What's New:
A Recent Project

Client: A department of the State of Illinois

The Need: Help in designing and developing training for those in the department working with "older caregivers" - adults over 60 who have guardianship or custody of a child because of the inability of the child's parent to care for him or her. Often-times older caregivers are grandparents of the child in care because the state prefers to keep children with family where possible. However, caregivers may have special needs of their own that need to be addressed to keep the household functioning well. There are issues involved in an older-caregiver household that are not present with younger caregivers. Department caseworkers who are alert to those needs and issues can ensure a better home environment for all involved.

The Work Product: A print participant guide divided into four modules by major topic; a set of slides for the trainer to project; and a leader's guide for the trainer to follow during training. The work product was organized so that the trainer could adapt the course for different audiences; for example, delivering a day-long version to caseworkers but a two-hour version to administrators.

Best Part about the Project: Two things. The client is a delight to work with, and the idea of enabling caseworkers to provide a better living environment for both caregiver and child was a nice payoff.

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