We provide innovative, research-based, interactive online workshops for foster, adoptive, and kinship parents.
We strive to give foster, adoptive and kinship parents the knowledge they need to raise children who will thrive in today's world.
Foster Parent College launched its online operations in 2004. It is an operating division of Northwest Media Inc. of Eugene, OR, a publisher of training materials for social services agencies. All courses for FPC are conceived and developed in-house by the Northwest Media team of researchers, educators, writers, artists, animators and programmers.
Northwest Media also produces
Vstreet.com, an online resource for teaching independent living skills to youth, and
SocialLearning.com, a clearinghouse for over 1,300 books, DVDs and games for social services professionals and caregivers.
FPC training is accepted by thousands of agencies in nearly all 50 states and in Canada, Australia and the UK. FPC is the only online resource parent training program to be rated by the California Evidence-based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare. FPC is endorsed by the Foster Family-based Treatment Association and the Canadian Foster Family Association and approved by CASA and the National Adoption Center.
Our online training is used and promoted by public and private faith-based and secular agencies throughout the world.
Foster Parent College (FPC) offers affordable research based training for foster, adoptive and kinship parents. Using the World Wide Web, the self-driven training is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Many of our training classes are also available on DVD at our website
www.SocialLearning.com.
Endorsed by over 1,000 foster care agencies, FPC courses are a convenient way to satisfy training requirements. From the comfort and safety of home, parents can enroll, complete a course, and receive a certificate of in-service training in a single session. FPC has conducted more than 80,000 online training sessions since 2005.
The programs are built using visual learning techniques, FPC courses are fun, easy and effective. Designed by nationally recognized experts in the fields of parenting, pediatrics, psychology, psychiatry, and education, FPC courses are sought after by foster care agencies and praised by caregivers.
FPC offer two types of in-service courses:
- Self-Paced Courses provide
- visual instruction
- printable handouts
- question & answer sessions with immediate feedback
- Advanced Parenting Workshops offer
- extended in-depth three-week courses
- 24/7 access for participants for the duration of the course
- community discussion board to interact with the group
- tested problem solving approaches
For licensing foster care agencies, Foster Parent College also offers a free online management system that allows agencies to assign courses, monitor progress, and supervise training. To learn more about the services provided to agencies, select the AGENCY PROGRAMS tab at the top of this page.
A great value, FPC offers training for as little as $10 per course. Parents only need access to a computer with sound, and an Internet connection.
Located in Eugene, Oregon, Foster Parent College is an operating division of Northwest Media Inc., creator of innovative social learning and educational products for youth at-risk and their parents. These include:
How is FPC funded?
Through Small Business Innovation Research grants administered through the National Institutes of Health, primarily the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the National Institute of Mental Health. We also are supported by unit sales.
Who is on the faculty?
Our courses are developed and taught by nationally recognized experts in child health, psychology and development, with the input of educators and social science researchers. To visit our faculty page,
CLICK HEREIn the workshops, are the panelists real foster parents?
No, to protect the privacy of foster parents we hire actors. Client confidentiality requires we create fictional scenarios to discuss, but scenarios are amalgams of real cases and situations our faculty face in their practices.
How often are new courses offered?
We produce 4 to 6 new classes each year.
How do you decide what subjects to develop courses for?
We research which challenges are of greatest concern to caregivers and develop curricula to address those challenges. Plus, we listen to and support agencies and caregivers.
How is Foster Parent College different from other online training sites?
Our courses are research-based and interactive and incorporate both visual and written components to enhance learning and retention. Parents can study at their convenience and work at their own pace to complete a course; however, they cannot receive a certificate of completion without actually doing the work. Our website management system allows caseworkers to assign and track their client's progress. We strive to ensure that real learning happens.
What about caregivers who don't have internet access?
Most of our courses are available on DVD, which are sold to agencies for use in their lending libraries and by their training staff.
Whose idea was this?
Foster Parent College is the brainchild of Lee White, president and co- founder of Northwest Media, Inc., Dr. Richard Delaney, and Dr. Caesar Pacifici.
For more information about Mr. White,
CLICK HERE
For more information about Dr. Delaney,
CLICK HERE
For more information about Dr. Pacifici,
CLICK HERE
