MOAPPP Adolescent Parent eNews

MOAPPP Adolescent Parent eNews

October 2010


Ideals are like stars; you will not succeed in touching them with your hands, but like the seafaring man on the desert of waters, you choose them as your guides, and following them, you reach your destiny.

–Carl Schurz

Announcements

IMPORTANT – Please Help Us by Completing This Survey!!

The Minnesota Young Father Action Collaborative, staffed by MOAPPP, is looking for information to help us in our work. Please visit this link and take the survey. It shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes, but it would help us tremendously.


Congratulations to North Vista Education Center!

North Vista Education Center (NVEC), an area learning center in Robbinsdale, is receiving the National Dropout Prevention Network (NDPN) Crystal Star Award of Excellence in Dropout Recovery, Intervention and Prevention for their outstanding program.

North Vista Education Center, a program of Intermediate District 287’s Area Learning Center located near North Minneapolis, opened its doors in 1984. Since that time, the program has successfully served hundreds of students who are pregnant and parenting and/or in need of developing basic skills and recovering high school credit. At North Vista, secondary students can earn academic credits that meet the state requirements for graduation as well as participate in a work experience program. Special features of the program include parenting and life skills coursework for all students and tailored classes for English Language Learners.

North Vista supports pregnant and parenting students with a fully licensed onsite day care where parent-child specialists’ care for children ages six weeks through preschool. The day care-Early Learning Center is licensed by the Minnesota Department of Human Services. In addition, a nurse is available to monitor the development of the children and to assist the parent(s) with health and safety issues. Funding for this program is provided in part by Hennepin County Community Services.

Program success is measured not only in credit completion and diploma-earning for the students, but also in the progress of the day care children and their parents’ ability to be emotionally and financially secure providers for their children. The nursing service tracks developmental milestones using county-approved measures. Day care children receive literacy-based instruction called Pre-School First. It is designed to ramp-up vocabulary that research has shown is deficient in high poverty and teen parent homes. Teen parents participate in learning how reading can create significant intellectual gains and emotional bonds. In addition to parenting courses, life skills courses provide the framework for long-term goal setting and career-based certificate courses, such as Certified Nursing Assistant to provide a jumpstart to a financially viable career.

Students who attend North Vista leave with school credit, career skills and a life plan. They are prepared to be responsible parents and begin careers as independent workers.

NDPN is sponsored through Clemson University whose mission is to increase high school graduation rates through research and evidence-based solutions.

In the News

African Americans Hard Hit by Poverty Spike

According to the article published in The Grio, “The disproportionate percent of African-Americans living in poverty in America is not a new phenomenon. It’s been an issue that civil rights advocates and others have long tried to remedy. Living in impoverished communities and families is stressful and costly in the short-term, and produces negative outcomes in the long-term. Poor children and youth are less likely to graduate from high school, more likely to been teen parents, and less likely to be employed as young adults.”

Research

Effects of Healthy Families New York on the Promotion of Parenting Competencies and the Prevention of Harsh Parenting

Results of this randomized control study indicate that Healthy Families New York (HFNY), a home visiting program, is effective in fostering positive parenting, such as maternal responsivity and cognitive engagement. With respect to negative parenting, HFNY mothers in the High Prevention Opportunity subgroup (young first time mothers) were less likely than their counterparts in the control group to use harsh parenting, while no differences were detected for the Limited Prevention Opportunity subgroup (those who were not first time mothers). HFNY was successful in promoting positive parenting among mothers at risk for child abuse and neglect, which may reflect the program’s strength-based approach.


Teen Dating Violence

The Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma has devoted two special issues to the topic of adolescent dating violence.

  • Issue 5: Adolescent Dating Violence, Part I: Gender, Race, and the Social Ecological Context
  • Issue 6: Adolescent Dating Violence, Part II: Relational Dynamics as Sources of Risk and Resilience

Resources

2010 Kids Count Data Book Now Available

From the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the annual, updated Kids Count Data Book (PDF) that reports on the well-being of children and families in the nation for 2008 is now available.


