Recent experiences have led me to consider becoming a foster parent. Without going into specifics, I have become painfully aware of the obstacles children face when home is not a safe place for them to be, but their parents still have all the legal rights. A young person I know was forced to navigate "the system" in order to escape a harmful environment. If not for her friends, and her friends' parents, it is likely that this teen may have been left in an unsafe home or become a runaway. Fortunately, she is now living with a great foster family.
I don't know if it was a coincidence, or serendipity, but this is the front page article that greeted me at work one morning in the midst of the aforementioned ordeal: "Teaching from the Experience," by Angel Roy, Eagle Times Newspaper, August 14, 2010. Keith Marsh, the instructor for many of the Foster Parent Classes that meet at GSC's Claremont, NH College, was featured. As the article mentions, Granite State College is "the school through which all foster care and adoptive training is conducted in the state, in partnership with the NH Department of Children, Youth and Families."
If I didn't live in Vermont, I'd sign up for one of Marsh's foster parent classes in a heartbeat, but as a Vermont resident I have to take classes through my state's equivalent agency. Not only would it be more convenient for me to take these classes at GSC, because they are held where I work, but I have a very positive impression of the instructors I've encountered. Although my interactions with Marsh have been few and brief, my overall impression leads me to believe he's a fantastic teacher, and a wonderful foster parent. Case in point:
One evening last spring, we lost electricity just before one of Marsh's foster parent classes. I was the only GSC staff left at our Claremont NH College for the day. The epitome of calm, cool and collected, Keith asked if there was a pizza place nearby. I pointed him in the direction of Ramuntos. He thanked me and led his class down the sidewalk to the restaurant. I was so impressed by Keith's "go-with-the-flow" demeanor. While many instructors might have gotten flustered and/or cancelled the class, Marsh didn't let this obstacle stand in the way of continuing with his foster care class, he simply moved it to another locale for the night. What a terrific role model for his students!
If you want to learn more about Foster Parent Training at Granite State College -- I encourage you to check out that page on our website.
I don't know if it was a coincidence, or serendipity, but this is the front page article that greeted me at work one morning in the midst of the aforementioned ordeal: "Teaching from the Experience," by Angel Roy, Eagle Times Newspaper, August 14, 2010. Keith Marsh, the instructor for many of the Foster Parent Classes that meet at GSC's Claremont, NH College, was featured. As the article mentions, Granite State College is "the school through which all foster care and adoptive training is conducted in the state, in partnership with the NH Department of Children, Youth and Families."
If I didn't live in Vermont, I'd sign up for one of Marsh's foster parent classes in a heartbeat, but as a Vermont resident I have to take classes through my state's equivalent agency. Not only would it be more convenient for me to take these classes at GSC, because they are held where I work, but I have a very positive impression of the instructors I've encountered. Although my interactions with Marsh have been few and brief, my overall impression leads me to believe he's a fantastic teacher, and a wonderful foster parent. Case in point:
One evening last spring, we lost electricity just before one of Marsh's foster parent classes. I was the only GSC staff left at our Claremont NH College for the day. The epitome of calm, cool and collected, Keith asked if there was a pizza place nearby. I pointed him in the direction of Ramuntos. He thanked me and led his class down the sidewalk to the restaurant. I was so impressed by Keith's "go-with-the-flow" demeanor. While many instructors might have gotten flustered and/or cancelled the class, Marsh didn't let this obstacle stand in the way of continuing with his foster care class, he simply moved it to another locale for the night. What a terrific role model for his students!
If you want to learn more about Foster Parent Training at Granite State College -- I encourage you to check out that page on our website.
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