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The Foster & Kinship Care Education Program (FKCE) has been a part of SRJC since 1985. We offer training and educational resources at no cost to future and current foster parents, foster/adoptive parents, relative caregivers and foster youth.
We offer Partnership in Parenting (PIP) classes for those interested in becoming licensed foster or adoptive parents. We also provide ongoing educational support groups and conferences to assist those families that are caring for foster children and relatives.
Partnership in Parenting (PIP) classes are provided free of charge by FKCE to prospective foster parents. This course is for those interested in kinship care, foster/adopt, emergency foster care or professionals working with at-risk children. Completion of this course is required by Sonoma County in order to become a licensed foster parent.
The classes are taught by local foster youth professionals, and include guest speakers. Also present are veteran foster parents who have hands on experience and share their insight and advice with our students.
Topics covered in class include: basic child development, the child's relationship with their birth family, youth and family services and the court system, working with children who have been traumatized, building positive interactions with birth parents, sharing information with social workers and parents, and helping children return home or move to another placement. This class will largely be discussion based, with a focus on individual questions or concerns.
PIP classes meet for 22.5 hours, and are offered four times a year at SRJC. In Fall and Spring they are offered over two consecutive weekends, and in Winter and Summer they are offered on Tuesday and Thursday nights for four weeks. CPR and First Aid classes for required certification are also offered on a first-come, first-served basis, to potential foster parents who have already taken the Partnership in Parenting (PIP) classes, as space allows. CPR and First Aid are also free classes, however, the Red Cross charges $27 for a certificate and there is a $10 fee for the manual. Register through the FKCE office.
All classes are provided in both English and Spanish.
For more information about this program, contact Nick Lawrence, MA, Program Coordinator at nlawrence@santarosa.edu or by phone at (707) 535-3752 or FAX (707) 535-3753. We are located in the hallway just past EOPS, second floor Bertolini. Nick Lawrence is in 4721 and our staff are in 4723 and 4724.