Free Article from Zero to Three

Checks out this free article (PDF) from Zero to Three! Evidence of the benefits of home visiting has revealed varying results and little is known about the elements that make programs of value to the families at highest risk for dysfunction. The variability in the effects of home visiting programs is linked to many factors, including program content and goals, the family and community context, the use of evaluation for program improvement and how well the program is implemented. In this article, the author addresses how structural (dosage, target and staffing) and process (relationships, theory of change, approach and activities) aspects of home visiting programs enhance their quality and, ultimately, their benefit to high-risk families and their young children.


From Zero to Three – From Baby to Big Kid: Month 21

Click here for developmental information and activities for toddlers, age 21 months.

Upcoming MOAPPP Trainings

November 8-10, 2010
Teen Outreach Program (TOP) – Facilitator Training

Minnesota Department of Health
1645 Energy Park Drive, Saint Paul

The Teen Outreach Program (TOP) is a nationally acclaimed, science-based program that has been shown to prevent adolescent pregnancy and help youth succeed in school. Designed for youth ages 12-19, TOP incorporates a strong service-learning component based on principles of youth development. TOP has been successfully implemented in a variety of settings and with diverse populations. In addition to the two and a half days of highly interactive training, one participant from each agency receives a copy of the TOP curriculum.

For more information and to register, contact Jocelyn at 651.644.1447 x 19, [email protected].

Other Upcoming Trainings

October 29 & November 9, 2010
How the Economy is Changing Fathers, Families and Future Expectations

October 29-Crookston
November 9-Brainerd

Register today for one of the two remaining training seminars on the topic of “Navigating the New Normal: How the Economy is Changing Fathers, Families, and Future Expectations.” Sessions will address research and practice related to the ways that married, unmarried and noncustodial families can access government services, how the economy is changing family format and father involvement, and how family service/ educational professionals are impacted in our daily work.

Full details and registration are available at www.mnfathers.org. Questions? Call 651.222.7432 or email [email protected].


November 9, 2010
Webinar
Teen Dating Violence: What Can You Do?

12:00-1:00 p.m. CST

In this webinar you will learn what teen dating violence is, the risk factors and consequences, and recognizing suspected teen dating violence. In addition, you will learn what you can do in your professional and community role to help stop teen dating violence. Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now here.


November 9, 18 & 22, 2010
Moving Neglect and Disparities to the Forefront

November 9-Minneapolis
November 18-Little Falls
November 22-Saint Paul

Child neglect can result in a toxic stress that interrupts a child’s developing brain architecture. Racial disparities in the public child welfare system result in inequitable outcomes for children, particularly American Indian and African American children. Neglect and racial disparities are among the largest challenges we face as a society. In Minnesota, 60 percent of all accepted child maltreatment reports involve neglect. Also in Minnesota, children of color and tribally affiliated children experience disparities in health care, corrections, education, and child welfare. In child welfare, American Indian children and African American children are disproportionately over-represented and are eight times and five times more likely to experience neglect than white children.

Click here to register. Questions? Contact Ka Youa Vue at 651.523.0099, [email protected].


November 19-20, 2010
Healthy Brains for Children First Annual Conference
Taking the Message to Our Communities

Park United Methodist Church, Brainerd

The purpose of Healthy Brains for Children is to increase the awareness of the devastation of prenatal exposure to alcohol and to promote the healthy practice of refraining from drinking alcohol during and immediately after each pregnancy. Attend the first ever annual conference to increase your knowledge and skills in this important field. For more information and to register, visit www.healthybrainsforchildren.org.


January 24-25, 2011
Minnesota Fatherhood & Family Services Summit

Kelly Inn, St. Cloud

Mark your calendars for the Minnesota Fatherhood & Family Services Summit! Keynote presenters including Bill Doherty (MN), Carolyn and Phil Cowan (CA), and Michael Hayes (TX). Presenters will address topics of co-parenting, family relationships, parenting and paternity education, child well-being and much more.

This conference is ideal for professionals working in areas of corrections, child support, child welfare, early education, early childhood programming, fatherhood programs, family law, teen pregnancy prevention, maternal/child health, family relations, social work, violence prevention and related fields. For more information and to register, visit www.mnfathers.org.


For more resources and information about adolescent parents, visit the Adolescent Parent Program page on the MOAPPP website.