CAFO Research Center

Improving Care

Ensuring we are doing the best for children and families

You love the children you care for and want to see them thrive.

At the same time, you tirelessly pour yourself into your work, trying to meet too many needs with too few resources. The results you hoped for don’t always match up with the results you’re getting. You are exhausted, overwhelmed, and wearing multiple hats in order to get it all done. You want to improve the care your program offers, but you have no idea where to start.

You are not alone.

What if there was a program that took the guesswork out of improving care for vulnerable children?

The Core Elements of Success has been created with this in mind - an evidence-based program focused on key areas impacting the quality of care.

The program draws from much of today’s best global guidance, refined with input from NGOs, field experts, and other qualified leaders. The self-assessment gives you a snapshot of your program’s strengths and opportunities for growth, and eCourses are available to provide you with information and resources for each area you choose to focus on. The complete program equips your program to offer the best care for vulnerable children and families. It’s care improvement made simple, for you.

The Core Elements program ensures you can do the very best for the vulnerable children & families you serve.

Play Video
How It Works

The Core Elements program provides opportunities to:

Circle of Learning (1)
Evaluate
  • Take the Core Elements Self-Assessment, focused on 21 key areas that impact quality of care. It is available in English and Spanish.
  • Receive an automated, customized report with a picture of your organization’s strengths and areas for growth.
Learn
  • Schedule a free coaching call to review your self-assessment results and build a personalized learning plan with recommended next steps.
  • Select an eCourse (in English or Spanish) that will provide knowledge and practical resources to improve care in that area of your program.
Implement
  • Utilize new learning and practical tools from the eCourse to refine your program and establish new ways of working.
  • Join the Core Elements Peer Learning Community and engage with others who can assist in implementing learning, taking next steps, evaluating your progress, and making adjustments as you journey together toward better care.
Report
  • Repeat the process annually and watch the care you offer lead to better outcomes for children and families!
  • Share your learning and results with donors and key stakeholders to evidence what is working, areas of learning, and measured growth over time.

What topics does the Core Elements program cover?

Select a course below to learn more about a particular topic

The Core Elements Program is for you if:

You serve vulnerable children and/or families.

You are engaged in orphan care in an international context.

You want to know, rather than just hope, that your program is effective.

You want to learn HOW to improve and receive the tools to do so.

Core Elements Program

Hear from other leaders about the impact of the Core Elements program:

Video
Play Video

Frequently Asked Questions

The Self-Assessment takes between 15 and 40 minutes to complete. Each user will receive a unique set of questions based on their answers, so the time to completion varies. If available within your organization, we recommend having a copy of the following materials on hand:

  • Employee Handbook
  • Child Protection Policy
  • Code of Conduct
  • Your most recent annual report
  • Board of Directors Handbook

The Core Elements Self-Assessment, Customized Report and follow-up Coaching Call are offered for FREE (a $599 value) as a thank you to all serving children and families who want to work toward better care.

Individual Core Elements eCourses are offered in both a self-paced, on-demand and hybrid format for $99 per eCourse. Each Core Elements eCourse provides lifetime access to content focused on one of 21 key areas that impact quality of care for children and families. Learning Grants are available for all eCourses. Don’t let cost stand in the way of your learning!

Yes! The Self-Assessment is currently available in Spanish. Users can select their language at the beginning of the survey. Many eCourses are also available in Spanish here.

The principles contained in the Core Elements Program are distilled from research and global guidance, and have been refined with the input of more than 40 organizations serving vulnerable children and families around the world.

Join us on the journey of learning to serve children and families better…together.

Stay connected with news and stories of impact in your inbox

English