Training for Adoption Competency (TAC) is a postgraduate curriculum created by the Center for Adoption Support and Education (C.A.S.E.™).  TAC  provides mental health clinicians and master’s level child welfare/adoption professionals with the knowledge, skills, and values needed to provide adoption-competent services to their clients. TAC is accredited by the Institute for Credentialing Excellence and is the only accredited, assessment-based certificate program on adoption competency in the country. Access to adoption competent mental health services is a critical factor in positive outcomes for adopted children and youth and their families. TAC is helping to meet the growing need for adoption competent clinicians in Georgia.

Program Eligibility and Expectations

TAC participants must have a Master’s degree (or higher) in social work, a counseling field or other related discipline and a current professional license (or be under clinical supervision in preparation for professional licensing). Applicants without a clinical license must have work experience with members of the adoption kinship network that provides opportunities to incorporate learning into practice. To earn the TAC certificate, participants are expected to complete all course requirements and achieve a minimum score of 70% on the final assessment.

Class Format

TAC is a 72-hour curriculum consisting of one online self-paced module and 11 instructor-led modules with six integrated case consultations. Classes are virtual and meet on scheduled dates using an online meeting platform.

Benefits of TAC Participation

Participants gain an in-depth understanding of core adoption issues, current clinical tools, and evidence-based approaches. TAC graduates are listed with the Georgia Center for Resources and Support and the Center for Adoption Support and Education’s Directory of TAC Trained Mental Health Providers.

Georgia TAC Partners

TAC is a collaborative partnership between the Center for Adoption Support and Education, the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services, and the Georgia State University Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, School of Social Work, Professional Excellence Program.

Center for Adoption Support and Education (C.A.S.E.)

C.A.S.E. is the national leader in adoption-competent support with foster and adopted children and adults, their families and the network of professionals who assist them. C.A.S.E. acts as a support system for families and professionals pre-, during and post-adoption. TAC is one of the programs offered by C.A.S.E.  For more information about the TAC curriculum  Visit the C.A.S.E site.

Georgia Division of Family and Children Services (GA DFCS)

The GA DFCS Adoption Unit facilitates and supports the adoption of children in the permanent custody of DFCS. Recognizing that children deserve safe, loving, and nurturing relationships with permanent families, DFCS and its partners provide a continuum of available, accessible, and effective services that enable and support the placement of children in adoptive families.

Georgia State University Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, School of Social Work Professional Excellence Program

The Professional Excellence Program is dedicated to promoting best practices in child welfare and developing the child welfare workforce.  The program provides various training and development opportunities for child welfare professionals and community partners and clinicians who work with the child welfare population.