Caregivers looking to adopt must complete approximately 24 hours of training.
This includes both agency-specific education as well as trainings through external partners. These hours are built into the process and do not need to be sought out alone. In order to remain licensed, a family must complete 12 additional training hours per year after their home study is completed.
Training Required for All Adoptive Families in Minnesota:
Two-Day Pre-Adopt Training with Children’s Home Society
This training is offered in person, hybrid, and virtually and is required in order to work with Ampersand Families. Topics covered at this training include an overview of the child welfare system, the impact of prenatal drug/alcohol exposure, grief, loss, separation, trauma, abuse, neglect, mental health needs, attachment, cross-cultural and transracial parenting, permanency needs of foster youth, concurrent planning, foster parent expectations, birth parent expectations, foster youth experiences, and maintaining connections.
Mandated Reporter Training
Caregivers licensed as foster care providers are required by law to report suspected or known child maltreatment. The Mandated Reporter training through the Minnesota Child Welfare Training Academy defines terms, creates practice scenarios, and gives guidance on what to do if child maltreatment is suspected.
Normalcy and Reasonable Prudent Parenting Standard Training
The intent of this pre-recorded training is to give caregivers guidance on how to make life as typical as possible for youth in foster placements and comply with federal law. Children and youth in foster care need to experience the same types of developmentally appropriate and social activities that their friends, families and classmates — who are not in care — experience. Federal law permits foster parents, designated corporate foster care staff and residential staff to allow foster children to participate in normal childhood activities by applying the Reasonable and Prudent Parent Standard.
- Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID) Training
- This is only required for caregivers licensed to care for youth younger than 6 years old.
- Car Seat Safety: Child and Restraint Systems (C.A.R.S.) Training
- This is only required for caregivers licensed to care for youth ages 7 and younger.
