New Training Portal Launching Early 2022

The Minnesota Child Welfare Training Academy (MNCWTA) is excited to launch a new application to centralize registration, learning records, and course information for child welfare professionals throughout Minnesota. Called the Training Portal, this new system will be used by all Minnesota county and tribal workers, as well as their supervisors and a small number of private providers who deliver child welfare services on behalf of the counties, for any courses delivered by the MNCWTA.

In October we introduced and tested the Training Portal with MNCWTA staff and community trainers, and in November and December a small group of learners will help us pilot this new system. The pilot includes participants in the Domestic Violence Co-Occurrence: Partnering and Engaging Parents course in November, as well as new workers beginning Foundations training in December (Cohort 88) and their supervisors, who will assign this training to them. You will be contacted directly if this affects you.

For the past two years, the Training Academy has utilized the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) TrainLink system for course registration. DHS trainings will continue to be registered for through Trainlink (e.g., SSIS trainings), but all MNCWTA trainings will eventually be managed through the new training portal.

In early 2022, all learners and trainers will create new accounts in the Training Portal, and this interface will help manage the complete training experience. Not only will this new system manage registration, in the same way that TrainLink currently does, but it will also provide new features. It will manage training progress and history, house training materials and resources, provide video conferencing links and recordings, course evaluation, and offer better communication between trainers and learners. For supervisors, the Training Portal will allow them to assign and manage training, to see progress of learners, and to ensure new employees receive necessary onboarding.

Several technology tools are being connected to create the Training Portal. Beyond the portal interface, individual training courses will be contained in a program called Canvas, which is a web-based learning management system, or LMS. Canvas is part of an enterprise contract with the University of Minnesota, so users will encounter the University branding when using this tool. Canvas is used by many learning institutions, educators, and students to access and manage online course learning materials and communicate about skill development and learning achievement. Part of acclimating to the new Training Portal will require that trainers and learners become comfortable with Canvas.

In the future, the Training Portal will also house information on progress toward credentialing, helping child welfare professionals achieve the expertise and experience needed to be successful. This new system will be a one-stop shop to meet child welfare learner, supervisor, and trainer needs, and is designed to create a more intuitive learner experience. It will help us to keep accurate records, be more transparent, eliminate confusion, and it will allow us to be accountable to our trainees, trainers, and collaborative partners.

If you have questions about this new system, please contact us anytime at info@mnchildwelfaretraining.com.