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SUPREME COURT OF NEBRASKA
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF THE COURTS & PROBATION
Janice K. Walker State Court Administrator Ellen Fabian Brokofsky State Probation Administrator

MEMORANDUM

TO: FROM: RE:

Applicants for Providers of Parent Education Classes Debora Brownyard, State Court Administrator's Office Parenting Education Approval

This memo is to inform applicants who wish to be apply to be a Nebraska Administrative Office of the Court-approved parenting education provider of the requirements for approval. Enclosed with this memo is an application packet along with instructions to request approval of your educational course and educators. Please submit the application to the State Court Administrator's Office, ATTN: Rachel Lempka; Room 1213, State Capitol, P.O. Box 98910, Lincoln, NE 68509. Facsimiles will not be accepted. Please assemble the packet in this order: A. Provider Information and Request for Approval Sheet B. Educational Objectives Table C. Provider Guideline Compliance Statement D. Letters of Reference Statement of approval or denial will be mailed to each applicant within 30 days of receipt. For more information, please contact Debora Brownyard at 402-471-2766, [email protected], or Rachel Lempka at 402-471-3148, [email protected].

Administrative Office of the Courts & Probation State Capitol Building, P. O. Box 98910, Lincoln, Nebraska 68509-8910 Phone (402) 471-3730, Fax (402) 471-2197 www.supremecourt.ne.gov

Nebraska Parenting Act Divorce Parenting Education Provider Information & Application Guidelines
A. Statutory Authority: Subsection (1) of the Parenting Act, Nebraska Revised Statute §43-2928 (2008) states: "The court shall order all parties to a proceeding under the Parenting Act to attend a basic level parenting education course." Waivers are permitted. Subsection (2) states that "The court may order parties . . . to attend a second-level parenting education course subsequent to completion of the basic level course when screening or a factual determination of child abuse or neglect, domestic intimate partner abuse, or unresolved parental conflict has been indentified." Subsection (3) states that "The State Court Administrator's Office shall approve all parenting education courses under the act." The Act sets forth descriptions of content of these courses as follows:
Subsection (4) states: "The basic level parenting education course pursuant to this section shall be designed to educate the parties about the impact of the pending court action upon the child and appropriate application of parenting functions. The course shall include, but not be limited to, information on the developmental stages of children, adjustment of a child to parental separation, the litigation and court process, alternative dispute resolution, conflict management, stress reduction, guidelines for parenting time, visitation, or other access, provisions for safety and transition plans, and information about parents and children affected by child abuse or neglect, domestic intimate partner abuse, and unresolved parental conflict." Subsection (5) states: "The second-level parenting education course pursuant to this section shall include, but not be limited to information about development of provisions for safety and transition plans, the potentially harmful impact of domestic intimate partner abuse and unresolved parental conflict on the child, use of effective communication techniques and protocols, resource and referral information for victim and perpetrator services, batterer intervention programs, and referral s for mental health services, substance abuse services, and other community resources."

The Act sets forth language regarding costs and scheduling separate educational courses for parties to a conflictual relationship as follows:
Subsection (6) states: "Each party shall be responsible for the costs, if any, of attending any court-ordered parenting education course." Subsection (6) further states that "At the request of any party, or based upon screening or recommendation of a mediator, the parties shall be allowed to attend separate courses or to attend the same course at different times, particularly if child abuse or neglect, domestic intimate partner abuse, or unresolved parental conflict is or has been present in the relationship or one party has threatened the other party."

B. Educational Objectives and Provider Guidelines: There are two educational courses described by the Parenting Act: the required Basic Level Parenting Education and the optional Second Level Parenting Education. For each of the educational courses, the State Court Administrator has approved (A) statutorily-required educational objectives, along with suggested additional objectives are provided in a table, and (B) provider guidelines for each of the courses. The statutorily-required educational objectives in the table are numbered, and these must be met by the provider.

C.

Approval Process:

Please submit the following in the order listed: 1. Provider information sheet: Please complete this information sheet; include information requested; and submit with the approval packet. 2. Educational Objective instructions: Complete the Educational Objective table for each course(s) for which State Court Administrator approval is being requested. a. Please check off whether your curriculum provides information to meet the numbered, statutorily-required learning objectives indicated in the yes/no box. Education providers that do not meet these statutorily required curriculum objectives will not receive approval from the State Court Administrator's Office to provide parent education for the courts. b. Additional optional educational components are listed in the shaded boxes; please also provide checkmarks as to whether your curriculum includes those elements. 3. Provider Guidelines Compliance Statement instructions: Please read the Provider Guidelines and if your program meets the requirements, sign the statement of compliance. Only those providers that meet those guidelines and submit signed compliance statement will receive State Court Administrator approval. 4. Three letters of reference: Please submit three letters of reference as to the performance, proficiency, and quality of the individual facilitator/educator for the educational program. 5. Submittal: Submit this packet to the State Court Administrator at the address below. State Court Administrator's Office Attn: Rachel Lempka Room 1213, State Capitol P.O. Box 98910 Lincoln, NE 68509 Facsimiles will not be accepted. Any questions should be directed to Rachel Lempka, State Court Administrator's Office, 402471-3148, [email protected] .

Parenting Act Educational Provider Information Sheet

A.

Contact Information:

Name of Organization: ________________________________________________________

Address:

______________________________________________________________

City / State / Zip: ____________________________________________________________

Phone:

_______________________________________________________________

Email: B.

_______________________________________________________________ Education course being requested for approval: __________ Basic Level Parenting Education __________ Second Level Parenting Education

C.

Facilitators/Educators: Educational background (degrees; years of providing parent or child education)

Names of Facilitators / Educators

Contact information Relationship to (if different from Provider (employee; Provider) contractor; other)

D. ATTACH a list of your education course schedule: date, time, location, cost, and availability of sliding fee or fee waiver.

