Regional Core Training (RCT) is Washington State’s pre-service foundational training designed to prepare newly hired social service specialists with the basic knowledge, skills, and understanding to begin their careers in public child welfare for the State of Washington. RCT is a comprehensive training containing multiple sessions which lay the foundation for continuous on-the-job learning and professional development critical to developing competent, confident, and effective child welfare professionals.

RCT consists of a cohesive developmental curriculum in which knowledge and skills are broadened and deepened. RCT provides participants with blended learning opportunities, including classroom instruction, field activities, and coaching. RCT is organized into three distinct learning modules, each with a subset of dedicated instruction;

General Instruction
The Population You Serve
Dynamics of Child Abuse and Neglect
Through the Life of a Case
Safety Focused Practice
Getting to Know Your Caseload
Program Tailored Learning
Program-Specific Assessment and Planning
Managing Your Caseload

Woven throughout RCT are several critical concepts, integral to best practice in child welfare, and designed to maximize learning within context and with relevancy to the work:

• Child Safety
• Critical Thinking
• Trauma-Informed Practice
• Disproportionality in Child Welfare
• Cultural Competency/Cultural Humility
• Recognizing Bias and Confirmation Bias
• FamLink Skills
• Program Specific Job Skills