone: (541) 343-6636 x100

Training is obtained:

Basic training: by phone/computer or Webinar.

Number of days/hours:

Available as needed for basic training.

Additional Resources:

There currently are additional qualified resources for training:

Northwest Media staff people can be contacted for basic training.

There are also scheduled one-hour Webinars that provide training for agencies on using the site’s management system.

Generally, agencies assign an employee to become a trainer for the Web site and provide in-agency training to other staff and support parents.

This program is rated a "3 - Promising Research Evidence" on the Scientific Rating Scale based on the published, peer-reviewed research available. The practice must have at least one study utilizing some form of control (e.g., untreated group, placebo group, matched wait list study) establishing the practice's benefit over the placebo, or found it to be comparable to or better than an appropriate comparison practice. Please see the Scientific Rating Scale for more information.

Child Welfare Outcome: Child/Family Well-Being

No reference materials are currently available for Foster Parent College (FPC).