(A) A private child placing agency (PCPA),
private noncustodial agency (PNA), or a consortium of such agencies that seeks
to operate a preplacement training program or a continuing training program
shall
is to
submit its training proposal(s) for approval to the agency's assigned Ohio
department of job and family services (ODJFS) field office licensing
specialist. Each training proposal submitted to ODJFS
shall
is to be
approved for submission by the administrator or designee of the agency. Each
training proposal submitted by a consortium
shall
is to be
approved for submission by the administrator or designee of the primary agency
of the consortium. Submission and approval of training proposals
shall
is to
follow the time frames listed in paragraphs (B) and (F) of this rule.
(B) A training proposal
shall
is to be
submitted to ODJFS
by October fifteenth of every
even-numbered year. An approved training proposal shall be valid for two
calendar years beginning the first day of January each odd-numbered
year
when the agency creates a new proposal or
amends an existing plan. Any amendment to an approved training plan
shall
is to be
submitted in accordance with paragraph (B) of rule
5101:2-5-13 of the
Administrative Code.
(C) A training
proposal submitted by a consortium of PCPAs or PNAs
shall
is to identify
the primary agency that will act as the fiscal agent for the consortium and all
other agencies participating in the consortium. The proposal
shall
is to be
approved for submission by the administrator or designee of the primary
agency.
(D) If ODJFS does not
approve a PCPA's or PNA's training proposal, and the PCPA or PNA wishes to
continue pursuing implementation of a training program, the PCPA or PNA
shall
is to
submit a revised proposal within fifteen calendar days.
(E) If ODJFS does not approve a PCPA's or
PNA's training proposal, or if a previously approved training proposal or plan
expires, the PCPA or PNA
shall
will not operate a preplacement or continuing training
program for foster caregivers until a training proposal has been approved by
ODJFS.
(F) Only a PCPA or PNA submitting a
foster caregiver preplacement or continuing training proposal for the first
time may submit a proposal at a time other than that specified in paragraph (B)
of this rule. When approved, a training proposal submitted to ODJFS pursuant to
this paragraph shall be valid only until December thirty-first of the next
even-numbered year. Thereafter, the provisions of paragraph (B) of this rule
shall apply.
(G)(F) The proposal
shall
is to
include the following information:
(1) The
type(s) of training programs to be offered and the projected outcomes for each
program. Types of training programs include the following:
(a) Preplacement training for prospective
foster caregivers seeking certification to operate a foster home under the PCPA
or PNA certified foster care function, including pre-adoptive infant foster
home, family foster home, treatment foster home or medically fragile foster
home.
(b) Continuing training for
foster caregivers certified to operate a foster home under the PCPA or PNA
certified foster care function, including pre-adoptive infant foster home,
family foster home, treatment foster home or medically fragile foster
home.
(2) A statement
outlining the types of foster care certifications the training program
addresses.
(3) The organization and
structure of the training program which
shall
is to clearly
identify who will be responsible for operating the training program, the
staffing level of the program, the person(s) responsible for policy decisions
regarding the training program, and whether part of the training program
functions will be subcontracted to other individuals, agencies or
entities.
(4) The policies and
procedures of the training program which include, at a minimum, the following
information:
(a) Policies and procedures for
assessing foster caregiver training needs and utilizing foster caregivers
continuing training plans as the basis for determining course offerings and
learning activities such as workshops, coaching, distance learning and
self-directed learning and the frequency of the course offerings and learning
activities.
(b) Policies and
procedures for developing and evaluating courses and learning activities which
comprise the training program, including policies and procedures for assessing
successful completion of a course and learning activities by the prospective
foster caregiver or foster caregiver and procedures for notifying the
recommending agency with which a prospective foster caregiver or a foster
caregiver is affiliated of the successful completion of the course and learning
activities.
(c) Policies and
procedures for the selection and evaluation of qualified trainers.
(d) Policies and procedures for notifying
agencies and foster caregivers of courses offered by the training
program.
(e) Policies and
procedures for accepting applications for training courses and scheduling
training.
(f) Policies and
procedures for maintaining training records, tracking attendance at the
training by course offering and by foster caregiver, including notification to
the agency of foster caregiver attendance.
