From Executive Director Amy Travis... |
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One of the luckiest things that can happen to you in life is to have a happy childhood.
-Agatha Christie
Dear Friends of First 5,
As thankful as we are at this time of the year, we must not ignore the fact that children may face stressful, negative life experiences that affect their brain development. Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) is a term created by researchers and physicians Dr. Vincent Felitti and Dr. Robert Anda that includes specific emotionally traumatic life events, such as divorce, death, abuse, and neglect.
While ACEs have been shown to be causally related to health and behaviors that affect children later in life, this does not mean children having ACEs are without hope. The good news is that the negative effects of ACEs can be reversed, but only when children are provided with a strong support system and given the skills to successfully cope with life's challenges. Equipping a child in this way gives them resilience.
Improved relationships and thriving communities are a direct result of empowering families to become resilient through nurturing, positive parenting, and stabilizing households. As First 5 Kern funds programs, families are connected to well-coordinated health care, education, supportive services, and parental education. Through our Resilient Kern coalition, we have developed a space where both public and private organizations can collaborate to enhance the strengths of residents to help each other build a better life through training and education.
Through the efforts of Resilient Kern, First 5 Kern will host the 2nd Annual ACEs Conference: ACEs: Building Community Resilience, May 17, 2023, at the Bakersfield Marriott at the Convention Center. Save the date for this important event. For those interested in sponsoring this event, please click here.
Sincerely,
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DID YOU KNOW...
ResilientKern.org features many trauma-informed care resources, such as links to articles and studies, as well as recorded webinars and trainings, including every session from the Inaugural 2022 ACEs Conference last Spring.
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First 5 Kern holiday season office hours |
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The First 5 Kern office will be open throughout much of the holiday season. Below are dates we will be closed. Please note that there will be no access to our mail drop box during days we are closed.
Closed:
Friday, December 23
Monday, December 26
Friday, December 30
Monday, January 2
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Happy Holidays, from the staff of First 5 Kern! |
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Impact Story Spotlight... |
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A key component of the reporting process for our funded programs involves compiling and sharing impact stories each fiscal year.
While reviewing the description of the services they offer may provide the basics, the compelling narratives each program provides paints a picture of how our funding helps partners assist families, sometimes in life-changing ways. They provide insight into the daily struggles of our neighbors, and how important Prop 10 funding is to making services available to help the children of Kern County.
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Impact Stories: Wind in the Willows |
We currently are providing services to a child whose parents were concerned that their child falls on the Autism spectrum. They worried that this child “may not be able to function in a classroom setting”.
We are very pleased to report that this child is doing absolutely fantastic at school. He follows the classroom routine very well and has many friends here. He has developed his oral language skills and social skills at an amazing rate since enrolling. We continue to work with him on controlling his emotional frustrations in a productive way as well. We have also worked with Social Security and with the school psychologist from the Muroc Unified School District on assessing him and ensuring that he will be set up and ready for Kindergarten!
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Wind in the Willows Preschool is operated by Wind in the Willows Educational Organization, a 501(c)3. The site offers an affordable early childhood education experience for children ages 3 to 5 in Boron and neighboring communities. |
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Thank you, West Side Outreach and Learning Center! |
The kids from the early learning classroom in Taft at the West Side Outreach and Learning Center were kind enough to add to our autumn ambiance at the First 5 Kern office!
Special thanks to the little ones for hand-painting these colorful leaf displays!
To learn more about their program, click the link below.
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First 5 California Commission approves funding for IMPACT Legacy program |
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The October meeting of the First 5 California Commission featured the approval of the IMPACT Legacy program.
IMPACT (Improve and Maximize Programs so All Children Thrive) Legacy is a comprehensive effort to enhance the quality of early learning and care (ELC) and support the workforce, with a focus on addressing the needs of the whole child, including health, behavioral health, child development, and family strengthening.
Integrated into the local Kern Early Stars program, this popular statewide initiative has bolstered countywide child care programs with the support of over $3.7 million from First 5 California since its launch in 2015. The approval ensures continued funding for this program through fiscal year (FY) 2026-27 with an investment of $125,828,000 statewide over the next four years.
