Thousands of children in California's foster care system require out-of-home care because of parental neglect, abuse or exploitation. In Kern County, more than 2,500 children of all ages and ethnic groups, with diverse backgrounds and varying needs, have been removed from their own homes or families of origin by order of the juvenile court. These children need temporary homes to call their own. Many children require foster care while Human Services works with birth parents to build parenting and life skills designed to allow children to return home safely. Human Services relies on non-relative foster parents to provide a stable and supportive, family environment to 60 percent of the children under its care.

Foster parenting is a special kind of job with many demands and responsibilities. Acceptance, support and nurturing are critical in working with and understanding children who are experiencing conflict and sadness after being taken from their birth families. Foster parenting involves more than just attending to the basic needs of a child. Foster parents play an important role in working with Human Services staff and birth parents to reunify children with their birth family whenever safely possible. Transportation to parental visitations, medical and court appointments is often required.

Foster parents make choices regarding the kinds of children (gender, age, ethnicity, background) and length of placements made in their home. There is continuous need for the following types of foster placements:

Foster parents should be financially self-sufficient. Monthly payments are provided to foster parents to help meet a child's needs. Payments assist with costs to feed and clothe foster children, and additional funds may be available for children with specialized needs. Medical and dental coverage is provided through Medi-Cal.

Human Services staff, including social workers, licensing personnel, and the Foster Parent Recruiter/Trainer are available to assist and support foster parents. A Foster Care Ombudsman aids foster parents in resolving problems and concerns. The Foster Parent Association provides additional support to their membership of foster parents.

Families who wish to foster non-relative children must go through a state regulated licensing process, administered by Human Services and regulated by California Code of Regulations and the California Health and Safety Codes.

The first step is to attend a Human Services Foster & Adoptions Orientation to learn more about our children and the Foster Home Licensing process.

After orientation, an application must be completed. Depending on how quickly the application and requirements are completed, licensing can take from two to 12 months to complete.

The process includes:

Foster parents are crucial in helping Human Services to provide protective, reunifying and permanent placement services to our children. For more information on becoming a foster parent, or to reserve a space in our next orientation, please call (661) 631-6204 or visit their web site at

Mission Statement
The mission of the Foster and Kinship Care Education Program is to provide quality education and support opportunities for care givers of children and youth in out-of-home care so that these providers may meet the educational, emotional, behavioral and developmental needs of children and youth.

About the Program
The Foster and Kinship Care Education Program is administered through the Community College Chancellor’s Office. This program assists foster care providers in learning essential skills for parenting the troubled and at-risk children in their care. The Foster and Kinship Care Education Program provides quality education and support opportunities to caregivers of children and youth in out-of-home care so that these providers may meet the educational, emotional, behavioral and developmental needs of children and youth. The Foster and Kinship Care Education Program is a statewide program that includes an assessment of education needs, the development and provision of specialized instruction, educational support services, and jointly organized outreach efforts to the foster care parent population. This program is a partnership with the Chancellor’s Office, The California Department of Social Services, the California State Foster Parent Association, California Community Colleges, County Social Services, foster parents, and public and private agencies who work together to plan and deliver a statewide program of community college training.

The Kern County Department of Human Services sends the foster parents to BC for in-service training to meet their mandated 8 hours required to maintain placements in their home. Kinship caregivers are encouraged to attend these trainings. Workshops are offered in Bakersfield and Ridgecrest. Various professional experts throughout Kern County are recruited to facilitate these specialized trainings along with BC Child Development instructors.

The BC Foster and Kinship Care Education Program collaborates with Kern County Department of Human Services to serve caregivers throughout Kern County. This program meets BC’s vision, mission and goals.

Training
Bakersfield College provides free specialized training on child and youth related issues. A combined eight hours of training fulfills Kern County Department of Human Services mandated eight hours of Foster Parent training required per year for placements in your home. A Bakersfield College certificate verifying the training hours is provided to each participant at the end of each training session and the hours are also reported to the Kern County Department of Human Services.

Call Mary Halberg, Program Manager at 661/395-4737 or visit their website at www2.bakersfieldcollege.edu/cdt/

The Taft College Foster and Kinship Care Education Program was started through funds from a grant from the California Community College Chancellor’s Office. The program is designed to continually support and educate foster parents and kinship caregivers in their roles in caring for children. The primary focus is the individual needs and concerns of the families served.

We strive to create long-lasting relationships between parents, caregivers, and resource agencies in hope of providing a lifetime network of support.

The Program Offers:

• Support for Foster Parents and Kinship Caregivers
• A variety of training topics designed to meet the individual needs of families working within the system
• Field trips to various agencies
• A network of agencies and community resources to provide emotional support and visual and written materials for foster parents and kinship caregivers
• Assistance to families whose first language is Spanish through a variety of bilingual services and materials

• Family Dynamics
• Child Development/Parenting
• Self-Esteem
• Behavior Management
• Working with Community Resources
• Self-help skills
• Working with the System (DHS)
• Reunification/Permanency
• Adoption/Guardianship
• Emotional Effects of Removal
• Child Abuse/Violence Intervention
• Substance Abuse
• Special Needs and Diversity

Taft College Course:

This course is a study on extensive contemporary research literature on parenting and relevant theoretical perspectives. A special emphasis is placed on foster parenting concerns and structure, day-to-day challenges of parenting, grand parenting perspectives, and incorporating inclusion and diversity issues.