Alliance Course Catalog

Did you know more than half of children’s car seats are installed incorrectly? The car is a dangerous place for a child to be, but there are many resources that can help ensure you’re following all safety and legal guidelines. This brief eLearning for DCYF staff is the perfect spot to start, helping you select, fit and install the correct seat each time you need to transport a child. You will find an overview of basic requirements and Washington state laws as well as real-world installation examples and tips. The course is full of useful, surprising facts – the appropriate time to transition a child out of a booster seat might surprise you! You will also find links to many outside resources for more in-depth information.

Caregiver Core Training (CCT) is the mandatory training for Washington State’s caregivers to become licensed. Caregiver Core Training can be taken two ways – online or in the classroom.

If you prefer to use a self-paced, online eLearning, please consider the general guidelines for online trainings listed below, and then scroll down to Registration Instructions and click the link to start the online course.

If you prefer to take the course in a classroom (conducted at various locations around the state) click this link to register.

Both the online and classroom training cover the same critical content.

Each participant must register separately: if a couple plans to complete the training together, each member must still register and go through the online course individually.

CCT Online Version

The 24-hour Caregiver Core Training is made up of eight sessions (each about three hours long) and a field experience, which can be completed at any point during the online portion. There is also a mandatory coaching session after the online portion is completed.

Session 1: Introduction to the Child Welfare System
Session 2: Working as a Member of a Team
Session 3: Working with Birth Families
Session 4: Cultural Connections and Advocacy
Session 5: Growing Up with Trauma, Grief, and Loss
Session 6: Understanding and Managing Behavior
Session 7: Communication and Crisis Management
Session 8: Getting Ready and the Effects on the Caregiving Family

Field Experience: Participants learn outside the classroom by choosing an activity that will give them more awareness of the experience of children within the system or of the role of a caregiver for children in the system. The Field Experience will be approved if it occurs within one year prior to the participant beginning CCT, both in the classroom and on-line versions of Caregiver Core Training.

The sessions are designed to help you understand how the system works, what your role is as a member of the team, how to effectively work with birth families in order to best support the child, how caregiving may impact your own family, child development and the impact of trauma, all about attachment, how to incorporate and honor a child's culture into your own family, and more.  The sessions include the voices of former foster youth, current caregivers and birth parents who have been involved with the system.

Each session includes resources and additional information. Here are the handouts that will also be provided in each session.

You have one year to complete the course including the online training, field experience and coaching call. We will let the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) Licensing Division and the foster care Recruitment and Retention Contractors in your area know about your progress through the course so they can offer you additional support if needed. We don’t track or share any information about how you responded to activities or quiz questions within the online training. We simply want to make sure you have the support you need to complete the training.

CCT online general guidelines

The online version works best for people who:

• Have regular access to a tablet, laptop, or desktop computer
• Are comfortable with technology
• Don’t mind reading on a screen
• Have high-speed internet access that allows them to participate in the online course and play videos

If this isn’t for you, or if you start the course online and then change your mind, you are always welcome to take the classroom version of CCT instead. Click here to register.

This 6-hour in-service training for caregivers provides a foundation for caregiving and behavior management for children in out-of-home care who struggle with physically aggressive behaviors.  Participants will explore the potential impacts of trauma and maltreatment on attachment, behavior and development as well as the risk factors for violent behavior in children.  Participants will closely review the newest Washington Administrative Code (WAC) related to discipline and will contrast principles of positive discipline and punishment. Skill building will focus on creating a plan to prevent a crisis; the various forms aggression may take and how to look for signs of when a child is agitated or escalating; how to intervene during a crisis; and how to manage ongoing or explosive aggressive behaviors via teaching coping skills and Collaborative Problem Solving.  Local resources and supports for the youth as well as the caregiver are discussed.

