Become a Foster Parent

Children and youth are placed in foster care while their parent or guardian are given the opportunity, resources, and time to be better prepared to provide safety upon their return. The length of time a child or teen spends in foster care varies depending on the needs of the family. The Up Center’s Foster Care program provides a safe, nurturing, trauma informed, teaching home environment specifically designed to accommodate the needs of the kids during this time. 

Children placed in a traditional foster care setting have been determined to not have significant mental health or behavioral issues, may be developmentally on target, demonstrate age appropriate behaviors and are in need of basic nurturing and supervision from an adult caregiver.

Therapeutic foster care provides family-based treatment for children up to the age of 18 with special emotional, behavioral or medical needs. Children in therapeutic foster care have complex behavioral, mental health, and developmental concerns as a result of past trauma or abusive situations.

The Up Center is uniquely qualified to accommodate the needs of emotionally troubled and behaviorally challenged children who are at risk for failure or have failed in regular foster homes, have been unable to live with their own families, or who are going through a transitional period.

We help parents remove barriers to care – including expenses. Fostering does offer monetary allowances for your service and to ensure the proper care of the child. There is funding available through the State of Virginia for foster parents and substantial tax credits are also provided.

Foster parents can either own or rent their homes.

Trauma-Informed Parenting adjusts your parenting methods to respond to your child’s needs, understanding the impact of trauma on your child.

Parenting is not easy. Foster parenting is also not easy. Through times of triumph and struggle, foster parents need quality, professional support. The Up Center provides industry-leading training and 24/7 access to support. Know that you will not walk this journey alone.

We train and support foster parents, or resource families, to diminish the factors that impede a child’s return to their home or help the child achieve a permanent placement when reunification is not possible or in the child’s best interests.