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November 2015Vol. 16, No. 8Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Training Academy

The CQI Training Academy, a learning experience sponsored by the Capacity Building Center for States, which is part of the Children's Bureau Child Welfare Capacity Building Collaborative, is now available. The Center for States identified continuous quality improvement (CQI) as a significant issue and developed a menu of resources and interventions to assist States with fortifying and sustaining their CQI systems. The CQI Training Academy, originally developed by JBS International, Inc. in collaboration with the Children's Bureau, provides State child welfare professionals of all levels with foundational training in CQI systems and processes.

The Academy comprises self-directed e-learning modules that registered users, cohorts of registered users, and guest users can access via CapLEARN as a self-guided learning experience. (CapLEARN is the Child Welfare Capacity Building Collaborative tool that provides access to training, knowledge, and skills to promote professional leadership development.) Upon completion of all modules and pre/posttests, registered users will receive a certificate of completion and continuing education units (CEUs). The e-learning units correspond to the CQI cycle of learning: (1) identify and understand the problem, (2) research the solution, (3) develop the theory of change, (4) adapt or develop the solution, (5) implement the solution, and (6) monitor and assess the situation. The CQI Training Academy accommodates child welfare professionals' busy schedules, making it easy to integrate into existing training and workforce development plans.

Registered users can work at their own pace as the system tracks their progress and allows users to pick up where they left off in the training series. Guest users—individuals interested in revisiting certain topics or using one or more modules as a resource—will have access to all CQI Training Academy materials, including the e-learning modules, supplemental readings, and group learning discussion guides, but will not receive a certificate of completion or CEUs and are not required to complete the modules in order. The two user options provide participants with unlimited flexibility and the ability to customize their training. The content, developed by a variety of subject-matter experts, is organized by topic into units, allowing users to complete a unit and immediately put it to use in their daily work, thereby facilitating the instant transfer of CQI knowledge to real-world scenarios.

The Capacity Building Center for States will guide and support States interested in integrating the CQI Training Academy into their existing training systems and catalogues by providing support materials and coaching. Participants may use the CQI Training Academy as a standalone training series or in conjunction with other trainings, depending on their needs. The CQI Training Academy is also available to staff from courts and Tribes looking for an introduction to CQI concepts and is free of charge. For more information, visit the website for the Capacity Building Center for States at https://capacity.childwelfare.gov/.