Core

The California Common Core Curricula is the result of a multi-year statewide collaborative effort to develop standardized curricula for California’s newly hired child welfare supervisors and workers. Development and implementation of the Common Core curricula was mandated by California’s Program Improvement Plan (PIP) as part of the 2003 federal Child and Family Services Review (CFSR). BAA provides three types of Core training:


Each year, BAA offers twelve cycles of Core for Child Welfare workers and experienced workers who have not received formal training in the subject areas covered in Core. The third revised version of Common Core is referred to as CC3.5 and was fully implemented on 7/01/2021.

CC3.5 curricula is delivered via classroom trainings, eLearnings and field activities and covers content from six distinct blocks, or key practice areas: Foundation, Engagement, Assessment, Case Planning and Service Delivery, Monitoring and Adapting, and Transition. The California Child Welfare Training LMS (CACWT) houses all CC3.5 materials. In total, CC3.5 consists of 18 classroom trainings, 10 eLearning modules and 5 field activities.

To register for Common Core trainings, contact your county’s Staff Development team.
Additional supporting resources:
CACWT Course Catalog
Common Core 3.5 Passport



Each year, BAA offers two cycles of Supervisor Core, a 10-day series which provides supervisors with the core skills required to lead and supervise their units. This series is intended for new Child Welfare supervisors or any supervisor who supervises staff in a public child welfare context.

Over a 5-month period, participants are given classroom instruction, required readings, a training binder with handbook exercises, and are encouraged to write in a learning journal. A unique feature of the training is the use of learning partners and an opportunity for learning in the field, as well as the DiSC Behavioral Style profile. The five essential supervisory themes that are consistently emphasized throughout the training include applying authority, cultural humility, establishing expectations, parallel process, and tending to teams. Participants who complete all of the modules are awarded a certificate of completion.

To register for Supervisor Core trainings, contact your county’s Staff Development team.



The Manager Core curriculum has been developed as a comprehensive series for Child Welfare managers, linking the themes in other levels of Core (Worker and Supervisor) to be specific to managers and to illustrate parallel process opportunities. This curriculum provides opportunities for participants to assess their knowledge, strengths and resources and apply knowledge and critical thinking skills to real manager scenarios. BAA utilizes curriculum that was developed by the Public Child Welfare Training Academy.

BAA offers one cycle of Manager Core annually, which consists of 6 days of training. The training topics covered include: Foundations for Managers in Child Welfare, Effective Relationships as a Manager, Strategies for Effective Organization, Growing and Sustaining Effective and External and Internal Teams, Essentials for Resource Management, and Strategic Thinking and Planning Tools.

To register for Manager Core trainings, contact your county’s Staff Development team.