I. BASIC LEVEL PARENTING A. EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES: Parents who attend this educational course will: 1. Learn about the potential impact of the court action (separation/divorce) upon a child
Additional elements under this objective may include: o To what extent should children be involved in the court action o Empowering parents o Using a child centered approach o Safety

Curriculum meets the learning objective

Yes

No

2.

Identify ways to appropriately address parenting functions
Additional elements under this objective may include: o Basic Parenting Education o Parenting functions as outlined in the statute

3. Identify the developmental stages of children
Additional elements under this objective may include: o What is "normal" behavior o Ages and stages and the ranges of these stages o Impact of crisis such as divorce upon the stages of the child's development o Consideration of the child(ren)'s stage(s) of development when designing the Parenting Plan

4. Learn about ways to support the child's adjustment to parental separation 5. Identify the elements of the court process in terms of the Parenting Plan
Additional elements under this objective may include: o Elements of a parenting plan o Guidelines for parenting time/visitation/or other access o How to create a parenting plan (parental negotiation, attorney negotiation, mediation, specialized alternative dispute resolution (SADR), litigation)

6. Learn about alternative dispute resolution; conflict management; stress reduction; appropriate language usage and positive communication
Additional elements under this objective may include: o Use of "I" messages o How to help children with alienation o Interest based negotiation techniques

7. Provisions for safety and transition plans, as defined in NE Parenting Act

8. Information about parents and children affected by child abuse, neglect, domestic intimate partner abuse (DIPA)/unresolved parental conflict
Additional elements under this objective may include: o Mandatory reporting requirements o Effects of DIPA and child abuse/neglect at different stages of development o On going persistent parental conflict and its impact on children o Definitions/terms: domestic intimate partner abuse vs high conflict

9. Include resources and references for those wanting to get more information from web sites and books

I. B.

BASIC LEVEL PARENTING EDUCATION PROVIDER GUIDELINES 1. The statutorily-required educational objectives are being met by the provider 2. Safety for participants during the intake process and throughout the educational experience is addressed by: a. Offering separate classes for either party in a case b. Screening questions to assess presence of domestic intimate partner abuse c. Safety measures are in place at the site and time of the class 3. Each provider must provide a written proof of completion for each participant 4. Providers must submit significant curriculum modifications to the AOC for approval 5. The basic level class is at least two (2) hours in length and no more than six (6) hours in length 6. Participants have the opportunity to evaluate the course 7. Education class facilitator/educator qualifications shall include: a. Bachelors degree required in children and family, psychology, sociology, social work related field or equivalent b. Masters degree preferred in children and family, psychology, sociology, social work related field or equivalent OR equivalent experience in one of the above listed areas c. Exceptions to the facilitator/educator qualifications will be reviewed on a case by case basis and must receive approval by the State Court Administrator or its designee d. Three written references for the facilitator/educator regarding performance, proficiency, and quality is required to be submitted to the State Court Administrator as part of the request for approval e. Knowledge required in the following fields: domestic violence; mediation and specialized ADR under the Nebraska Parenting Act; parenting plans; family dynamics; understanding of mandatory child abuse and neglect reporting requirements; parental conflict and impact upon children

Statement of Compliance: As a provider of basic level parent education, I affirm that my organization and the facilitator/educators meet the Provider Guidelines as stated above.

___________________________________ Name / Title

______________________________ Date

II. SECOND LEVEL PARENTING A. EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES Parents who attend this educational course will: 1. Identify the "why" and "how" to develop provisions for safety and transition plans
Additional elements under this objective may include: o As it applies to the parenting plan o Examples of safe transitions o Parallel parenting o Options if plan is violated

Curriculum meets the learning objective

Yes

No

2. Identify the potential harmful impact of domestic intimate partner abuse and unresolved parental conflict on the child
Additional elements under this objective may include: o Definition of terms o Developmental stage specific effects o Resiliency factors o Joint and sole custody behaviors o Purpose of child support and ways to defuse unnecessary conflict

3. Learn effective communication techniques and protocols
Additional elements under this objective may include: o Plan for communicating about the needs of children o Safe communication for all parties with examples

4. Become aware of resource and referral information for victim, perpetrator, and batterer services
Additional elements under this objective may include: o Victim services o Perpetrator Services o Batterer Intervention Programs o Referrals for mental health services, substance abuse services, and other community resources

II. B.

SECOND LEVEL PARENTING EDUCATION PROVIDER GUIDELINES 1. The statutorily-required objectives are being met by the provider 2. Safety for participants during the intake process and throughout the educational experience is addressed by: a. Requiring separate classes for men and separate classes for women b. Screening questions to assess presence of domestic intimate partner abuse c. Safety measures are in place at the site and time of the class 3. Participants have the opportunity to evaluate the course 4. A minimum of a two (2) hour and a maximum of a six (6) hour course 5. Education Class Facilitator Qualifications shall include: a. Bachelors degree required in children and family, psychology, sociology, social work related field or equivalent b. Masters degree preferred in children and family, psychology, sociology, social work related field or equivalent OR equivalent experience in one of the above listed areas c. Exceptions to these requirements will be reviewed on a case by case basis and approved by the AOC Parent Education Committee d. Must submit three written references regarding the facilitator/educator's performance, proficiency, and quality e. Child welfare background check must be done for those facilitating the child of divorce course f. Knowledge required in the following fields: domestic violence; mediation and specialized ADR under the Nebraska Parenting Act; parenting plans; family dynamics; understanding of mandatory reporting requirements; parental conflict

Statement of Compliance: As a provider of second level parent education, I affirm that my organization and the facilitator/educators meet the Provider Guidelines as stated above.

_________________________________________ Name / Title

___________________________ Date