The National Foster Parent Assocation’s mission focuses on education, networking, and advocacy.  This conference has all of that — and more.  With the theme, “Navigating the Future” you can easily find your way by car or plane to beautiful, sunny Garden Grove (Orange County) California.  In preparation for the 3rd decade of this century, you can participate in more than 50 workshops provided by presenters from across the country with lived expertise as foster and adoptive parents, kinship caregivers, and credentialed  professionals.  

More than 50 workshops will focus on strategies to parent children who have experienced loss and trauma, issues regarding sexual abuse and self harm, and unique perspectives for parenting children and teens with diverse ages and stages of development.  We are featuring caring for special populations of children and youth with an emphasis on cultural diversity, sexual diversity, children who self-harm, and young people who have been exploited and trafficked.  Navigating the internet and keeping your children social media-safe is back by popular demand.  Have you experienced a disruption in your family or in families with whom you work? Learn about prevention and intervention strategies.  A major factor in disruptions is the impact of fostering on birth children, so learn how to give your children an essential voice.      

Our advocacy workshops focus on communicating with everyone who needs to support the children in our care from a strengths-based perspective, including teachers or other relatives and neighbors. Birth parents require advocacy, too, so we have a workshop that includes front end services and supports. How about adoption assistance and the Federal Adoption Tax Credit or Kinship Navigator Programs?  We have that,  as well.  And if your local or state association needs to function a little better, you can learn about Roberts Rules of Order.   Advocacy also includes taking care of ourselves, so of course, we are featuring workshops to address burnout, compassion fatigue, and self-care.  

Networking comes naturally at an NFPA conference.  Whether picking up your name tag and packet, waiting for a workshop to start, participating in the Walk Me Home event, or having lunch, there always is an opportunity to see friends from previous conferences and make new ones.  

So if you are in the West or want to come West, California is an excellent conference destination.  

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Please know that our 2020 conference – celebrating NFPA’s 50th anniversary — will be in the Washington, DC area.