Information Meeting
Here is what you need to do to make a MAJOR difference in a child's life through foster care:
You will need to attend an information meeting in your area where you can discuss the scope and requirements of being a foster or adoptive parent.
You will get basic information and questions are welcome. Your local DFPS office will furnish you with this information if there are no informational meetings in your area.You do not need an appointment. Find free foster care and adoption information meetings in your Texas area.
Preparation and Selection
If you can meet the basic requirements, you are invited to meet with DFPS staff to decide if fostering or adopting is right for your family. You will also be assessed by DFPS staff. This process furnishes you with information about DFPS and the children who come into the foster care system.
*Keep in mind you can also align yourself with a Child Placement agency (CPA) and they will explain and walk you through each step
Training
You will attend training (PRIDE) to learn more about the children available through DFPS and to assess your strengths in parenting children. The classes also boost your knowledge and confidence to meet the challenge of taking children into your home and to be sure you are ready to follow through on the commitment.
What is PRIDE?
Child Protective Services (CPS) recognizes that 16 hours of pre-service training for foster parents is insufficient. Therefore, CPS requires potential foster parents to attend Parent Resource Information Development Education (PRIDE) as part of the family’s required pre-service training.
Texas PRIDE is a 35-hour competency-based training program that is co-trained by an agency staff member and a foster or adoptive parent. PRIDE provides prospective foster families with base knowledge of information on caring for children in the child welfare system. PRIDE covers topics such as child attachment, loss and grief, discipline and behavior intervention, effects of abuse and neglect, sexual abuse, working with the child welfare system, and the effects of fostering and adopting on the family.
Through collaborative efforts with the Texas Alliance, a statewide advocacy organization that represents many private CPA’s in Texas, DFPS has made PRIDE available to private CPA’s.
Additional Training Requirements
The state minimum standards require that prospective foster families also complete the following trainings or certifications, which are not part of the PRIDE curriculum:
Universal precautions training
Psychotropic medication training
Certification in both First Aid and infant/child/adult CPR
*Learning 4 Life Training Consultants provides these trainings (excluding PRIDE) which are accepted by DFPS.
State minimum standards also require that verified foster homes receive annual in-service training. Depending on the number of foster parents and the needs of the children in a foster home, the annual training requirements range from 20 hours per family to 30 hours per foster parent.
Family Home Study
A caseworker will visit you in your home. The purpose is to discuss your personal history, family interests and lifestyle, childcare experiences, the types of children you feel would best fit in your home, and your strengths and skills in meeting the children's needs.
Source: https://www.dfps.state.tx.us/Adoption_and_Foster_Care/Get_Started/steps.asp
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