October 19^th, 2026 Addressing Disparity and Disproportionality: MAAFPCWDA Training Update

The Minnesota Child Welfare Training Academy would like to provide you with an update on the Addressing Disparities and Disproportionality: MAAFPCWDA (CWTA X224) course, which launched in late June 2026. By the end of 2026, we are on course to have trained around 1,600 county child protection workers and supervisors.

This training is a key part of the MAAFPCWDA legislative requirement, with the creation and launch happening much more quickly than the Academy’s usual course launch process. Our Evaluation and Certification Team has been monitoring learner feedback, and so far we have learned that:

• 93% of learners who completed the course strongly agreed that they can explain the purpose of MAAFPCWDA
• In open-ended feedback, learners stressed how important it is to understand the history, disparities, and systemic context behind the Act
• 94% of learners said they intended to apply what they learned, with 92% reporting they felt confident in doing so
• When asked how they could apply the training in their work, learners describe applying the training through Active Efforts, family engagement, case planning, documentation, relative/kin identification, and connecting families with resources

While we are excited by this positive feedback, we also learned ways we could improve the course:

• Learners said the course was repetitive in two ways: it overlapped with other courses or their prior experience, and it was repetitive within the two-day course itself. When we compared learners who had and had not taken other Academy courses, repetition was a concern for both groups.
• Learners described some of the scenario-based learning as being overly basic. They wanted scenarios that reflect real cases and support discussion of realistic, complex situations.
• Learners have requested more information about how to apply MAAFPCWDA in their work.

Based on this feedback and in consultation with curriculum developers, trainers, legislation authors, and community partners, we have reviewed and revised the MAAFPCWDA course curriculum and will offer an updated version of this course during the week of October 26. The updated course will feature additional policy guidance that has been released by DCYF in recent weeks regarding MAAFPCWDA, updated course scenarios, and streamlined content. We believe this update will strengthen the learning experience and better support participants in engaging with the course content.

Learners who have already registered for trainings that will be affected will be notified in the next few weeks. This change WILL NOT require anyone who took the course before to retake it.

If you have questions, please contact us at info@mnchildwelfaretraining.org.