 September 16, 2022 Vol 2, Issue 15
30 Days to Family
30 Days to Family® is a program created and developed by the Foster and Adoptive Care Coalition. It is an intense, short term intervention with the goal of placing children with their relatives as soon as possible after they enter care. In this program, intensive family finding is done at the beginning of a case, rather than the end, which makes it more likely that a child will find permanency.
30 Days to Family® services begin at the protective custody hearing. Immediately afterwards, the Specialist begins to search for relative placement options for the child by creating a family tree, finding relative placement options and supports, running background checks, doing walkthroughs, explaining the licensing process to relatives, and sharing placement options with the Family Support Team. Once child is placed with the identified relative, the Specialist helps the child stay connected to their relatives and natural supports who want to remain in relationship with the child.
If you are a foster parent who has just received a new placement, please reach out to your caseworker about making a referral to 30 Days to Family®.
Visit fosteradopt.org to learn more.
Trainings & Events
Spaulding Adoption Class
- September 23 & 24 (Friday and Saturday) 9am-4:00pm through Central Missouri Foster Care and Adoption Association. Call 573-298-0258 to register.
- December 9 & 10 (Friday and Saturday) 9am-4:00pm through Central Missouri Foster Care and Adoption Association. Call 573-298-0258 to register.
Ready, Set, Fly training
- September 14 (Wednesday) from 9am-4:00pm through Central Missouri Foster Care and Adoption Association Call 573-298-0258 to register.
CPR/FA Classes offered by CMFCAA
All classes are from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Please call 573-298-0258 to register.
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September 9th
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Boone County
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Columbia Office
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September 17th
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Cole County
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United Way Office
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October 7th
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Boone County
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Columbia Office
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October 22nd
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Phelps County
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Location TBD
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November 3rd
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Boone County
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Columbia Office
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November 19th
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Callaway County
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Location TBD
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December 10th
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Cole County
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United Way Office
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December 17th
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Phelps County
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Location TBD
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On-Demand Learning
You can access a ton of great classes that have been offered by Raise the Future at your convenience. The site is geared for adoption but there are many things about trauma and other issues many kids face.
Events
Little Wishes Program
The Foster & Adoptive Care Coalition’s holiday Little Wishes program helps ensure that children impacted by foster care in the St. Louis region have happy holiday memories! Here is the process:
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The Coalition sends out the holiday Little Wishes catalog in late September. The catalog features a wide variety of gift options such as arts & crafts kits, toiletries, clothes, Lego sets, dolls, electronics and more and will be sent by USPS mail and email to all foster/adoptive/guardianship families in the St. Louis area.
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Caregivers (or case managers in some circumstances) request 1-2 gifts per child by October 15. Caregivers will need their coalition assigned ID number to register by or before October 15 to request gifts for children in their care. Registration is offered online, but if needed, can be done by phone October 7th or 13th. Contact your case manager for assistance.
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The Coalition and KSDK 5 On Your Side work together to raise the funds to purchase the gifts and mail the gifts directly to the child's home between November 10 and December 23.
Missouri Adoption Information Class - September 29 from 7pm-8:00pm, FREE
This class is designed to provide a basic overview of adoption in Missouri for anyone considering adoption. The focus will be on foster care adoption, but the session will briefly cover all types of adoption. This class is led by Raise the Future and provides an opportunity for families interested in adoption to learn more about the process.
If you are planning to attend, please register EACH individual. Due to the sensitive nature of the material being discussed, it is recommended that children are not present during this webinar.
Peer Kinship Support Group- Second Tuesday of Each Month, 5:30 - 6:30 pm
This support group is for reflection, self-care, and connection and is offered through ParentLink and the University of Missouri.
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ParentLink's WarmLine
ParentLink’s WarmLine is your direct access to family strengthening information and support. Visit with professionals who can assist you in thinking through solutions to your parenting concerns, access ParentLinks loan library of parenting materials, and obtain community service and other resource information. WarmLine professionals have their Masters Degrees in human service fields such as Human Development and Family Studies, Social Work, and Education and Counseling Psychology.
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Foster Family Mentors
Are you in need of help or assistance as a Foster Parent? We have Foster Care Ambassadors who are seasoned Foster parents willing to mentor other foster parents- new or existing - and for all types of foster families (traditional, relative, emergency, respite, or elevated needs). If you are interested, please email FosterCare@dss.mo.gov and we will connect you with a Foster Care Ambassador.
What is ACI?
Access Crisis Intervention (ACI) provides access to services for individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis. ACI will provide an opportunity for individuals to receive necessary behavioral health crisis services in an effort to reduce unnecessary interventions such as hospitalization or detentions. By calling the ACI hotline, individuals have access to behavioral health crisis services that are free and available to both youth and adults.
- All calls are strictly confidential.
- ACI hotlines are staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by behavioral health professionals who are available to provide assistance.
- Assistance may include phone contact, referrals to resources in the community, next day behavioral health appointments, or a mobile response. Mobile is defined as either going to the location of the crisis, or to another secure community location.
To learn more about ACI and to find your local number please visit this link and click on ACI Hotline Numbers by County Map: Access Crisis Intervention | dmh.mo.gov.
Psychotropic Medicine 2022 Annual In-Service Training
A Memo was published about the annual one (1) hour annual in-service training for 2022 for Psychotropic Medicine. This memorandum introduces the resource providers’ annual in-service training (B170) entitled “Understanding and Managing Trauma Symptoms without Medication." The purpose of this training is to improve trauma education and provide non-medication strategies as one pathway to reduce or eliminate the need for psychotropic medications to manage trauma symptoms.
Successful completion of training will require the licensed resource provider to pass the quiz with a score of 80% or more. Licensed resource providers can locate the annual in-service training 2022 (B170) on the Resources for Professionals & Stakeholders or on the Information for Foster Parents web page. When the training is complete, the licensed resource provider will be required to obtain a screen shot of the quiz completion score, create an email that includes their name, date and B170 code number and send the e-mail to the resource licensing worker.
We want to hear from you! If there is information you would like covered in the next Foster Parent Connections Newsletters email, Melissa.J.Selsor@dss.mo.gov.
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