This 6-hour in-service course will prepare caregivers to work with children with sexual behaviors concerns and create an environment to keep the child and other household members safe. Participants will explore values and beliefs before reviewing typical child sexual development and the impacts of trauma, abuse and neglect on development and behaviors. Participants will explore how sexual abuse can impact development, self-image and the household supporting them. After reviewing typical sexual development, participants will learn how different experiences and circumstances may lead to sexual behavior concerns and how to intervene and respond safely. Caregivers will learn their role in promoting health sexual development, positive messaging, prevention education, the importance of establishing house rules and other ideas to maintain safety for the whole household.

This is the first in an eight-part training series focusing on “Caring for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma.” Over the entire course, you will work through what trauma is, how it affects children and those around them, and how you can support the child and yourself.

Part 1 is an introduction to the concept of trauma as an underlying factor in the challenging behaviors of some foster children. You will get a look at “real world” examples of situations in which a child’s trauma is manifesting in different ways. You also will be guided through the “Essential Elements of Trauma-Informed Parenting,” tools you may find helpful immediately. When you are done you will be able to describe trauma-informed parenting and its benefits, which will set you up for success as you move forward in this course.

Part 3 of the “Caring for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma” series walks you through the profound impact trauma has on a child’s development and functioning.

At the start of the class, you will engage in an exercise that sheds light on how the brain receives information about danger. This puts you in a mindset to understand how the brain can be shaped by trauma. The training ties this to how a child’s development can be affected at different ages and what impact trauma can have on behavior.

There are many things you can do as a resource parent to help children overcome trauma and build new pathways in their brains. In this class you will learn about the “Invisible Suitcase,” and how trauma-informed parenting can help “repack” it in a positive way.

Part 5 of the “Caring for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma” series dives into deeper discussions about the relationship between trauma and psychology.

In this session you will be introduced to the Cognitive Triangle, a tool that helps with recognition of the connection between thoughts, feelings and behaviors. You will discuss how trauma affects these aspects and why a child who has experienced trauma may act out.

You also will spend a lot of time talking about your role as a resource parent and how you can help, through understanding the child’s needs. You have the opportunity to build new, positive experiences that can help reshape the brain and support the child’s development of emotional skills.

Part 7 of the “Caring for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma” series broadens the discussion about trauma to look at your role within the team of people involved in the child’s life.

Trauma-informed advocacy involves many of the same aspects as trauma-informed parenting – once you understand the latter you can work toward sharing this perspective with other people who are supporting the child. During this training you will talk specifically about what this looks like, and engage in a role-play scenario that will support your skill building and interactions with the child’s team.

In this session you also will discuss the times when you may need to seek additional help for the child in your care. You will look at the behaviors that point to a need for therapy, and how you can support this by seeking trauma-informed treatment and evaluating that treatment in an ongoing way.

Many children in foster or kinship care have a history of exposure to trauma. Caring for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma: A Workshop for Resource Parents (RPC) Session 1 is a 4 module, 6 hour focused topic training which includes nine case studies of representative foster children from the ages of eight months to 15 years, as well as cases of secondary traumatic stress in parents.

Many children in the foster care system have lived through traumatic experiences.  Understanding how trauma affects children can help you make sense of your child’s sometimes baffling behavior, feelings and attitudes.  Once you understand why your child behaves the way he or she does, you’ll be better prepared to help him or her cope with the effects of trauma.  In this workshop, you’ll improve your ability to communicate with your child, learn skills and techniques to influence your child’s behavior and attitudes, and learn ways to reduce the stress of parenting a traumatized child.  The goal of this workshop is to make you a more effective resource parent, and to enable you to have more of the positive experiences that make being a resource parent so worthwhile.

Session 1 is a 4 module, 6 hour training, including:

• Module 1: Intro on Trauma Informed Parenting
• Module 2: Trauma 101
• Module 3: Understanding Trauma’s Effects
• Module 4: Building a Safe Place

This 6 hour focused training for caregivers provides an in-depth exploration of secure attachment and challenges to attachment as well as building caregiver skills to enhance attachment with children in out of home care.  

