Course Structure
This 8-week course is offered in a hybrid format. Participants will complete weekly online content followed by a weekly live discussion via Zoom, where they will discuss what they learned and learn from each other.
Online Course content opens on Thursday, March 5, 2026.
*Participants will have approximately 2 hours of online coursework to complete each week.
Weekly Live Discussion Dates:
*All Live Discussions are from 9-11am Eastern Time / 8-10 am Central Time
March 12, 2026
March 19, 2026
March 26, 2026
April 2, 2026
April 9, 2026
April 16, 2026
April 23, 2026
April 30, 2026
WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT
Interaction & Discussions
With a cohort of fellow students
Teaching
From leaders in the field
A Safe Place
To discuss the complexity of what a transition to family care might look like
Practical Tools
To help you decide whether now is the right time for you to make a transition to family care
A Personal Action Plan
Of how to get started on transitioning to family care
Both Scripture and social science affirm that the ideal environment for a child is a loving family. There are certainly situations in which this is not possible, but our priority – both for any program we lead and each child we serve – should always be towards care that is as close as possible to the ideal of healthy, permanent family. Guided by this conviction, many organizations serving orphans and vulnerable children today desire to shift from institution-centered care toward care centered in families.
COURSE CURRICULUM PREVIEW
- Welcome to this Course! (1:26)
- Introductions
- About this Course
- Pre-Test
- Course Foundational Truth #1: Children Need Families
- Course Foundational Truth #2: When We Know Better, We Do Better
- Course Foundational Truth #3: Transition is Possible
- Course Final Project: Transition Plan
- First Step in our Transition Plan - Learning Where We Are
- Processing with Others
- Key Terms
- Comprehension Check
- Live Discussion (Orientation) and WhatsApp Group
- Introduction
- Reflection
- What [Not] To Do
- Case Study
- The Process of Raising Awareness
- Develop a Transition Council
- Educate Key Stakeholders
- Evidence on Transition
- Processing with Others
- Making a Plan
- Processing with Others (again)
- Learning from the Field (26:06)
- Next Steps
- Comprehension Check
- Live Discussion (Stakeholder Engagement)
- Introduction
- Reflection
- Case Management Helps Us Care for Children
- Child Placement Requires Professional Staff
- The Process of Case Management
- A Primer on Child Placement
- Keeping Children Safe
- Case Study
- Making a Plan
- Processing with Others
- Learning from the Field (11:53)
- Next Steps
- Comprehension Check
- Live Discussion (Case Management)
- Introduction
- Reflection
- Children Need Families
- Finding Families
- Building Trust
- Family Assessment
- Family Participation and Case Planning
- Family Options Review
- Case Study
- Making a Plan
- Processing with Others
- Learning from the Field (14:45)
- Next Steps
- Comprehension Check
- Live Discussion (Family Assessment and Support)
- Introduction
- Reflection
- Staff Teams Make Care for Children Possible
- Developing Vision
- Staff Retraining
- What If Staff Disagree?
- Transitioning Physical Assets
- Case Study
- Making a Plan
- Processing with Others
- Learning from the Field (9:18)
- Next Steps
- Comprehension Check
- Live Discussion (Asset Transition)