The Foster and Adoptive Home Development (FAD) specialist ensures that all caregivers, except those designated as kinship adopt only, complete a minimum of 19 hours of competency-based, pre-service training before being verified to foster or approved to adopt. The Texas National Training and Development Curriculum (NTDC) is used for DFPS foster and adoptive home applicants. This curriculum meets a portion of the pre-service training requirements in the Minimum Standards for Child-Placing Agencies. Only this approved curriculum may be used.

DFPS may require more than 19 hours of pre-service training in the treatment of children with the following issues:

• Complex medical needs
• Sexual victimization
• Sexual aggression
• Emotional disorders
• Intellectual or developmental disabilities
• Human trafficking victimization
• Any other situation as determined by DFPS.

Minimum Standards for Child-Placing Agencies, 26 TAC §749.863