This two-day in-service training delivered by webinar will prepare new CFWS caseworkers and experienced CFWS caseworkers who wish to improve their practice to engage parents and families from the point of transfer or case assignment. Participants will learn how to make the most of the first meeting and monthly visits with the parent in building a working relationship geared toward safe reunification and timely permanency. Participants will explore engaging children and caregivers during monthly visits, best interest considerations and permanency planning. Participants will be provided tools to improve the quality of court reports in addressing policy requirements and good practice.

A pre-requisite to the webinar training is the Permanency Considerations (eLearning). Participants must register and complete this eLearning prior to the webinar.

This eLearning primarily features a video of a popular Child Protection Medical Consultation (MedCon) presentation for Regional Core Training. The video showcases two respected and well-known child abuse pediatricians, Dr. Rebecca Wiester and Dr. Joyce Gilbert. Dr. Wiester and Dr. Gilbert discuss important aspects of Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse, and Neglect within the context of their expertise as child protection medial consultants.

Viewers are walked through recognizing sentinel injuries; understanding Abusive Head Trauma and its connection to the Period of PURPLE Crying; identifying when to seek medical consultation, how to submit a referral, and what information to provide; and how to locate important county protocols and policy resources online. Viewers will also be provided with a helpful Notes Worksheet, which will guide them through capturing important information needed in practice, and to pass the quiz at the end. This eLearning also provides a Facilitator Guide and can be viewed either individually, or facilitated for a small group viewing.

Coaching sessions are utilized to enhance a learner’s specific skill attainment in an identified area of practice.  Coaching sessions are provided to Children’s Administration workforce to help workers attain specific skills pertinent to their daily work/practice in child welfare.  Identified goals are created and progress towards those goals is measured by both the learner and the coach after each session. 

Ad Hoc field based coaching topics include:

Tasks such as AFCARS, redaction, case closure, and entering ICWA/NAIR information into FamLink, filing of documentation into case files.

Coaching sessions are utilized to enhance a learner’s specific skill attainment in an identified area of practice.  Coaching sessions are provided to Department of Children, Youth, and Families workforce to help workers attain specific skills pertinent to their daily work/practice in child welfare.  Identified goals are created and progress towards those goals is measured by both the learner and the coach after each session. 

Assessments (Functionality and Content) field based coaching topics include:

Content and FamLink functionality in completing the Investigative Assessment (IA), Family Assessment Response Family Assessment (FARFA) and Comprehensive Family Evaluation (CFE); understanding the use of the gathering questions to assess for child safety; identifying and utilizing protective factors and protective capacities for safety and case planning; understanding timeframes for each assessment in the different program areas; service referrals and the use of EBP’s.

Coaching sessions are utilized to enhance a learner’s specific skill attainment in an identified area of practice.  Coaching sessions are provided to the Department of Children, Youth and Family's workforce to help workers attain specific skills pertinent to their daily work/practice in child welfare.  Identified goals are created and progress towards those goals is measured by both the learner and the coach after each session.

Assessing for Child Safety throughout the Life of the Case field based coaching topics include:

Assessing for present danger/impending danger; applying the Child Safety Framework; understanding the 17 safety threats and how to plan for present danger with protective action plans and safety plans in cases with identified impending danger; how to make appropriate collateral contacts; interviewing of children, parents/caregivers and all adults in the home; using medical consultation (Med-Cons); scheduling and preparing for appropriate case staffings; using Structured Decision Making (SDM) to help assess risk in cases and reassessing child safety throughout the life of the case.  

Coaching sessions are utilized to enhance a learner’s specific skill attainment in an identified area of practice.  Coaching sessions are provided to Department of Children, Youth, and Families workforce to help workers attain specific skills pertinent to their daily work/practice in child welfare.  Identified goals are created and progress towards those goals is measured by both the learner and the coach after each session. 

Permanency (Timeline/Case Planning /Case Management) field based coaching topics include:

Permanency timelines; permanency from day one; engaging with families to co-create case plans; setting safety objectives; measuring progress versus compliance in cases; transition planning for children; knowing when to file for Termination of Parental Rights (TPR); understanding the court process and when to change permanency plans; understanding the adoption process; understanding parent/child visitation plans (supervised, monitored, etc.); understanding reasonable efforts versus active efforts for ICWA cases.

