HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 07242007 - C.143 sE-L
`�E_-_--•--_.:fit,
TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Contra
FROM: Joe Valentine, Director g;, y;;,ia;;,�,�, _�� = s
Costa
Employment and Human Services Department �,
sT'4 COOT+'"
DATE: July 26, 2007 County
SUBJECT: Approval of Grant Application for Strong Families for Healthy Kids
Program
SPECIFIC REQUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION
RECOMMENDATION:
APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Employment and Human Services Director, or designee, to
apply for and accept grant funding in the amount of$324,804 from the federal Administration
for Children and Families to support.the Strong Families for Healthy Kids project.
FISCAL IMPACT:
$324,804 proposed action will have no impact on the General Fund.
BACKGROUND:'
The Employment and Human Services Department (EHSD) is partnering with a broad-
based coalition of faith- and community-based organizations to propose an array of
targeted marriage education services to over 1,800 Head Start eligible families in
Richmond and San Pablo. This project, entitled Strong Families for Healthy Kids, will
target the families served by all 14 Head Start sites in San Pablo and Richmond, as well
as Head Start eligible families that are not currently receiving Head Start services.
The goals of Strong Families for Healthy Kids are:
1. To support the adults of Head Start-eligible families in Richmond and San
Pablo in achieving their own aspirations for marriage.
CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: X YES SIGNATURE: 4
RECOMMENDATION
OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE
----APPROVE OTHER
SIGNATURE(S):
ACTION OF BO ON APPROVE AS RECOMMENDED.
OTHER
VOT OF SUPERVISORS
I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE
UNANIMOUS (ABSENT AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN
AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD
AYES: NOES: OF SUPERVI O THE DATE SHOWN.
ABSENT: ABSTAIN:
ATTESTED
JOHN C N,CLERY,OF THE BOARD OF
PERVISORS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR
Contact Person: Ed Lerman,6-5547
cc: Employment and Human Services,Contrails(EB)
Community Services Bureau
BY: DEPUTY
Approval-&Strong Families for Healthy Kids Program
2. To demonstrate improved understanding among project participants of the
skills needed to build and sustain a healthy relationship.
3. To build opportunities for improved family stability for project participants
through active linkage to services such as job training, mental health
services, legal aid, and housing advocacy. _
4. To create a culture of healthy relationships among the adolescents of Head
Start-eligible families in Richmond and San Pablo.
The non-profit Richmond Children's Foundation (RCF) has taken a leadership role in
assembling a coalition of community partners who will provide services in support of the
project's objectives. RCF's mission is to eliminate the educational inequities between
children living in high- and low-income school communities. RCF founded and provides
financial support to the Richmond College Preparatory Preschool (RCPP) in
Richmond's highly challenged Nystrom neighborhood. The RCCP currently serves 40
three- and four-year-old children with funding from the County's Head Start grant and
will increase these numbers to 80 pre-schoolers in the fall of 2007, with the help of
funding from the California Department of Education.
Additional community partners include:
• Bay Area Community Resources, which operates the West Contra Costa
First 5 Family Resource Center in San Pablo and also provides a variety of
school-based services, including mental health and health services, at
Richmond and San Pablo schools.
• Familias Unidas, the key provider of mental health, youth services,
HIV/AIDS services, and information and referral to the Spanish-speaking
communities of Richmond and San Pablo
• First 5 of Contra Costa, which provides revenues to local health, early
education, and family support programs to support expectant parents and
children ages 0 to 5. First 5 was formed to distribute revenues from the
tobacco tax mandated in 1999 by California's Proposition 10.
• STAND! Against Domestic Violence, providing domestic violence
prevention and intervention services, primarily in Contra Costa County.
STAND! is also the convener of the Faith Task Force, which is committed to
ensuring that families are safe in their relationships.
• Global Christian Ministries, founded in Richmond, which has a well-
developed prison ministry and a couples ministry
• St. Mark's Catholic Church, in the heart of Richmond's Iron Triangle. St.
Mark's serves a large Latino congregation and has a robust array of social
services.
• YMCA of the East Bay, which operates four Head Start sites in our targeted
cities and is also a contractor with First 5
The County would provide support from the EHDS North Richmond Service
Integration Team, which links residents to a wide range of social, health, and
employment services using a community empowerment model. The Department of
Probation is also a partner in the arena of linking parolees with the services offered by
the Strong Families for Healthy Kids coalition. Another partner from the public sector is
Approval*of strong Families for Healthy Kids Program
West Contra Costa Adult Education, in particular the Parent Education Department
and the Tech n icalNocation a I Education Department
Approach
Strong Families for Healthy Kids will employ an integrated, multi-systemic
approach to support the marital aspirations and family health (including mental,
physical, emotional and.economic health) of Head Start eligible Richmond and San
Pablo families, including:
Strong Families for Healthy Kids "core curriculum." This 8-12-hour course
on building skills for healthy relationships includes speaking and listening, non-verbal
communication, beliefs about marriage or family, qualities of healthy relationships and
healthy marriage, and parenting strategies within a relationship. Culturally competent
course facilitators will receive extensive training in using the research-based curriculum
"Active Education and Best Practices" from the Texas-based consulting company
Active Relationships. Active Relationships has been involved in the Healthy Marriage
Initiative since 1997, and its curricula are currently in use in Head Start marriage
education initiatives nationwide. The company's new Active Education and Best .
Practices curriculum includes all the required elements listed in the Marriage Education
Curriculum Assessment Guide. Learning goals for Active Education and Best Practices
include the following:
• State the importance of commitment in successful long-term relationships
• State the importance of long-term vision, patience and perseverance in
successful long-term relationships
• List components of successful communication, including listening and speaking
skills for effective communication and reduction of conflict
• Identify specific behaviors that promote successful relationships and those that
do not, including body language and non-verbal communication
• Identify steps to manage personal emotions
• List steps of the S.M.A.R.T. process conflict resolution tool to manage
disagreements
• Identify beliefs, attitudes and values about marriage or family
• Identify values and attitudes associated with long-term, low-conflict partnerships
• List research-based qualities of healthy relationships and healthy marriages
• List benefits of marriage for adults, children, community