1. (1) Agency responsibilities. A supervising agency or placing agency shall do, or contract for, all of the following:

   1. (a) Ensure that every foster child in their care is assigned a supervising agency or placing agency child welfare professional.
   2. (b) Have staff available for a foster parent to contact on a 24-hours per day, 7-days per week, basis.
   3. (c) Ensure that each agency child welfare professional is able to perform the duties specified in sub. (2) independently or under the supervision of an experienced child welfare professional. Notwithstanding this requirement and sub. (2) (a) (intro.), a person who is an intern or in a field placement for a higher education program may perform the duties under sub. (2) if they are supervised by an experienced child welfare professional.

2. (2) Responsibilities of a supervising agency or placing agency child welfare professional.

   1. (a) All levels of care. A child welfare professional employed by, or under contract to, a supervising agency or placing agency shall do all of the following for each foster child in the agency’s care:

      1. 1. Coordinate assessments of the foster child.
      2. 2. Select an appropriate foster home for the foster child after careful consideration of how well a prospective foster family will meet the foster child’s specific needs and address concerns of the foster child’s birth or adoptive parents.
      3. 3. Provide the foster parent with the supervising agency’s after-hours telephone number.
      4. 4. Provide the foster parent with information about the foster child under ch. DCF 37.
      5. 5. Prior to or at the time of placement of the foster child with a foster parent, explain to the foster parent the child-specific considerations that the foster parent is required to take into account when applying the reasonable and prudent parent standard, as documented on the forms required under ch. DCF 37, and provide the foster parent with the brochure required under s. DCF 56.12 (2) (c).

      6. 6. When a school-age foster child is placed in a foster home, notify the school district in which the foster home is located and the school in which the foster child will enroll, unless the foster child will remain enrolled in the same school and school district. If the foster child will remain enrolled in the same school and school district, the supervising agency or placing agency shall give notification of the placement to the foster child’s school and school district, as required under s. 48.64 (1r), Stats. Any notification shall include all of the following:

         1. a. The name, address, and phone number of the foster parent.
         2. b. The name of the foster child.
         3. c. Information about the foster child required by the school, as allowed under any applicable confidentiality laws.
         4. d. The child welfare professional’s contact information.
      7. 7. Advocate for the foster child with the foster child’s school, medical facility, or any other program in which the foster child is involved to ensure that services provided to the foster child are consistent with the permanency plan and treatment plan, if applicable.
      8. 8. Adhere to the requirements in s. 48.383 (2) (c), Stats., in preparing or revising the permanency plan for a foster child.
      9. 9. Assist the foster parent and foster child with overcoming barriers to the foster child’s participation in extracurricular, enrichment, cultural, and social activities that promote normalcy in an age and developmentally appropriate manner.
      10. 10. Assist with resolving a conflict among members of the foster child’s team or treatment team on the application of the reasonable and prudent parent standard.
      11. 11. Provide updated information to the foster parent about child-specific considerations for reasonable and prudent parenting decisions throughout the foster child’s placement through team or treatment team meetings and when there is a significant change in circumstances.
      12. 12. Advocate for the best interests and rights of the foster child.
      13. 13. Comply with agency contact requirements with the foster parent and foster child under s. DCF 56.185.
      14. 14. Support and assist the foster parent with effectively fulfilling the responsibilities in this chapter.
      15. 15. Assist the foster parent with any necessary arrangements in an emergency.
      16. 16. Perform liaison activities with other agencies.
      17. 17. Perform necessary court responsibilities as appropriate.

      18. 18. Notify the placing agency of any updates to information about the foster child that were not included in the forms provided to the foster parent at the time of placement under ch. DCF 37, if the supervising agency and placing agency are not the same agency.

          Note: The forms provided under ch. DCF 37 are DCF-F-872A-E, Information for Out-of-Home Care Providers, Part A. and DCF-F-872B-E, Information for Out-of-Home Care Providers, Part B. Both forms are available on the department website at https://dcf.wisconsin.gov/cwportal/fc/forms.

   2. (b) Levels 3 to 5. In addition to the requirements under par. (a), a supervising agency or placing agency child welfare professional shall do all of the following for each foster child with a level of need of 3 or higher in the agency’s care:

      1. 1. Respond to a request from the foster child’s foster parent for crisis intervention, emergency counseling, and related services within one hour.
      2. 2. Ensure that the foster child has a treatment team.
      3. 3. Serve as coordinator for the treatment team and organize treatment team meetings.
      4. 4. Educate a foster child’s treatment team members on services and medical procedures for the foster child’s specific needs.
      5. 5. Develop appropriate interventions and services for the foster child and the treatment team, including arranging assistance from appropriate specialists.
      6. 6. Provide or arrange for additional child care personnel during stressful or critical periods, as determined by the treatment team.
      7. 7. Assist and support the foster parent in obtaining any medical supplies and services required for the foster child. If required medical supplies and services are not included in the treatment plan, the supervising agency child welfare professional shall revise the treatment plan to include the required medical supplies and services and consult with the placing agency to determine financial responsibility.
      8. 8. Evaluate the foster child’s progress and recommend services in the treatment plan.
3. (3) Multiple agencies. If more than one agency is performing supervising responsibilities under subs. (1) and (2), the agencies shall specify in writing which agency is responsible for each requirement.

History

History: EmR0937: emerg. cr. eff. 1-1-10; CR 10-021: cr. Register September 2010 No. 657, eff. 10-1-10; EmR1050: emerg. r. and recr., eff. 1-1-11; CR 10-148: r. and recr. Register August 2011 No. 668, eff. 9-1-11; EmR1633: emerg. cr. (1) (a) 8. to 12., eff. 11-1816; CR 16-051: (1) (a) 8. to 12. Register July 2017 No. 739, eff. 8-1-17; CR 20-003: r. and recr. (1) (a) 4. (intro.), cr. (1) (a) 4. d. Register July 2020 No. 775, eff. 8-1-20; CR 25-043: r. and recr. Register November 2025 No. 839, eff. 12-1-25; correction in (1) (c) made under s. 13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats., Register November 2025 No. 839.