Becoming a Foster Care (HRSS) Provider
If you are considering becoming a foster care provider for Intermountain Centers, you need to know:
Basic Licensing Requirements for Regular Foster Provider Homes
- You must be 21 years of age or older and a legal resident of Arizona.
- You and all persons living in your home for 21 days a year or more that are 18 years of age or older must have a fingerprint card and pass a criminal history background check.
- You must attend 30 hours of PS-MAPP training classes (Partnering for Safety and Permanence – Model Approach to Partnerships in Parenting) at no cost.
- Your home must pass a fire and safety inspection by the Office of Licensing, Certification and Regulation fire.
- You must provide names, addresses and phone numbers of five references.
- You must provide a Physician’s Statement for any household member 18 years of age or older that resides in the home 21 days or more during the year.
- You must complete all required paperwork prior to licensing.
- You must work cooperatively with the licensing agency. The agency must agree to and support licensing the family for the type of license requested.
- You must provide current copies of your driver’s license, auto insurance and registration, proof of income, dog’s rabies vaccination and any prior marriage divorce decrees or legal separation papers.
- You must understand that licensing does not guarantee a child being placed in the home.
- You must agree to follow all requirements in Article 58 of the Arizona Revised Statutes.
- You must have appropriate space and accommodations for any foster child.
- You must provide information about prior work experience with children, motivation for requesting licensure and any previous experience as a licensed foster parent in any state.
- You must demonstrate skills working within a team, patience, compassion for youth, ability to work with biological parents and ability to make sound judgments regarding the care and nurturing of youth.
Additional Requirements for HCTC (Therapeutic Foster Care) Homes
- As a parent candidate, you must have one year of verifiable work experience with Special Needs children and/or a Bachelor’s degree in one of the Social Sciences.
- Where a couple is applying, it is preferred that one of the two of you is not working out of the home at all times, available to the child throughout each day.
- You must assure each child coming in to your home of his/her own bedroom.
- You must have the ability to partner with Intermountain Centers and espouse the agency’s philosophy of providing a caring, teaching environment for any youth in their care, rather than solely a custodial environment.
- Your home must be free of weapons and alcohol.
- You must agree to and comply with a contract to provide HCTC Services as an Independent Contractor with Intermountain Centers.
- Each parent is required to complete the following additional training:
- Arizona Professional Foster Parenting Classes – 18 hours
- CPR/First Aid – 4 hours
- CPI (Crisis Prevention Institute) Training – 8 to 12 hours
- Behavioral Health Documentation and Incident Report Writing – 2 hours
- Medication Handling – 2.5 hours
- Behavioral Concepts – 3 hours
- Practicum – 12 hours
For more information, please contact:
Jack Smith, Foster Care Recruiter
Phone: (520) 721-1887 ext. 5283
Fax: (520) 407-5398
Cristina Greenberg, Recruiter for Southeastern Arizona
Phone: (520) 301-0646
Chris Hileman, Recruiter for Northern Arizona
Phone: (520) 262-9483