JOIN THE FIFTH COHORT!
Developed with input from DCF leadership, lead agency representatives, case management service representatives, and other stakeholders for child welfare professionals, the Strength, Trauma, and Resilience Studies (STARS) Advanced Certification is a university-led, evidence-based, trauma-informed, engaging workforce resilience training that will motivate, educate, and improve the skills of the child welfare workforce to improve child safety.
This course will address coping, stress management, secondary trauma, and primary trauma, as well as explore how trauma history interferes with learning. Participants will build better resilience skills for families.
The STARS Advanced Certification course will provide concrete tools for growing child, parental, and family resilience. It includes 12-18 hours of self-paced online course content, with two virtual synchronous sessions with a university faculty member to practice and reinforce learned skills. Participants will have additional opportunities to connect with peers and a coach.
Child welfare professionals who complete the STARS Advanced Certification will be issued a certificate of completion from Florida State University. It is eligible for CEUs by the Florida Certification Board and is connected to advancement criteria on the DCF Career Ladder.
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Advanced Certifications from the Florida Institute for Child Welfare's MyALIGN program are designed for child welfare professionals. Each Advanced Certification course has its own unique eligibility requirements; however, to be considered for admission to a course:
✪ Applicants must be currently employed by either the Florida Department of Children and Families, a Florida Case Management Organization, or a Florida Direct Service Provider agency.
✪ Applicants must submit proof of supervisor approval and support by completing the necessary supervisor data fields on the application.
✪ Applicants must hold (at minimum) a Child Welfare Provisional Certification (CWP) status, issued by the Florida Certification Board. CWPI (Child Welfare Protective Investigator) and CWCM (Child Welfare Case Manager) credentialed child welfare professionals are also eligible.
Please note: Other Direct Service Provider Professionals may be considered for admission.
Please be sure to pay special attention to the information below.
✪ The STARS Advanced Certification course is designed and facilitated as a cohort (group), with specific start and end dates.
✪ The STARS Advanced Certification course requires potential participants to answer reflection questions indicating your interest and reason for requesting admission to the cohort and your commitment to complete the coursework.
✪ The STARS Advanced Certification course requires verification of supervisor support to participate.
✪ Applications will be reviewed by the Assistant Director of Professional Development and Worker Well-being in consultation with a selection committee. A maximum of 30 participants per cohort will be admitted. A waitlist will be generated and utilized if needed.
✪ Advanced Certifications do not provide college credit. A digital badge and a certificate of completion from the Florida Institute for Child Welfare at FSU will be issued upon successful completion of the course. CEUs for both CWPI and CWCM may also be issued.
✪ Earning a certificate in an Advanced Certification course does not guarantee that you will become licensed by the FCB (Florida Certification Board) in child welfare.
✪ Being accepted, enrolling, or completing an Advanced Certification course with the Florida Institute for Child Welfare at FSU, does not guarantee future admission to FSU as a degree or non-degree seeking student.
✪ Advanced Certification courses are designed for professional development but may require completion of activities during working and non-working (unpaid) hours. Check with your supervisor for guidance on completing course work during working hours.
✪ The fifth cohort of the STARS Advanced Certification course is part of an evaluation. Participant data and feedback will be collected throughout the course and used to inform subsequent Advanced Certification iterations.
Note: MyALIGN Advanced Certification courses are advanced professional certifications issued by the Florida Institute for Child Welfare at Florida State University.
Earning a certificate in an Advanced Certification course does not replace the mandatory child welfare credential issued by the Florida Certification Board as required by statute 402.40. As a reminder, Section 402.40, F.S. requires that “each person providing child welfare services in this state earns and maintains a professional certification from a professional credentialing entity that is approved by the Department of Children and Families.” The Florida Certification Board is the professional credentialing entity approved by the Department to certify child welfare service providers.
 | For more information about the STARS Advanced Certification and to view the course outline, please click here. |
STARS- Cohort 5
JOIN THE FIFTH COHORT!
