Family Outreach Program 10th Anniversary May 26, 2011
Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey gathered more than 600 family workers from across the state to celebrate the tenth anniversary of NJ's Family Outreach Program on Thursday, May 26th at the Hyatt Hotel in New Brunswick.
Conference keynotes, delivered by Cecilia Zalkind, Executive Director of Advocates for Children of New Jersey (ACNJ), and the Reverend Darrell Armstrong, formerly of the NJ Department of Children and Families, emphasized the importance of engaging families to support their child's learning during their preschool years, a formative period of development which sets the potential for future learning. Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey Executive Director Rush Russell welcomed the crowd of professionals devoted to improving the education and health of very young children.
Speaking of her own experiences as a mother and growing alongside her children, Zalkind inspired the audience with words of wisdom and support. "I had resources to get help if I needed it, and I still felt helpless, inadequate, and very much alone," Zalkind explained. "Being a parent is hard enough without all of these extra challenges. And that is where you as family workers come in. You are the support and the reassurance."
The Family Outreach Program reaches more than 23,000 families each year, establishing positive relationships that engage parents and caregivers supporting a child's healthy development and early learning, both at home and in preschool centers. The program is a collaborative effort among early childhood education centers under contract in districts formerly known as Abbott school districts, local community-based agencies, a statewide technical assistance center delivered by Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey, and the program's funder, the Division of Family Development of the New Jersey Department of Human Services. Family Workers engage families to connect them to health and community services, teach them about the importance of reading to their children, support their growth, screen for developmental delays, and prepare them as successful learners. Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey trains a force of Family Worker Coordinators who guide workers teaching parents in child care centers and groups across New Jersey.
Two Family Worker Coordinators, Virginia "Ginny" Workman from Vineland IMPACT Center, and Sr. Deborah Humphreys from Ironbound Community Corporation, Newark, received special recognition for 10 years of service with the Family Outreach Program, supporting families throughout New Jersey since the Family Outreach Program’s inception.
Sixteen Family Workers also received the "Shining Star" award in acknowledgement of their dedicated service to children and families, specifically acknowledging their compassion and level of service.
"Strengthening Those Who Touch The Lives of Children" Annual Conference May 9, 2011
On May 9th, the Healthy Families-TIP and Parent Linking Program networks joined together for a one-day conference to celebrate the parents and professionals throughout New Jersey that do the important work of raising our state's children. Our 9th annual Strengthening Those Who Touch the Lives of Children conference commenced with a keynote from Judge Greg Mathis, who spoke of the role parents and the entire community need to play in raising successful and healthy children.
Nearly 400 people were in attendance. Attendees were offered 18 workshops on topics such as engaging fathers, social networking safety online, and the effects of domestic violence on children.
Staff in the Healthy Families-TIP network were awarded the Inspiration Award, the Compassion Award, and the Service Award. Other staff were recognized for longevity of service. Six graduating teen parents from the Parent Linking Program were awarded book scholarships to help them in their first year of college.
Conference participants left feeling energized and better equipped to continue the important work of child abuse prevention.
Tackling Child Abuse 2011 May 4, 2011
Once a year we gather our friends and advocates from across the state to raise support for our child abuse prevention programs. On May 4th, Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey held its "Tackling Child Abuse" event at the New Meadowlands Stadium. Thanks to your support and the support of our sponsors, we raised over $57,000 to fund our evidence-based child abuse prevention programs!
The evening, hosted once again by Dr. Randal Pinkett, featured behind-the-scenes tours of the stadium and memorabilia, a live and silent auction, and more. Access directly onto the 50 yard line was also available, giving a breathtaking view of the stadium.
Support for the event came from Wolff & Samson, Apollo Group, PNC, Prudential, PSE&E, US Retirement Partners, Verizon, Kone, Community Foundation of NJ, Sovereign Santander, FedEx, Dr. David Feldman and Mrs. Judith Tell Feldman, Bruce and Nanette Arbonies, the Mary and Donato Borrelli Family, and The Bernknopf Group.
A gallery of photos from the evening is currently available on our Flickr page.
NJPIRC Networking Meeting 2011 March 8, 2011
On Tuesday, March 8th, NJPIRC held a networking event for many of its partners throughout the state at The Imperia in Somerset, New Jersey. The goal of the event was to share knowledge and effective tactics among the group: what exactly are the best practices to increase not only parent involvement, but parent engagement...?
After some brief remarks from PCA-NJ Executive Director Rush Russell and a kickoff from the NJ Department of Education's Norris Clark, attendees broke into groups to connect with NJPIRC staff and each other over these important topics.
The day concluded with awards being presented to several NJPIRC partners who have showcased their commitment to family engagement time and time again. Two "Impact Awards" were presented to two schools in particular:
NJPIRC has been partnered with Greater Brunswick Charter School since 2010 and in one year the school has managed to complete the Title I guide, Family Friendly Walkthrough, hosted a "Taking The Lead" workshop, developed an action team, and hosted a resource space within the school. Their action team has planned and completed several activities, never forgetting the central message of parent involvement for student achievement and consistently choosing activities that will help them reach their goals. The action team at Greater Brunswick defines what it means to have a true partnership between school, family, and community, working together to truly make an IMPACT in their school community.
D.U.E. Season Charter School has been an NJPIRC partner since 2008 and although they received the Parent Resource Space grant which initially only includes a parent computer, resource rack, and comment box, primary contact and parent coordinator Mary Mercado-Carpenter took those resources and commenced to build a solid parent engagement program based around the Parent Resource Center. Initially starting in a small room just beyond the school's lobby, Mary took the initiative to expand the parent resource area into the lobby creating an all-encompassing welcome mat including an information board, feedback box, and a giant welcome banner. This is a key aspect of effective parent engagement and D.U.E. Season charter school exemplifies this in every way. They also hosted the "Taking The Lead" workshop for parents, completed the Family Friendly Walkthrough, and started the EPIC parenting series.
