Extension is expanding its online education and resources while in-person events and classes are canceled.
Parents Forever™ Online
Parents Forever ™ is an educational program for families experiencing a:
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Divorce.
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Separation.
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Change in custody.
Parents and other caregivers take a course like Parents Forever™ for several reasons. Usually they fall into two groups:
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They were told to take a parent education course by their judge, court personnel or attorney.
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They were concerned about their own and their children’s wellbeing after a family transition.
Parents Forever™ has been approved by the Minnesota Supreme Court. It meets and exceeds expectations for court mandated parent education in Minnesota. This online course was developed in partnership with the Minnesota Supreme Court, and was the first online course approved.
What will you learn?
Taking a Parents Forever™ course will help you learn valuable skills and tools. This will help to reduce the effects of the family transition on yourself and your children.
After completing a Parents Forever™ course, you will be able to:
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Describe the family transition journey and how each family member will be affected.
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Recognize the role of self-care, parent-child relationships, and co-parenting in child well-being.
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Identify internal and external resources and strategize how to leverage these resources to promote resilience for all involved.
You will receive a certificate of completion after completing your course. This certificate is what you need to show your judge, court personnel, or attorney if the course was court-ordered.
If the course has been required, get judge/attorney pre-approval
This course has been approved by the Minnesota Supreme Court. Even though most parents have had no difficulty getting the course accepted, we still recommend that you check that your judge/attorney will accept the online version of the course (before registering) if it has been required. (Your judge/attorney may be interested in Online course approved by Minnesota Supreme Court.)
What is covered by the course?
Parents Forever ™ courses are organized into five main sessions.
The first session of the curriculum helps you understand why you must take the course, and what you can expect from it.
After participating in this session, you will be able to:
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Understand the background and basis for the Parents Forever course.
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Explain the outline of the course and how it will be delivered.
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Describe topics and concepts you will learn in the course.
The second Parents Forever ™ session is about self-care. It uses the analogy of a plane trip throughout the curriculum. You will learn that “you need to put on your own oxygen mask first before helping your children or others put on theirs’.”
After participating in this session, you will be able to:
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Describe thoughts and feelings associated with the family transition process.
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Examine the links between self-care and life skills needed during and after the family transition.
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Analyze how personal needs and wants affect goals and create an action plan to improve self-care for the future.
The third Parents Forever ™ session is about parent-child relationships. It will help you realize that you and you children need each other. You can both help each other through the family transition journey.
After participating in this session, you will be able to:
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Recognize how stages of child development influence children’s journey through the family transition.
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Identify characteristics of parent-child relationships that improve child wellbeing.
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Apply knowledge and identify skills that will lead to improved parent-child relationships.
The fourth Parents Forever ™ session reaffirms that you and the your children’s other parent are “parents forever,” even if you are not living in the same household.
After participating in this session, you will:
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Reflect on the nature of their co-parenting relationships.
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Apply the communication and conflict management skills needed to have an effective co-parenting relationship.
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Recognize that a parenting plan is an effective tool to help prepare for positive co-parenting.
The fifth, and last, Parents Forever session will help you understand that the family transition will take time. You will eventually reach a satisfactory “destination.” After participating in this session, you will be able to describe how everything works together to improve family well-being.
Completion time
The course will take a minimum of 8 hours to complete. After you register, you will gain immediate access to the course. You can access the online course anytime and complete it within the given time allotment.
Cost
The cost for this course is $89. You will receive access to online versions of the Parents Forever™ Parent Handbook and more as part of your registration fee.
Are you unable to pay the full price? See Do you qualify for a reduced fee?
Registration
You will register through the University of Minnesota online registration system. This system uses pop-ups.
Follow the instructions and provide the required information. This registration system will:
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Guide you to "create a new guest account" to use for the course. If you have a University of Minnesota x500 internet ID/password, you will skip this step.
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Collect basic information about you, needed by the course instructor.
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Collect your registration fee of $89. (Required as a credit card payment.)
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Give you the link to immediately access the online course.