This course satisfies the Safety, Support & Wellness requirement for the School Culture Advocate Certification. Learn more at www.safeschoolsacademy.org/csca.

Course Description: Schools are full of families—but not all families look the same. Many students live with grandparents or relatives, move between households, live in foster care, experience housing instability, or have LGBTQ+ parents. When school practices assume every student has the same kind of “home,” students whose families fall outside that norm can feel invisible, misunderstood, or excluded.

This course helps educators better understand the wide range of family structures represented in today’s classrooms and how these realities shape students’ social, emotional, and academic experiences. Participants will explore how common school practices—such as family tree projects, classroom language, and caregiver communication—can unintentionally create barriers for students from diverse family backgrounds.

Using real-world scenarios and research-based resources, educators will examine the experiences of students impacted by adoption, foster care, divorce, kinship care, homelessness, immigration-related stress, and families with LGBTQ+ parents. The course focuses on practical strategies for creating more inclusive classrooms, building stronger relationships with caregivers, and ensuring all students feel seen, valued, and supported.

Participants will conclude the course by developing an action plan with concrete steps they can take to make their classroom and school more affirming of family diversity.

This is a one-credit course.*

Click here to view the full course syllabus.

Upcoming sections:
April 26, 2026 - May 16, 2026
May 17, 2026 - June 6, 2026
June 21, 2026 - July 11, 2026

Course Fees (🫳🎹🎶 Piano Pricedown: $40 OFF License Renewal now through 3/31/26! Prices automatically applied—NO CODE REQUIRED! 🫳🎹🎶):

License Renewal - $95 $55
Para credit - $95 $55
Audit - $35

If you have questions, check out our FAQ page! You can also email academy@iowasafeschools.org or call 515.381.0588 if you’d prefer to pay by check.

Cancellation/Refund Policy
Please review our Terms & Conditions for more information on our refund and transfer policy.

Transfer Policy
If a Safe Schools Academy course registrant does not complete their course within the section dates listed on their Safe Schools Academy Order Confirmation, or encounters personal circumstances that prevent them from completing their course, they are entitled to one (1) free transfer to an equivalent-credit course section within one (1) year of their original course registration date. If the transferred course section is not completed, the participant must re-register to be enrolled. Safe Schools Academy registrants are limited to one (1) free course transfer per paid course.

Minimum Registration Limit
Beginning 8/1/2021, the minimum registration limit for a class will be three (3) registrants. If your registered class does not meet the minimum registration limit one week prior to your course start date, our Registrar will contact you about future transfer options.

Transcripts
Please allow up to two weeks for transcripts to be processed following a course end date. Request your transcripts by going to http://www.safeschoolsacademy.org/transcripts.