Creating A Family

CREATING A FAMILY IS THE NATIONAL ADOPTION & FOSTER CARE EDUCATION AND SUPPORT NONPROFIT. OUR MISSION IS TO STRENGTHEN FOSTER, ADOPTIVE, AND KINSHIP FAMILIES AND THE PROFESSIONALS WHO SUPPORT THEM BY CREATING EXPERT-BASED, TRAUMA-INFORMED RESOURCES, COMMUNITY SUPPORT, AND TRAINING. OUR VISION IS THAT EVERY ADOPTED AND FOSTER CHILD HAS A FAMILY WHO UNDERSTANDS THEIR UNIQUE STRENGTHS AND CHALLENGES AND IS EQUIPPED TO HELP THEM THRIVE.

IN 2020, CREATING A FAMILY WORKED TO CREATE, PILOT AND TEST THE NEW INTERACTIVE TRAINING & SUPPORT FOR FOSTER/ADOPTIVE/KINSHIP FAMILIES SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE. TEN CURRICULA WERE DEVELOPED IN 2020 AND OFFERED TO THE PUBLIC IN 2021. DURING 2021 AN ADDITIONAL 10 CURRICULA WERE DEVELOPED. IN 2022, 5 MORE CURRICULA WERE DEVELOPED. THE INTERACTIVE TRAINING & SUPPORT CURRICULA PROVIDES RESOURCES AND WRAPAROUND SERVICES WITH THE GOAL OF INCREASING THE NUMBER OF PARENT SUPPORT GROUPS AVAILABLE TO FAMILIES BY MAKING IT EASIER TO FACILITATE AND MAINTAIN HIGH-QUALITY GROUPS WHERE PARENTS DEVELOP SOCIAL CONNECTIONS, REDUCE STRESS, AND FEEL MORE CONFIDENT IN PARENTING CHILDREN EXPOSED TO TRAUMA. EACH CURRICULUM INCLUDES A VIDEO, FACILITATOR GUIDE, AND HANDOUTS. THE WRAPAROUND SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE HAS INITIAL FACILITATOR TRAINING FOR ONLINE OR IN-PERSON GROUPS, ACCESS TO PARTICIPANT EVALUATIONS, AND ACCESS TO A CURRICULUM LIBRARY THAT INCLUDES 25 TOPICS FOR FOSTER, ADOPTIVE, AND KINSHIP PARENTS. DURING 2022, 280 CURRICULA WERE UTILIZED BY 25 ORGANIZATIONS.

IN 2022, CREATING A FAMILY CREATED AND PILOTED FOUR PRENATAL EXPOSURE TRAININGS. THESE TRAININGS WERE DESIGNED TO HELP PARTICIPANTS RECOGNIZE CHILDREN WHO MAY HAVE BEEN IMPACTED BY PRENATAL EXPOSURE TO ALCOHOL AND DRUGS AND TRAIN THEM ON BEST PRACTICES FOR WORKING WITH THESE CHILDREN AND YOUTH TO HELP THEM THRIVE. THE FOUR TRAININGS WERE FOCUSED ON THE FOLLOWING GROUPS: * K-8 TEACHERS * DAYCARE/PRESCHOOL STAFF * AFTERSCHOOL STAFF * FOSTER, ADOPTIVE, AND KINSHIP PARENTS THE TRAININGS WERE CONDUCTED OVER THREE SESSIONS, EACH LASTING 1.5 HOURS. WE CREATED A VIDEO FOR EACH SESSION OF THE FOUR TRAININGS-SO, IN TOTAL, 12 VIDEOS. THE VIDEOS INCLUDED EMBEDDED VIDEO INTERVIEWS WITH EXPERTS FROM UNC'S KNOWLES CENTER FOR ALCOHOL STUDIES, DUKE UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES, THE FULLERTON GENETICS CENTER, AND FOSTER PARENTS WITH LIVED EXPERIENCE RAISING CHILDREN WITH PRENATAL SUBSTANCE EXPOSURE. WE ALSO EMBEDDED ANIMATED VIDEOS THAT WE CREATED TO HELP EXPLAIN AND ANIMATE COMPLEX CONCEPTS. EACH SESSION WAS LED BY OUR STAFF FACILITATOR AND INCLUDED EXTENSIVE GROUP PARTICIPATION. THE TRAININGS WERE DESIGNED TO BE UTILIZED EITHER IN-PERSON OR ONLINE, AND WE PILOTED THE TRAINING WITH BOTH IN-PERSON AND ONLINE GROUPS. WE CREATED A DIGITAL AND PRINT PARTICIPANT HANDBOOK TO ACCOMPANY EACH OF THE FOUR TRAININGS. PARENTS AND TEACHERS RECEIVED 5 HOURS OF CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDIT FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION. WE WORKED WITH THE DIFFERENT ACCREDITING BODIES TO MAKE SURE THAT THE TRAININGS COMPLIED WITH THEIR STANDARDS. WE RAN TRAININGS FOR 6 DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS AND TRAINED A TOTAL OF 277 PARTICIPANTS. ADDITIONALLY, WE WORKED WITH AN ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR IN THE DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY AT NC STATE UNIVERSITY, TO RUN AN EVIDENCE-BASED STUDY TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THIS TRAINING.

AS A RESULT OF OUR GRANDPARENT SUPPORT KIT PROGRAM IN 2021, CREATING A FAMILY CONDUCTED LISTENING SESSIONS WITH KINSHIP CAREGIVERS. IN RESPONSE TO THE IDENTIFIED NEED FOR KINSHIP FAMILIES TO UNDERSTAND THEIR LEGAL PERMANENCY OPTIONS, CREATING A FAMILY DEVELOPED THE LEGAL OPTIONS FOR KINSHIP CAREGIVERS IN NORTH CAROLINA WEBSITE (NCKINSHIPFAMILIES.ORG) IN 2022. THE WEBSITE HELPS KINSHIP CAREGIVERS EXPLORE THEIR LEGAL OPTIONS, WHETHER WORKING WITH CHILD WELFARE OR CARING FOR CHILDREN OUTSIDE THE CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM. THE MOBILE-FRIENDLY MULTIMEDIA WEBSITE INCLUDES VIDEOS WITH EXPERTS EXPLAINING THE VARIOUS OPTIONS, LIVED-EXPERIENCE VIDEOS OF NORTH CAROLINA KINSHIP CAREGIVERS, ANIMATED TIPS VIDEOS, AUDIO CONVERSATIONS, AND DOWNLOADABLE TIP SHEETS AND TEMPLATES. GUIDED BY A KINSHIP ADVISORY COMMITTEE, THE WEBSITE EXPLORES LEGAL OPTIONS FOR INFORMAL AGREEMENTS, POWER OF ATTORNEY, BECOMING A LICENSED KINSHIP FOSTER PARENT, CUSTODY, GUARDIANSHIP, AND ADOPTION. THE WEBSITE ALSO OFFERS LINKS AND INFORMATION IF THE CAREGIVER NEEDS TO FIND AN ATTORNEY AND ADDITIONAL RESOURCES.