Would you like more compassion in your life? In your parenting? For you? For your children? This training is for you!

Discover what compassion really is, how it starts by being compassionate with ourselves and see the positive results with our families and others.

You’ll hear about and learn the roadblocks, hurdles and challenges that often prevent this kind of parenting and discover ways to move through them so you, and your children, win!

Topics include:

• Separating the children’s behavior from who they are
• How to not take what they do or say personally
• Being compassionate with ourselves supports positive results with our families
• Learn the roadblocks, hurdles, and challenges of this type of parenting and how to move through them.
• The role self-esteem plays in all of us

You’ll learn real world concepts that work!

This course provides information on the service contract process and the role of Social Workers, Fiduciaries, Program Managers, and Contract Managers. Participants will learn how to identify what types of services do and do not require contracts, how to determine if a contract is already in place, how to access contracted providers appropriately, how CA Contract Managers develop contracts and the Social Worker’s role in the process, as well as the process for paying for contracted services through FamLink.

If you are a current licensed foster parent and have an expired CPR certificate and need to obtain recertification this course is for you. The course is a blended online course with two parts – an online eLearning and a skill based in person class. The CPR/First Aid online course provides the knowledge needed when dealing with the range of problems that can arise from minor everyday instances such as cuts and headaches to the more serious emergencies such as allergic reactions, heart attacks and strokes. Once you have completed the online eLearning, the final part is the skill evaluation with an instructor where you will get to apply and practice the techniques you have learned. A certificate will be issued once both parts are successfully completed and will be valid for two years.

You must be a current Washington State licensed foster parent to take this course.

PLEASE NOTE: Each participant MUST REGISTER SEPARATELY in order to receive their certification.  If a couple or group plans to complete the training together, each member must still register and go through the online course individually. You must be logged in and on the course page to see the registration button.

• ProFirstAid: CPR + First Aid for All Ages (eLearning) - 4.5 hours

ProFirstAid is a blended training where students complete an online course for CPR, First Aid, and AED usage and then later schedule a skill evaluation with an instructor. Once the instructor has confirmed a passing score, the student will receive their electronic CPR Certification card via email with an option to request a physical copy mailed to them within 7-10 business days. CPR certification is valid for 2 years.

• ProFirstAid: CPR Skills Evaluation - 1 hour

Note: Due to limitations for classroom trainings related to COVID-19 public health considerations, the CPR skills evaluation is currently on hold per DCYF. Those seeking their recertification for their expired CPR certification may complete the CPR eLearning and submit their certificates for licensure. Once the CPR skills assessment is opened back up, you will be required to return here to complete the skills assessment to be re-certified in CPR.

CPR and First Aid Recertification for Foster Parents follows the latest American Heart Association and ECC/ILCOR guidelines and is nationally accredited.

The eLearnings are available in English or Spanish.

For years society has encouraged colorblind ideology without taking into consideration the impact this has on People of Color.  Through video, interactive activities and discussion of the research, participants are challenged to examine implicit bias, stereotype threat and its effect on cross cultural relationships and ethnic/racial identity development.  As a result, participants deepen their appreciation of challenges facing People of Color, grow in self-awareness and learn ways to mitigate the impact.

Objectives:
Participants Will…

1. Engage in courageous conversations;
2. Deepen their understanding of implicit bias and stereotype threat;
3. Learn strategies to mitigate the impact of implicit bias.

This training is presented by Cultures Connecting, LLC. Cultures Connecting, LLC was founded in 2008, providing culturally relevant professional development, keynote addresses, consulting and coaching services to organizations seeking to improve their staffs’ ability to effectively work with diverse cultures. 

Owners, Caprice D. Hollins, Psy.D., and Ilsa M. Govan, M.A., have over 30 years combined experience researching race related topics, designing curriculum, and facilitating culturally relevant professional development workshops.