| The WSOS Press - February / March 2003 |
WSOS earns 3 Best Practice awards
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WSOS was recently honored with three Best Practices awards for programs/projects it operated in 2001-02.
The Marine Mechanics Skills for Life training program in Ottawa County, the Senior Summits conducted in Ottawa and Sandusky counties, and the West Millgrove project in Wood County each earned a Best Practice award. The awards were made possible by the John Glenn Institute of the Ohio State University in partnership with the Ohio Association of Community Action Agencies (OACAA).
"This recognition is a tribute to the partners in our communities whose contributions make our work possible," said Don Stricker, WSOS President/CEO .
Information on these Best Practices programs can be viewed on the WSOS website, www.wsos.org or at www.oacaa.org |
After school program expands to Clyde school district
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Beginning March 3, children in the Clyde-Green Springs School District will have access to their own after school and summer school program in their school district. It will be held at the South Main Elementary School.
Clyde's Assistant Super- intendent Dennis Gable and Curriculum Director Jeannie Pritchard worked with WSOS Community Action Commission Inc., to secure the five-year grant. WSOS operates a similar program in the Fremont school district.
Participation in this program is limited to students in grades 1-6 who qualify for free or reduced lunches. It will start immediately after school and run until 6 p.m. There will also be a four-week summer program, which is being developed.
The after school program provides families with a safe, supervised environment for their children where they receive help with homework and proficiencies, mentoring, and career exploration.
To enroll your child, call Becky Hahn at 419-333-4009. |
Board Profile
Thompson sees board tenure as chance to serve the low-income community
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Name: Monica M. Thompson
Address: Grand Rapids, Ohio
Family: Husband Richard; daughters Alison and Victoria; son Andrew.
Occupation: Currently, Monica is a student at Owens Community College and homemaker. Previously, she worked as a nanny.
Board Status: She joined the board in January, after being elected to a two-year term in November 2002.
Goal as a board member: Monica said her goal is to serve Wood County's low-income community to the best of her ability.
Hobbies/Interests: Her interests are currently centered on her classes at Owens Community College, but when not studying she loves to read, go horsebackriding with her daughters and she enjoys her involvement in her church, the Bowling Green Covenant Church. |
Early Head Start to begin at WSOS in September
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Income-eligible families in the WSOS four-county service area will soon have access to more child care options for their infants and toddlers, thanks to a new Early Head Start grant that WSOS Community Action Commission Inc. was recently awarded.
This was one of only five Early Head Start grants awarded to Ohio organizations this year.
The $730,226 grant allows WSOS Child Development to serve 60 more infants and toddlers and pregnant women.
Beginning in September 2003, childcare will be available for 16 infants and toddlers at the Fremont Family Development Center while there will be eight new slots for infants and toddlers at the Jordan Family Development Center in Bowling Green. In Seneca County, 10 pregnant women will receive services through a home-based program.
Also, plans are to have eight slots for infants and toddlers in Ottawa County in the future. More infants and toddlers will be served at community child care centers and in-home providers who contract with WSOS.
For more information, call 1-800-775-9767.
More Child Development news
The Jordan Family Development Center will have a dedication ceremony and open house to show off its new addition on April 14. More information will be available later. The Fremont center will showcase its addition in a Business After Hours event in May.
WSOS Child Development was invited to showcase the music activities used in the classroom made possible by a Bowling Green State University's Partnership with Community Action grant.
Resources and Instruction for Staff Excellence (RISE) Learning Solutions chose WSOS Fremont Family Development Center to film one of the classrooms in action. The taping is for a training video that the Ohio Department of Education is producing to use with educators and parents. The video shows implementation of the pre-kindergarten competency standards in the classroom. |
Director's Corner
Child Development
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This has been an eventful year for us in Child Development. In addition to the the expansions at Fremont and Bowling Green, we have been dealing with proposed funding cuts, adding new programs, increasing literacy programs, implementing a new National Reporting System, and a Federal Review in March. w
Some of the best news we received this year was notice of the funding of our Early Head Start proposal. This program, explained on page 2 of this newsletter, is a much needed service in our communities. We are looking forward to getting the program up and running by September 2003.
On March 3 we begin the process of the 2003 Federal Review of our programs. This review provides us with feedback on how our programs are operating. Also, we are in the midst of the establishment of a new National Reporting System for Head Start. This system does not replace the current system. It targets four-year-olds and is slated for implementation in September 2003. At the same time, we have received two grants that have allowed us to increase our literacy efforts in Sandusky and Ottawa counties. Most of all we have maintained our enrollment, keeping it at 100 percent and even higher in some program areas.
We are watching closely the outcome of state budget cuts with regard to Ohio Head Start. We are working with our Head Start network to maintain, or at least minimize, the cuts to our program.
The Director's Corner appears in each issue of this newsletter. Next issue will be Family Services. |
The After School Program will begin registering students for summer school programs in April. Call Becky at 419-333-4009 to register your child. The summer program operates from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. each week day. In Clyde the program will operate for four weeks while in Fremont it will be for eight weeks.
Fremont City Schools used its After School Program and Title 1 program and collaborated
with Head Start to organize Family Fun Nights for those families participating in those programs. These events are aimed at helping parents to become more involved in their children's educational opportunities.
WSOS Child Development programs will participate in the National Week of the Young Child in April. Each center conducts its own set of activities.
There is also a Volunteer Appreciation Week from April 27 to May 3. WSOS programs will conduct open houses in each county to show appreciation for all their volunteers.
Community Action Month will be celebrated in May. WSOS staff and participants visit county commissioners in the four-county area to say thanks for their support of the programs WSOS operates.
Construction of senior housing units in Clyde is expected to break ground in March. The Clyde Senior Center will be housed in that facility when it is completed. Other housing construction expected to break ground in the spring include the 40-unit single family housing development in Fremont. Also, Housing Specialist Martha Wilson is seeking homeowners for four new houses to be built in Fremont. For more information, call her at 1-800-775-9767.
Senior Programs Advisory Councils of Sandusky and Ottawa counties, in collaboration with other community organizations, plan to establish a Senior Citizen Hall of Fame, beginning in May. The groups will induct 12 senior volunteers from each county into the new Hall of Fame. The induction will take place at the Senior Day celebrations conducted by the WSOS Senior Programs in each county. For more information or for nomination forms, call 334-8383 or 734-1481. Nominations will be closed March 31.
WSOS continues to provide help in the rebuilding of the communities in Seneca and Ottawa Counties affected by the November tornados. Family Advocates are conducting case management in both counties. Call 1-800-775-9767 for more information. |
Familiar Face
Nancy Purdy simply loves working with the families at her Perrysburg center
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Name: Nancy A. Purdy
Address: Perrysburg, Ohio
Family: Husband of 27 years Dennis; daughters Elizabeth, 22 and Emily, 18; son Matthew, 15; and pet dog, Gracie, 1 1/2.
Occupation: Nancy is the center manager at the Perrysburg Child Development Center, a position she has held for the past 3 years. She started with WSOS as a teacher assistant in 1997, then served as the Family Service Coordinator in 1999 before taking her current job in January 2000.
Favorite part of the job: She said she loves working closely with the children and their families and getting to know them better. She also really appreciates the staff she works with. "The staff at Perrysburg is wonderful. They certainly make my job easier," she said.
Goals: Right now, Nancy's goals are centered on her family. She is focused on getting her oldest daughter married in June 2004 and her two other children through high school and college - all without adding any more gray hairs!
Hobbies/Interests: When she is not at one of her son's hockey games, she enjoys cross-stitch and crochet. She also loves walking and exercising and, of course, spending time with her family. |
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