Thank you for your interest in partnering with PetPalsNC (PPNC) to establish a therapy dog program for your school. PPNC is a nonprofit organization that promotes and supports pet-assisted therapy and activities for K-12 students to enhance academic, social, emotional, and behavioral growth, and services are free of charge for public schools.
The process for initiating a partnership with us involves the following four steps:
- Submit an application. This application is designed to help us better understand the aspirational goals of your therapy dog program and to support you in achieving those goals. Once your application has been received and reviewed, you will be contacted by a PetPalsNC team member to discuss next steps (typically 1-2 weeks). Please understand that an application does not guarantee a therapy dog team for the school.
- Complete the PPNC online training module. The primary goal of the training module is to provide school liaisons and others working with the program information, tools, and tips to ensure the provision of beneficial and effective pet therapy services for their students. The training module takes approximately one hour to complete and must be completed by all staff who are participating in the program. (Note: link to training module is provided with the MOA.)
- Sign the PPNC/School Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). The MOA spells out the terms of the partnership and requires the signature of the school’s principal and the assigned liaison for the program, which is normally the school counselor or school social worker. In most cases, there will already be a district-level MOA in place.
- Conduct an orientation meeting. Together with a representative from the PPNC Leadership Team, the school liaison must hold an orientation meeting with all participating staff to meet your newly assigned Pet Therapy Team (handler and dog) and to plan for a successful start.