Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 18 - HUMAN SERVICES › Part 6 - Division of Family and Children's Services › Chapter 1 - DFCS Policy Manual › Section 18-6-1-A - Administration › Subpart II - SERVICE DELIVERY › Section 18-6-1-A-II-VII - ON-GOING TRAINING REQUIRED FOR DIRECT SERVICE WORKERS

Current through June 25, 2024
It is the Direct Service Worker's responsibility to
						maintain proficiency in the performance of job duties by attending professional
						trainings and/or workshops. All Direct Service Workers shall obtain a minimum
						of 40 hours of on-going job-related training annually. Failure on the part of
						the Direct Service Worker to complete the 40 hours of annual training for any
						reason will be grounds for termination of employment.
Training offered by DFCS PDU shall be counted toward the
						40 hours. The Worker's supervisor may approve professional conferences,
						seminars and workshops outside of DFCS that are directly related to an
						employee's present job duties and responsibilities to be outside of DFCS toward
						the 40 hours. The Worker must submit documentation of completion of the
						training to the PDU for recording in the database.
DFCS PDU is a Designated Provider for Social Work
						Continuing Education (CE), but not all training offered by the unit will
						receive CEs. The training curriculum and the presentation of the curriculum
						must meet specific criteria in order for CEs to be awarded. The director of PDU
						will inform staff if CEs are to be given for a particular training.
The following DFCS- sponsored trainings are mandatory for
						all DFCS Direct Service Workers and supervisors annually:
* Non-Violent Crisis Intervention Training
* Age Appropriate Passenger Restraints System Training
A.
Staff Development/Training
					 Request
An employee planning to attend training not provided by
						the DFCS is required to submit a Travel Authorization (Form MDHS-AF-13-20-20)
						at least two (2) weeks in advance of the training to his/her immediate
						supervisor. The supervisor will then forward the form to the employee's second
						line supervisor for approval /disapproval.
The second line supervisor will review the Form
						MDHS-AF-13-20-20 for accuracy and completeness and, when necessary, will
						consult with the DFCS Training Director with respect to items in question prior
						to approval. The second line supervisor is authorized to approve any request
						for On-going Staff Development/Training for time only. Any staff
						development/training requiring the expenditure of funds shall be forwarded to
						the DFCS Office Director II for final approval.
DFCS may pay for all or any part of training costs,
						depending on the availability of funds, as authorized by the DFCS Office
						Director II. Requests for reimbursement of approved expenses for staff
						development/training should be submitted with the proper documentation in a
						timely manner and in accordance with MDHS AP-19.
B.
On-Going Training Waiver
With the exception of job orientation and Pre-Service
						Training for new employees, the DFCS PDU Director may issue a waiver for any
						course of study validated (MSW course of study) as meeting DFCS requirements of
						on-going training. The employee must be enrolled in an accredited college,
						university, or a school in candidacy for CSWE status and the course must be at
						the graduate level in order to be considered. An employee must submit his/her
						request for a waiver in writing to his/her supervisor for review. The request
						must include:
* The course title
* Name of the college, university, or school
* Course dates
* Certificate of completion with a final grade of "B" or
						better
* Course description and objectives
* Number of academic semester hours
If the employee's request meets these requirements, the
						supervisor will sign the request and forward it to the DFCS PDU Director for
						approval.
C.
Supervisory Access
Supervisory personnel are involved in all decisions
						related to child safety and permanency, and workers shall have access to a
						supervisor by telephone 24 hours a day.