Interview with ALP's Noreen Burke  What is Adoption Learning Partners? Adoption Learning Partners (ALP) was launched in 2002 as an easily accessible online educational resource for the greater adoption community. Started with a grant from the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), ALP created its first course, Conspicuous Families, to address the need for parental preparation for transracial and transcultural adoption. This course grew out of a live seminar that The Cradle’s Judy Stigger was presenting for Cradle families. Since then, the website has grown to include eight courses that deal with a wide variety of adoption-related topics. All of the courses are available online 24 hours a day, which has been a big plus for parents and individuals with tight schedules. The great thing about ALP is that you are free to take a course on your own, when and where you want. There is no need to find a babysitter, jump in the car and drive to an evening or weekend class. People can take ALP courses without leaving the comfort of their own home. As Project Manager for ALP, what does your job entail?  I'm responsible for planning and managing course development. I coordinate and review the work of subject matter experts and internal/external course reviewers, and coordinate and supervise the work of our independent contractors who provide graphics and technical programming. My duties also include instructional design, researching, writing and editing content. How is ALP funded? Most of our courses have been developed through grants from Illinois DCFS, so in addition to benefiting adoptive families, they are designed to help parents who are currently fostering children and looking to adopt domestically. We also receive foundation grants and individual donations. An additional source of revenue for ALP comes from fees for Certificates of Completion. People who complete an ALP course can elect to receive a certificate for a $30 processing fee. This revenue is helping us to make improvements to the site and develop new courses. What are the different ALP courses? The courses cover a broad range of topics, such as fostering attachment with your adopted child, understanding the adoption tax credit, and creating a Lifebook to tell your child’s story. A complete list of courses and descriptions can be found on the website.   How many people take ALP courses? We had more than 20,000 course enrollments in 2006, which is a 60% increase over the previous year. Registered users come from all over the U.S. and many foreign countries. More than 60 adoption agencies across the country require or recommend our courses for their clients. What kind of feedback have you received? Feedback has been excellent -- at the end of each course we have a survey and space for people to leave comments. The vast majority of people who have taken ALP courses are extremely satisfied. Foster families are especially happy that they are able to take these courses to maintain their foster care licenses while remaining at home with the children. Do you have a specific story you can share with us? We have received so many heartfelt comments from ALP users. Let me share just one reflection from an adoptive parent who took the course, Finding the Missing Pieces: Thank you so much for offering the online adoption education program. As an adoptive mother, I was at a loss of finding ways to help my 20-year-old daughter deal with her anger and depression. I adopted her when she was 9 days old and I can surely identify many of the feeling and situations you mentioned in your course. Seeing a bright beautiful young woman, who at times has fit a rage and sadness, made me feel so helpless and worried. Now I understand where they came from and can empathize with her anger and sadness. What’s next for ALP? In 2007 we will be launching two new courses, Adopting The Older Child and Medical Issues in International Adoption. The first course will help parents determine whether adopting an older child, either internationally or through the domestic child welfare system, is right for them and will provide strategies for integrating an older child into their family. The second course will give an overview of common medical issues faced by children adopted internationally, and help parents to work with physicians and other professionals to address the needs of their child. While this course focuses on the health needs of internationally adopted children, many of these issues are common to children adopted domestically from the foster care system. ALP is also working with Illinois DCFS on an exciting project designed to help youth, birth, foster, and adoptive families create a path toward maintaining connections. In partnership with the Adoption Information Center of Illinois, DCFS was awarded a federal grant to develop the training course Maintaining Connections for families in the public child welfare system. This course explores how assisting older youth in maintaining connections with significant people in their lives can help them to accept a permanent placement with an adoptive or guardian family. Adoption Learning Partners has been contracted by DCFS to create an online version of this course that trains staff on how to work with foster and adoptive parents to help them maintain connections. Although this course will not be offered on ALP’s website, it’s an example of how the program is expanding and providing an important service to countless people involved in the welfare of children. If you have any questions about ALP, please e-mail Noreen Burke. (info@adoptionlearningpartners.org) The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute’s website provides an excellent overview of the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption and its associated regulations.