IMPACT Legacy is the final investment in the local implementation of Quality Counts California (QCC) and will provide the support and innovation needed to maintain sound infrastructure and encourage growth as the state system works towards a more sustainable statewide model.
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DID YOU KNOW...
IMPACT has been funded by First 5 California since 2015. For FY 2020-21, 68 different early learning and care sites receive support across 16 different zip codes in Kern County, and reached 600 children. Over a million dollars in support has filtered into Kern County over the last two years through this program.
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Early Childhood Council of Kern unveils workforce development infographic |
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The Early Childhood Council of Kern (ECCK) recently unveiled an infographic to reach out to students and community members, promoting workforce opportunities in the field of early childhood education.
The dual piece highlights both teaching and non-teaching positions and is intended to demonstrate the wide variability in career options in the field. The piece even includes a brief overview of the credential and educational requirements of becoming a teacher.
California is poised to add more than 10,000 teaching positions over the next few years just to keep pace with the expansion of transitional kindergarten, but this growth is likely to trickle down to educational and health support positions, child care roles, administrative positions and more.
"Our hope with this piece is that it spurs some thought in students," said Ami Moser, manager of early learning services for Kern County Superintendent of Schools. "Students may not consider the wide range of options within early childhood education, but there are great opportunities out there for rewarding careers, and this is a growing field."
Download the graphics at the link below, and reach out for presentation opportunities for your community or student groups from the ECCK.
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Dr. Jianjun Wang to present on ASQ Social-Emotional screening at AERA annual conference |
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CSU Bakersfield professor Dr. Jianjun Wang, who serves as an independent evaluator of First 5 Kern, will present a research paper at the upcoming annual conference for the American Educational Research Association (AERA) based on data collected from developmental screenings by First 5 Kern.
Dr. Wang's paper, "An Examination of Cutoff Score Setting in Early Childhood Screening for Mental Health Referral", features his analysis of research on screenings using the Ages & Stages Questionnaire: Social-Emotional 2 (ASQ:SE-2). This is one of two screenings used by Help Me Grow Kern County and several other funded programs.
The paper was selected from over 11,000 submissions for presentation at the conference, which will be held in Chicago in April, 2023. Related to the presentation is an article from Dr. Wang that was published in the Journal of Nursing Measurement (linked below).
Dr. Wang's work in reviewing First 5 Kern data over the years has resulted in many opportunities to share our story on a statewide, national and international stage. We would like to thank Dr. Wang for his efforts in promoting early childhood studies, and congratulate him on this honor!
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News from around the First 5 network... |
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First 5 California billboards going up around Bakersfield |
First 5 California's "Breathe like a dragon" campaign has come to Kern County. Watch for billboards around Bakersfield, like this one at the intersection of Bernard St. and River Blvd. |
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Other community news of interest... |
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CVHEC program to help teachers earn master's degree and increase dual enrollment courses |
A new program is looking to help teachers earn their master's degree and become certified to teach dual enrollment courses to help smooth the path for high school students at Kern County schools as they transition from high school to postsecondary education and ultimately the workforce. |
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Check out the new website for the Kern Breastfeeding Coalition |
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Holiday Lights at CALM is underway! |
Perennially voted as one of the best of family events in all of Kern County, Holiday Lights at CALM runs every night except Christmas throughout the month of December.
This drive-thru event has been honored several times as one of the Top 10 zoo holiday light shows in the entire nation by USA Today.
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Transformative Climate Communities (TCC) community meeting |
The City of Bakersfield's Economic & Community Development Department will host a community meeting to discuss a community grant known as Transformative Climate Communities (TCC).
The TCC program can help fund community-led development and infrastructure projects that achieve major environmental, health, and economic benefits in California's most disadvantaged communities.
The meeting is taking place from 5:30-7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6, at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center (1000 S. Owens Street).
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First 5 Kern
ph: 661.328.8888
First5Kern.org
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