Training that counts.
You know the rule — 15 hours of Continued Parent Development a year. This page answers the next question: where an approved Georgia caregiver actually gets those hours without paying for them, with what's confirmed marked and what isn't said plainly.
The requirement, in one breath
Per DFCS policy (PAMMS 14.9): 15 CPD hours per calendar year, due by December 31 — at least 5 in person, no more than 5 online and no more than 5 via webinar, starting within 60 days of your initial approval Verified Jul 2, 2026. That's the whole rule in one sentence; the full breakdown, the caps, and the 60-vs-90-day wrinkle live in our training rules explainer.
The rule that decides what "counts"
Before you spend an evening on any course: make sure the hours will land on your record.
Published policy sets the numbers — hours, caps, deadline — and requires that training be "relevant to the type of children being placed in the home," per DFCS's caregiver site Verified Jul 2, 2026. What the state does not publish is a list of pre-approved providers or a public approval process.
Approval mechanics aren't published — ask before you start
Neither PAMMS 14.9 nor DFCS's ongoing-training page spells out, publicly, who signs off on whether a given course counts toward your 15 hours. In practice your hours are tracked through your case manager and your agency or DFCS resource development team — so before counting anything from outside their own calendars, ask the person who maintains your CPD plan (your case manager or agency support worker) in writing. A one-line email now beats a December surprise.
Where the free hours are
Three doors, all free to Georgia caregivers. Confirmation status is marked on each.
Foster411 Training
Free CE courses built for Georgia foster parents — video and reading lessons, quizzes, and dated certificates that count toward your annual hours.
Visit training.foster411.comGACRS — courses & lending library
Nonprofit · state contractThe Georgia Center for Resources & Support, run by Families First under contract with Georgia DHS, exists to support foster and adoptive families at no cost. Per DFCS's own GACRS page:
- Virtual certificate trainings — online courses that issue a certificate you can file with your training log
- Lending library — request books, articles, and DVDs by email or phone
- Regional Resource Advisors statewide for advice, support, and training
- Call 1-866-A-PARENT (1-866-272-7368)
Do library books and DVDs convert into CPD hours? We haven't found that in writing anywhere — some agencies credit reading/viewing with a report, some don't. Ask your case manager before assuming, and ask GACRS how their certificates are usually credited. Remember the caps either way: virtual courses fall under the online/webinar limits, so GACRS alone can't supply all 15 hours.
DFCS's own list: fostergeorgia.com
GovernmentDFCS's caregiver site keeps an ongoing-training page — this is the state's own answer to "where do I get hours." As of our July 2, 2026 check, it lists:
- Regional trainings — arranged by the resource development team for your area; contact your regional Caregiver Recruitment and Retention Unit Lead
- Regional Summits — in-person training sessions for current caregivers
- Webinars — interactive online trainings with experts (capped at 5 hrs/yr)
- Caregiver Coaching Academy
- Annual AFPAG Conference — held each February; registration at afpag.net
Because these come from DFCS's own channels, they're the safest hours to bank — the people arranging them are the same system tracking your CPD plan.
Don't skip the closest door: your own agency's calendar
If you foster through a private agency (CPA), it almost certainly runs its own trainings, support-group sessions, and conferences — often built specifically to satisfy CPD, and free to its families. We can't verify every agency's calendar from here, so this one is an ask, not a listing: ask your agency support worker for this year's training calendar and which sessions count as in-person hours. DFCS-direct homes: the regional resource development team above plays the same role.
The in-person floor: 5 hours you can't click through
At least 5 of your 15 hours must happen in person — one-on-one or group Verified Jul 2, 2026 · PAMMS 14.9. Free online courses are the easy part; these five are what catch people in December. The in-person options DFCS itself points to are the Regional Summits and regional trainings above, plus the AFPAG conference each February.
Community practice — not policy — is that foster parent association meetings and agency-run group trainings are where most families quietly bank their in-person hours, a chapter meeting at a time. Whether a given association meeting counts is your case manager's call, so get it confirmed once and then make it routine. If you're not plugged into a local association yet, AFPAG (1-877-804-6610) is the statewide advocacy group to start with.
What we haven't verified
National online course sites — unconfirmed for Georgia
Search for "foster parent training hours" and you'll find national online curricula marketed directly to foster parents, some free and some paid, many promising certificates. We have not confirmed whether Georgia counts any of them toward CPD, and DFCS's own training page doesn't name any — so we won't list them as if they count. If your case manager has approved a specific national course in writing, tell us which one and we'll chase down whether that's policy or a one-off.
Also still unverified: whether GACRS lending-library materials convert to hours (see above), and each agency's individual calendar. Spot something wrong or newly confirmed? Report it.
Sources & verification
- DFCS policy manual (PAMMS) §14.9 — Continued Parent Development (15 hrs, ≥5 in person, caps, Dec 31)pamms.dhs.ga.gov Jul 2, 2026
- DFCS caregiver site — ongoing training sources (regional trainings, summits, webinars, Coaching Academy, AFPAG conference)fostergeorgia.com Jul 2, 2026
- DFCS — Georgia Center for Resources & Support (virtual certificate trainings, lending library, advisors, 1-866-A-PARENT)dfcs.georgia.gov Jul 2, 2026
- AFPAG — annual conference registrationafpag.net Jul 2, 2026
Note on gacrs.org: GACRS's own website was unreachable on our July 2, 2026 check (a TLS certificate quirk on their end), so GACRS details above are sourced from DFCS's page about the program rather than gacrs.org directly. This page summarizes policy in plain language and is not legal advice — your CPD plan and your case manager are the final word on what counts.
One call can map your whole 15 hours.
GACRS exists to support Georgia's foster and adoptive parents for free — ask about their courses, the lending library, and the Resource Advisor for your region.