Mid-Sioux Newsletter

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Helping People. Changing Lives.

March 2018 Volume 28; Issue 6

From the Executive Director's Desk

March is the first month of the Head Start/Early Head Start program year. We ended our year in a positive way financially and with program goals. Staff works very hard to assure that children and families receive quality services. Administrative staff have provided for a cost effective and quality program as well. Recruitment has started for the new year. As part of that effort, we are posting videos on our Facebook page and website. These can be viewed at W.I.C. clinics and Outreach offices as well. If you have an opportunity to view them please do so. I’m sure you will be impressed with the comments provided by staff and families. It is great to see how the children have progressed since the beginning of the school year as well.

There has been a bill introduced at the federal level HR 5124. The Community Action Opioid Response Act of 2018. This bill (co-sponsored by Rep. McCollum (D) of Minn. & Rep. Smucker (R) of PA.) would provide funds to Community Action Agencies nationwide to help combat the opioid epidemic. Funds would be awarded on a competitive basis. This bill still needs to make it through the House and then to the Senate but it is a sign that Congress is looking to Community Action Agencies as a means to help combat the opioid problem.

Our weather has certainly made our work more complicated. Canceling Head Start/Early Head Start classes and W.I.C. clinics means we have to make up those hours at some point. The staff has done a great job meeting these demands. Hopefully our weather will cooperate during the rest of our winter.

We were notified on February 14 ^th that our application for Child Care Resource & Referral services in Region 1 was approved. In addition we received statewide contracts for Training/Curriculum Development and statewide Communication Support. This was very good news as these awards are for a 5 year period beginning July 1, 2018. Thanks to all the staff for their hard work on these proposals and for the support we received from Stephen Scott who provided grant writing services.

The coming weeks will be busy preparing for the Community Services Block Grant renewal application.

Spring is almost here!

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Child Care Resource & Referral

#TogetherWeWill... Work together to provide quality child care programs for Iowa's youngest citizens!

CCR&R of NW Iowa - Region 1

Child Care Resource & Referral (CCR&R) of NW Iowa funded a fall child care conference in Manson, Iowa. This conference provided exciting hands on learning to over 50 providers through nature and science. Providers learned skills to implement immediately in their programs with materials they can find in their backyards with minimal expense.

The morning session was about doing projects using nature to inspire and engage children in curious learning and the benefits of exploring outdoors. The afternoon session was spent working on building leadership skills using Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) to discover exciting ways to develop their skills within their staff and the children they care for. They learned how science experiments can teach leadership skills.

To learn more about the free services offered to providers and parents

by Child Care Resource & Referral, visit their website at www.iowaccrr.org .

CCR&R is committed to ensure that Iowa's vision is met: "All children, beginning at birth, will be healthy and successful."

CCR&R of NW Iowa | www.iowaccrr.org

Funding provided by the Iowa Department of Human Services through the Child Care Development Fund

Family Services & Self-Sufficiency

The Family Development & Self-Sufficiency (FaDSS) program is a voluntary program providing services that promote, empower, and nurture a family to self-sufficiency. FaDSS emphasizes and builds upon the strengths of families, assisting them to set and attain goals leading to self-sufficiency. Every family participating in the program is obviously very different. FaDSS Specialists work to meet the needs of each individual family to help them succeed. Many things are done with a family during their time in the FaDSS program, but below are the main components of the program.

Home Visits—Families receiving funds through the Family Investment Program (FIP) are visited in their home 2 times/month by a Certified Family Development Specialist (FDS). Mid-Sioux Opportunity has 3 Family Development Specialists. Home Visits are the foundation for all FaDSS services.

Assessments—FDS complete various assessments when working with families, as needed. These assessments may include food insecurity, child development screenings, domestic violence, substance abuse, or mental health.

Goal Setting—Goal setting is directed by the family with guidance from the FDS. This is done at every home visit and all family members are invited to participate.

Support/Advocacy—The Family Development Specialist provides ongoing, strength-based and solution-focused support and advocacy to ensure that services are appropriate and beneficial for the family.

Referrals—The Family Development Specialist assists the family in accessing community resources that may also assist the family.

The Mid-Sioux FaDSS program serves approximately 70 families each year between Cherokee, Ida, Plymouth, Lyon, and Sioux Counties. The average length of stay in our program is around 9 months. Last year, we exited 31 families during the year. Those 31 families received a combined total of 216 home visits.

Plymouth County Outreach

Hello from the Plymouth County Outreach office!

This has been a cold and snowy start to 2018. We are sure looking forward to a warm Spring!

With these cold temperatures we have been busy with LiHEAP applications and emergency propane assistance. Don’t forget; if you have not come in and applied for LiHEAP, you still have time to call and schedule your appointment. This program goes until April 30 ^th .

We have begun to take applications for Head Start enrollment for next school year. We will be in full swing with Head Start applications for the next several months. Head Start is our free pre-school program for 3 and 4 year olds. If you have not come into fill out an application for your child, we would be glad to help you.

Akron’s food pantry and office is open 10:00 AM-12:00 PM on the first and third Monday's of every month. Appointments can be set up by calling Deb McPherson at 712-548-6592.

Don’t forget that the Food Bank of Siouxland has a Mobile Food Distribution that takes place once a month in Le Mars on the third Wednesday of every month at the Rejoice Community Church from 5:00 PM-7:00 PM. You can also contact our Outreach office to find out when the next mobile food pantry will take place.

The Le Mars Outreach Office is open on Tuesdays and Thursdays 9:00 AM- 4:00 PM. You can reach us at 712-546-6603 or 1-800-859-2025. You can always reach us on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays in our Cherokee office at 712-225-3322. We hope that you all have a warm Spring!

418 S. Marion Street | Remsen, IA 51050 | 712-786-2001 | 800-859-2025