Location:
Problem
Addressed: Educational and
Community-Based Programs
Healthy
People 2010 Objective: 7
Connect for Healthy Kids
(CFHK) is a network that coordinates health, nutrition, family support, and
education programs for the children and families in Grant County, Wisconsin.
Children and families in
Connect for Healthy Kids
provides services for a diverse population that is predominantly Caucasian but
also includes African American, Latino, Rwandan, Amish, Hmong, and Mennonite
populations.
THE MODEL
Blueprint: Connect for
Healthy Kids is composed of nine network participants including the
Southwestern Wisconsin Community Action Program, Inc. (SWCAP), Grant County
Health Department, Southwest Health Center (local hospital), Even Start Family
Literacy Program, Head Start, Southwestern Wisconsin Child Care Resource and
Referral, Grant County’s Family Resource Center, Grant County University of
Wisconsin (UW)-Extension, and the University of Wisconsin–Platteville School of
Education. The nine network partners comprise an advisory board that conducts
monthly meetings for monitoring and planning purposes. The administrative
agency, SWCAP, is a private non profit 501(c)(3) organization offering programs
financed through federal, state, and local funds. The executive director of
SWCAP serves as program director of Connect for Healthy Kids. The program
coordinator, administrative assistant, and the finance department are also
employees of SWCAP. The program contracts with an outside evaluator for the
program. The directors of the nine network partner agencies contribute their
time in-kind to the program’s planning and activities. Many volunteers provide
valuable services within each of the network partner agencies to support
programming activities.
Adult and family-focused services
coordinated by Connect for Healthy Kids include adult basic education, GED
courses, and English as a Second Language classes. Additional parent and
family-support programs are coordinated including toy and book-lending
libraries; home visits; child care resources and referrals; and referrals to
other local, state, and federal services.
A wide range of services for
children and families are also coordinated. This includes prenatal health and
nutrition education programs such as the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
Supplemental Nutrition Program. In collaboration with a local hospital, parents
with newborns are referred to agencies that conduct home visits. Additional
services include early childhood developmental and physical screenings, and preventive
health services including immunization clinics and early childhood education
programs. A unique feature of Connect for Healthy Kids is a strong
collaboration with the University of Wisconsin–Platteville School of Education.
Health Education and Early Childhood Education pre-service teachers provide
volunteer assistance through practicum experience with the partner agencies.
Through joint planning and
shared resources, agencies are able to expand their programs and services.
Three agencies—Head Start, Even Start, and the Family Center—are located in one
central site and share facilities; they also share staff, marketing, and
materials. In addition to health services, the three agencies collaborate to
provide playgroups and family fun nights. At this central site, the Grant
County Health Department conducts Health Check and WIC clinics. The
UW-Extension nutrition program conducts nutrition activities and programs at
the central site as well.
Funding for the network is
derived from various sources including the
Outreach and promotion of the
services provided by Connect for Healthy Kids is accomplished through numerous
channels. A website provides information about available services and links to
county resources. A toll-free information line connects families to services
and programs. Brochures and schedules of programs/services in the county are
distributed to agencies serving potential clients. Local media are also used,
including radio, television, newspaper articles, and school newsletters.
Network members also participate in local resource fairs and conferences.
Members deliver presentations to local groups, funders, and to state and
national legislators.
Making a
Difference: Connect for Healthy Kids network partners recognize that programs must be
designed and implemented to include ongoing evaluation, participant feedback,
and agency input. To accomplish this, CFHK uses both internal evaluations and a
formal external evaluation process directed by a professional evaluator.
Participating organizations function
as an evaluation team and work closely with the evaluator to design strategies
that measure the overall effectiveness of the network. Network partners are
encouraged to use evaluation methods that are the least intrusive to clientele.
Various methods are used in the evaluation process including agency records of
participation numbers, participant evaluations, staff feedback, pre- and
post-session measures, and client-satisfaction measures. In some cases, focus
groups are conducted to obtain feedback from agencies and clientele.
Program evaluation allows
member organizations the opportunity to identify strengths as well as areas for
improvement from the perspective of the participant. Modifications based on
such input can result in improved services. Overall network evaluation provides
similar feedback but from participating member agencies. Modifications
resulting from agency feedback may increase local ownership and value of the
services.
Beginnings:
In 1998, a collaboration of diverse community members and health agencies
conducted a comprehensive community needs assessment through UW-Extension’s
School Readiness Project. The School Readiness Project is a community
collaborative funded through the federal Children, Youth and Families at Risk
Initiative. The seven-month assessment included parent surveys regarding
service and program needs, and focus groups of parent organizations, teachers,
and local associations.
Results from the needs
assessment indicated limited availability and accessibility of health services
and programs for children and families. Families considered existing services
to be fragmented and not visible or not accessible. Access barriers identified
by families included lack of transportation, inconvenient operating hours, and
lack of employer-provided insurance. Families identified work schedules, family
schedules, and time spent traveling long distances to scattered services as
additional barriers to seeking routine and preventive services. County data
show approximately 30 percent of children age two and under were not fully
immunized. Between 40–50 percent of children three years and under had not
received developmental screenings, and 20 percent of children had not received
hearing and vision screening by the age of five. In addition, only 58 percent
of women and infants eligible for WIC were actually utilizing the program—well
below the state participation level of 66 percent.
Seventy community leaders
participated in a town meeting to prioritize the key issues identified in the
assessment. This resulted in a 12-month strategic-planning process where
community and agency members discussed ways to improve current programs. A plan
to coordinate health and related services for families emerged; Connect for
Healthy Kids was created in 2000 and was implemented the following year.
Eight agencies were the
original stakeholders in the network and are still involved. This includes
SWCAP, Grant County Health Department,
Challenges
and Solutions: Providing services to geographically isolated
families has been a challenge to the network. CFHK coordinates home visits to
meet their needs, but the vastness of the county drains the limited travel,
time, and staff resources of individual agencies.
While three agencies (Head
Start, the
The involvement of community
and network partners throughout the development of Connect for Healthy Kids has
established the essential grassroots ownership that will help sustain it.
Network partners are committed to sustaining the program and actively seek
funding from state and federal grants, local and private foundations,
individuals, and from local community capital campaigns. Each agency aims to
increase the proportion of eligible families enrolled in state and federal
programs such as Medicaid, Head Start, WIC, and community action programs.
Increased participation in such programs can allow agencies to allocate more
resources to the continuation of the program. Network partners also envision expanding
membership to include other organizations such as job centers, food pantries,
schools, and churches. Adding new partners with additional resources can
increase program sustainability.
In 2001, a CFHK network partner—Even
Start Family Literacy—was one of the three adult literacy programs selected
throughout the state for the “Unique Program Award” from the Wisconsin
Technical College System Board. In 2003, CFHK was recognized as a Successful
Initiative at the Wisconsin Rural Health State Conference. Connect for Healthy
Kids was featured as a county example of Local Collaborations to Enhance Lives
of Children and Families for a 2004 UW-Extension Family Living Programs Impact
Report. The network was also featured as a showcase project for UW-Madison
School of Human Ecology’s 100th anniversary in 2004.
Sandy Leibfried, Director
126 Doudna Hall
Phone: (800) 267-1018