Academics
 

Family Development Credentials (FDC)

Program Background and Description

Molloy College is offering the Family Development Credentials (FDC) program, strengths-based family support training for front-line family workers/professionals. The FDC program is a professional development course and credentialing program for frontline family workers/professionals to learn and practice skills of strengths-based family support with families. FDC is offered in 19 states and its movement is growing nationwide. A collaborative effort between the Family Development Institute and Molloy College.

Community and state services have been fragmented, problem-specific, crisis-driven, and focused on "rescuing or fixing" families in trouble. Molloy College serves as a catalyst for an exciting, life-transforming journey for family workers! The FDC training offers professionals, who work with families, a systematic and sequential training as well as a reliable recognition of skills and competencies needed to work effectively with families. For years, New York State staff - including those on Long Island - who work with families were educated using the strengths-based approach. Now, you can enroll in the FDC training, developed by researchers at Cornell University, and help families develop their own capacity to solve problems and achieve life long-lasting self-reliance.

Molloy College supports New York State in their commitment to reorient its health, education, and human service systems toward a family support and empowerment approach statewide. A quote from the Empowerment Skills for Family Workers' curriculum reads: "Within each person lies a bone-deep longing for freedom, self-respect, hope and the chance to make an important contribution to one's family, community, and the world,". The credentials also provide an important career pathway or avenue into college for workers who ordinarily have little or no formal training or higher education.  The FDC curriculum is based on 10 teaching modules:

Module 1: Family Development: A Sustainable Route to Healthy Self-Reliance
Module 2: Communicating with Skill and Heart
Module 3: Taking Good Care of Yourself
Module 4: Diversity
Module 5: Strengths-based Assessment
Module 6: Helping Families Set and Reach Goals
Module 7: Helping Families Access Specialized Services
Module 8: Home Visiting
Module 9: Facilitation Skills: Family Conferences, Support Groups and Community Meetings
Module 10: Collaboration

The purpose of Empowerment Skills for Family Workers is for workers to use their power responsibly and grow into highly skilled, effective family development workers who can help families move from dependence on government programs to a healthy, sustainable relationship with their communities. In addition, the FDC course is offered to frontline family workers from a wide range of government, private and not-for-profit agencies as well as businesses and large corporations. As a result, families receive services that have the same orientation, making the approach so much more comprehensive.

Family Development Credential (FDC) Requirement

To earn the FDC, an applicant completes 90 hours of interactive classroom instruction based on the Empowerment Skills for Family Workers curriculum, prepares a skills portfolio with the support of a portfolio advisor, and passes a state credentialing exam. The credentialing fee exam is $250.

Schedule of Classes

The FDC program is offered over 20 sessions in either an evening (4-9 p.m.) or day (9 a.m. - 3 p.m.) format at Molloy's Suffolk Center located just off Route 110 on the grounds of Republic Airport: 7180 Republic Airport, East Farmingdale, New York. The program is offered just once per year starting in September.

Who Should Attend?

Case managers, home health aides and direct care workers, intake and social welfare workers, community or nutrition workers, early intervention staff, outreach workers, employment and training counselors, crisis intervention staff, home visitors, volunteers and paid staff in faith-based groups.

Course Information

Instructor: CLARISSA F. THOMAS, FDC, BA, MSW
Course Number: FDC 1000 Tuition: $895 (includes textbook)

Section A         Suffolk Center Campus
20 Thursdays evenings, 9/27, 10/4, 10/11, 10/18, 11/8, 11/15, 12/6, 12/13, 1/10, 1/17, 2/14, 2/21, 3/7, 3/21, 4/11, 4/17, 5/8, 5/15, 6/6 & 6/13; 4:00 - 9:00 p.m.

Section B         Suffolk Center Campus
20 Friday days, 9/28, 10/5, 10/12, 10/19, 11/9, 11/16, 12/7, 12/14, 1/11, 1/18, 2/15, 2/22, 3/8, 3/22, 4/12, 4/18, 5/9, 5/16, 6/7 & 6/14; 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Registration

Students should register for classes at least one week prior to the start of classes to insure enough time for you to get your confirmation and parking permit. However, you can register up until the day of class. Please note that some of our classes do close out and some of our classes do cancel, so you may be taking a chance of not getting into the course of your choice by waiting.

To register online, in person, by phone, by fax or by mail, click here. Confirmation of your registration and classroom assignments will be mailed or emailed to you upon receipt of your registration.

Questions?

If you have any questions, contact Louis Cino at lcino@molloy.edu or call 516.678.5000 ext. 6206.