Therapeutic Foster Parent Requirements in Washington, D.C./Maryland

The Foundations for Home and Community Therapeutic Foster Care Program ensures that children are placed with families who meet the following requirements in order provide the best possible environment:

• Therapeutic Foster Parents must be at least 21 years of age. For those foster parents in Maryland who are 61 years of age or older, you must have adequate strength and emotional stability to meet the needs of a child as documented by a physician’s report and the agency’s child placement worker’s assessment.

• Therapeutic Foster Parents must successfully complete an Orientation session and 30 hours of pre-service PRIDE training, which consists of 10 sessions, prior to becoming a foster parent. Foster parents are also required to complete 20 hours of in-service training each year and 4 additional hours if you have a “mother with child” placement.

• Therapeutic Foster Parents and any person 18 years of age or older residing in the home must complete a criminal background check.

• Therapeutic Foster Parents are required to transport or to arrange transport for the foster children in care. This includes visitation, medical, dental, and mental health appointments.

• Therapeutic foster homes must have at least two bedrooms. In the District, homes may use bunk beds; in Maryland, bunk beds are prohibited.

• Therapeutic Foster Parents can be licensed for up to 2 therapeutic foster children at a time. A sibling group can be placed in a home with adequate space and would be considered one placement allowing for one additional foster child.

For more information, please contact the Director of Training and Staff Development at (202) 737-2554.