Last year under Even Start. This year, we will submit as Mt. Zion

Last  year's version is here

kernel/concept: even start.

parent educator: makes home visits once per month, brings a book (a gift) each time. Parents are encouraged to work with the books each day, looking for teachable moments.

Most qualifying parents have a "survival" perspective. Even Start is shifting to this focus, rather than a traditional "child centered" approach.

20 hours of parenting per month

60 hours per month of adult education, 8 hours being parent and child together.

Family Literacy Grants

The Dollar General Family Literacy Grants provide funding to family literacy service providers. Please note that the Dollar General Literacy Foundation uses the federal government’s definition of family literacy when reviewing grant applications. Family literacy programs applying for funding must have the following four components:

• Adult education instruction
  • Adult basic education
  • GED preparation
    • English for speakers of other languages
• Children’s education
• Parent and child together time (PACT)
• Parenting classes that teach parents to be the primary teacher for their child

The application is here:

http://www.dollargeneral.com/servingothers/Pages/GrantPrograms.aspx#familyliteracy

The application and the submission process alike--all electronic. Of course, we should clone the text we craft, as we did last week, for documentation and for repurposing.

Grant Requirements:

children and adults must "make gains"

staff has required training (18 hours)

for parents and children to qualify for even start:

kids need to be in school

adults in school as well?

(will provide transportation)

within 200% of national poverty level (i.e. if you qualify for free or reduced lunch)

MarchFour

Language and Fodder for Revision

• Midtown is a 5.5 square mile area located at the core of St. Petersburg. It is home to over 30,000 residents, 92% of whom are African-American, 45% of whom live below the poverty line.
• Unemployment is more than two times the citywide rate, and nearly 60% of the City’s welfare recipients live in Midtown. The average household income is 53% of the citywide average.
• An overwhelming 40% of families with children are lead by single women, and 54% of households have no husband present.
• Crime rates are far higher in Midtown than other parts of the City or in Pinellas County. Midtown’s dominant zip codes 33705, 33711, and 33712, (Mt. Zion Human Services targeted service area) account for the highest number of delinquency referrals in Pinellas County to the Florida Department for Juvenile Justice.
• The problems significantly impact the educational performance as well as 83% of Midtown’s 12th graders failed to pass the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test in Reading; the failure rate was 74% in Math (Source: Pinellas County, FCAT Scores).
• According to the 2000 Census, 37% of adults in Midtown did not complete high school. Pinellas County School Board reports that only one out of four African American Males graduate with a high school diploma.

Regarding Unemployment

source text: Patti Schmidt Fall 2008

Mt. Zion: Current Status

    MZHS is located in the heart of the Midtown neighborhood of St. Petersburg. This 5.5 square mile area is home to approximately 30,000 residents, 92% of whom are African-American, 45% live below the poverty line. Unemployment is more than two times the citywide rate. Nearly 60% of the City’s welfare recipients live in Midtown where the average household income is 53% of the citywide average. An overwhelming 40% of families with children are led by single women and this area suffers from the highest infant mortality rate in the county. In addition, the Midtown community accounts for the highest number of delinquency referrals to the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice.

    MZHS’ stated mission is to strengthen individuals and families by providing social and economic services that emphasize a self-sufficient, drug free, productive and nurturing family environment. Current services include a preschool, boys and girls scouting programs, a youth drum line, literacy enhancement, tutoring and affordable housing programs. The focus of the relationship between USF and MZHS will be based around the growth and development of the Children’s Center. The center’s programming is designed to help children achieve superior outcomes in the areas of education and academic preparedness, as well as social, physical and spiritual development.

    Clearly, the needs of MZHS are great and there are many areas from both the College of Education and the college of Arts and Sciences where a collaboration/civic engagement partnership with USF students would be possible. Dr. Conner has already begun this relationship with the help of his research assistant, David Havasi, through their work on linking the available, donated  computers in a Linux thin client environment. Mount Zion Wish List Two of the students in our class this semester, Felesha and Tiffany, have begun work on a mentoring manual Children Savers Inc that will help Ms. Fried obtain one of her many goals of developing a mentoring program for the children. One of MZHS' most daunting tasks is in achieving fiscal stability. Meeting the challenge of identifying and applying for external funding through a grant writing process is at the forefront of MZHS' imperatives. It is in the grant research and writing arena that I have been volunteering and focusing my studies. Mt Zion Volunteer history  It is not my intent that this report detail the specific needs of Mt. Zion Human Services, rather, it is my attempt to outline a proposal of study that I would like to pursue that would benefit MZHS and in a small way, serve to strengthen the growing bond and relationship between MZHS and USF. For if this proposal meets with success for all principals, the precedent would be set for other students who are interested in community literacy by combining the theoretical with the practical, supported in a framework of civic engagement.