Become a Resource Parent

Attend an Informational Session, or reach out to us directly, to learn more and see if our agency is the right fit for you and your family! We will ask you some basic questions about yourself and the composition of your home, and happily talk to you about our services and the youth we support.

Please note: The youth we serve are typically adolescents, and it very rare that we work with young children You must have a bedroom available for a youth that is separate from your own, and that is private. The room must not be “railroad” style, meaning you must not need to walk through the youth’s bedroom in order to reach other rooms in the home. Youth may share a room with other children in the home, if they are the same gender and within 5 years of age as each other.

All Informational Sessions and Orientations are being held virtually until further notice.

When you apply to becomes a Resource Home, there is a lot of required paperwork you will need to submit. Along with the paperwork, you will also need to complete a Live Scan Background check, as well as a CPR/First Aid training.

(Please note: If you have lived outside of California, we also will need to obtain background clearance from any other state you have lived in within the past 5 years)

Download an Application now! Along with the application, some of the documents you will be required to submit are:

1. Proof of home ownership or a rental agreement

2. An acknowledgement of the requirement to report child abuse

3. A household budget, in order to ensure you are financially stable without the addition of the Resource Family stipend.

Our team will work closely with you to ensure you have all the necessary documents submitted, and to answer any questions.

The training consists of 4 in-person trainings, along with multiple additional online trainings to be completed at home. In the first class, you will be introduced to the agency and our program. This class provides details regarding the youth we serve, a breakdown of our services and supports, and an overview of our program’s culture and guiding principles. The other classes take an in-depth look at specific topics, such as Transracial Parenting, Trauma Informed Parenting, and Cultural Humility.

All certification trainings are being held virtually until further notice.

Once all of your paperwork is turned in for review and you have attended both Certification classes, we will schedule a Panel Interview with you and various members of our staff. The Panel Interview is a perfect time for you to ask lingering questions, and for our staff to talk with you to get a better sense of your home, strengths, expectations, and areas in which you will need support. There are three possible outcomes from the Panel Interview:

1. We may move you directly to the final step of the Approval Process, the Comprehensive Family Assessment

2. We may request that you take a class or training around a particular parenting aspect to further your knowledge or practice certain skills

3. We may determine that our agency is not the best fit for your home or your needs.

Panel Interviews are being held virtually until further notice.

The Comprehensive Family Assessment consists of 3-4 (minimum) in-home interviews with one of our SAFE Home Model certified Social Work staff members, as well as a formalized Home Inspection. You can expect these interviews to be in-depth, in order to help us make the best possible match for you and your family.

For further information about the SAFE Home model, click here.