(g) Policies and procedures for a written
evaluation of the effectiveness of the courses offered and the overall
effectiveness of the training program. The policies and procedures
shall
is to
specify that these evaluations will take place at least once every two
years.
(5) A description
of course offerings and learning activities which contain, at a minimum, all of
the following information:
(a) Course and
learning activities title and description.
(b) Target audience (family foster
caregivers, treatment or medically fragile foster caregivers, pre-adoptive
infant foster caregivers).
(c)
Course learning objectives.
(d)
Training hours.
(e) Course and
learning activity outline.
(f)
Qualifications of the trainer or coach.
(H)(G) A
PCPA or PNA applying to be approved to operate a preplacement training program
for persons seeking certification to operate a pre-adoptive infant foster home
shall
is to
offer training courses addressing the required topics for a pre-adoptive infant
foster home as described in rule
5101:2-5-33 of the
Administrative Code.
(I)(H) A PCPA or PNA
applying to be approved to operate a continuing training program for
persons seeking recertification
foster caregivers certified to operate a
pre-adoptive infant foster home
shall
is to offer training courses appropriate to the
training needs of the pre-adoptive infant foster caregivers that will be
trained by the program. Such courses may include, but are not limited to, the
following:
(1) Infant care.
(2) Early childhood development, including
developmentally appropriate activities.
(3) Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and
first aid.
(J)(I) A PCPA or PNA
applying to be approved to operate a preplacement training program for persons
seeking certification to operate a family foster home
shall
is to
offer training courses addressing the required topics for a family foster home
as described in rule
5101:2-5-33 of the
Administrative Code.
(K)(J) A PCPA or PNA
applying to be approved to operate a continuing training program for
persons seeking recertification
foster caregivers certified to operate a family foster
home
shall
is
to offer training courses appropriate to the training needs of the family
foster caregivers that will be trained by the program.
(L)(K) A
PCPA or PNA applying to be approved to operate a preplacement training program
for persons seeking certification to operate a specialized foster home
shall
is to
offer training courses addressing the required topics for a specialized foster
home as described in rule
5101:2-5-33 of the
Administrative Code.
(M)(L) A PCPA or PNA
applying to be approved to operate a continuing training program for
persons seeking recertification
foster caregivers certified to operate a specialized
foster home
shall
is
to offer training courses appropriate to the training needs of the
specialized foster caregivers that will be trained by the program. Such courses
shall
are to
include
continuous maintenance of certification
in
completion of a first aid training
program and a child and adult CPR
certification training program such as those
training programs offered by the American red cross, the American heart
association, or the equivalent.
(N)(M) A PCPA or PNA
submitting a training proposal(s)
shall
is to comply with payment and/or reimbursement
procedures outlined in rule
5101:2-5-38 of the
Administrative Code.
(O)(N) A PCPA, a PNA or a
consortium of such agencies operating a preplacement training program or
continuing training program approved by ODJFS
shall
is to make the
program available to prospective foster caregivers or foster caregivers without
regard to the type of recommending agency from which a prospective foster
caregiver or a foster caregiver seeks a recommendation and without charge to
the foster caregiver. A PCPA or PNA may condition the enrollment of a
prospective foster caregiver or a foster caregiver based upon the availability
of space in the training program.
(P)(O) A regional training
center of the Ohio child welfare training program (OCWTP) operating a
preplacement or continuing training program may condition the enrollment in a
preplacement or continuing training program of a foster caregiver whose
recommending agency is a PCPA or a PNA on
either or
both of the following:
the availability of
space in the training program.
(1) Availability of space in the
training program.
(2) Assignment to the program by the
foster caregiver's recommending agency of the private recommending agency's
training allowance payment due under rule 5101:2-5-38 of the Administrative
Code.
(Q)(P) A PCPA or PNA may
contract with an individual or a public or private entity to administer a
preplacement or continuing training program operated by the agency and approved
by ODJFS.
(R)(Q) A public children
services agency (PCSA) is not required to submit a training proposal to ODJFS.
All foster caregiver training for prospective foster caregivers and foster
caregivers recommended for certification by a PCSA is provided or arranged by a
regional training center of the OCWTP or arranged by the PCSA with a
preplacement or continuing training program operated by a PCPA or PNA that is
approved by ODJFS.