Developed with input from DCF leadership, lead agency representatives, case management service representatives, and other stakeholders for child welfare professionals, the Strength, Trauma, and Resilience Studies (STARS) Advanced Certification is a university-led, evidence-based, trauma-informed, engaging workforce resilience training that will motivate, educate, and improve the skills of the child welfare workforce to improve child safety.
This course will address coping, stress management, secondary trauma, and primary trauma, as well as explore how trauma history interferes with learning. Participants will build better resilience skills for families.
The STARS Advanced Certification course will provide concrete tools for growing child, parental, and family resilience. It includes 12-18 hours of self-paced online course content, with two virtual synchronous sessions with a university faculty member to practice and reinforce learned skills. Participants will have additional opportunities to connect with peers and a coach.
Child welfare professionals who complete the STARS Advanced Certification will be issued a certificate of completion from Florida State University. It is eligible for CEUs by the Florida Certification Board and is connected to advancement criteria on the DCF Career Ladder.
| |
Advanced Certifications from the Florida Institute for Child Welfare's MyALIGN program are designed for child welfare professionals. Each Advanced Certification course has its own unique eligibility requirements; however, to be considered for admission to a course:
✪ Applicants must be currently employed by either the Florida Department of Children and Families, a Florida Case Management Organization, or a Florida Direct Service Provider agency.
✪ Applicants must submit proof of supervisor approval and support by completing the necessary supervisor data fields on the application.
✪ Applicants must hold (at minimum) a Child Welfare Provisional Certification (CWP) status, issued by the Florida Certification Board. CWPI (Child Welfare Protective Investigator) and CWCM (Child Welfare Case Manager) credentialed child welfare professionals are also eligible.
Please note: Other Direct Service Provider Professionals may be considered for admission.
Please be sure to pay special attention to the information below.
✪ The STARS Advanced Certification course is designed and facilitated as a cohort (group), with specific start and end dates.
✪ The STARS Advanced Certification course requires potential participants to answer reflection questions indicating your interest and reason for requesting admission to the cohort and your commitment to complete the coursework.
✪ The STARS Advanced Certification course requires verification of supervisor support to participate.
✪ Applications will be reviewed by the Assistant Director of Professional Development and Worker Well-being in consultation with a selection committee. A maximum of 30 participants per cohort will be admitted. A waitlist will be generated and utilized if needed.
✪ Advanced Certifications do not provide college credit. A digital badge and a certificate of completion from the Florida Institute for Child Welfare at FSU will be issued upon successful completion of the course. CEUs for both CWPI and CWCM may also be issued.
✪ Earning a certificate in an Advanced Certification course does not guarantee that you will become licensed by the FCB (Florida Certification Board) in child welfare.
✪ Being accepted, enrolling, or completing an Advanced Certification course with the Florida Institute for Child Welfare at FSU, does not guarantee future admission to FSU as a degree or non-degree seeking student.
✪ Advanced Certification courses are designed for professional development but may require completion of activities during working and non-working (unpaid) hours. Check with your supervisor for guidance on completing course work during working hours.
✪ The fifth cohort of the STARS Advanced Certification course is part of an evaluation. Participant data and feedback will be collected throughout the course and used to inform subsequent Advanced Certification iterations.
Note: MyALIGN Advanced Certification courses are advanced professional certifications issued by the Florida Institute for Child Welfare at Florida State University.
Earning a certificate in an Advanced Certification course does not replace the mandatory child welfare credential issued by the Florida Certification Board as required by statute 402.40. As a reminder, Section 402.40, F.S. requires that “each person providing child welfare services in this state earns and maintains a professional certification from a professional credentialing entity that is approved by the Department of Children and Families.” The Florida Certification Board is the professional credentialing entity approved by the Department to certify child welfare service providers.
| For more information about the STARS Advanced Certification and to view the course outline, please click here. |