The Parent Resource Initiative

1. TheParent Resource Initiative Connecting Danbury Parents to Resources and Each Other

2. Parent Resource InitiativeConnecting Danbury Parents to Resources and Each Other A group of Parent Leaders are working with Danbury Children First and community partners to create a plan to improve family access to the community services and supports needed to raise happy, healthy children.

3. Results from all sources fell into the following categories: • Access to family information, services, and supports • Quality of life issues • Health • Education

4. Parent Resource InitiativeConnecting Danbury Parents to Resources and Each Other History of the Initiative: • Partnership between the community partners and parents. • Supported by the William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund. • Parent Leadership integral to all of the work. • Facilitated by Danbury Children First. (Caroline LaFleur—Staff)

5. Parent Resource InitiativeConnecting Danbury Parents to Resources and Each Other Parent Advisory Board Members: Leticia Rocha – Parent Co-Chair Patti Keckeisen – Parent Co-Chair Alba Aillon Tanya Callands Marilia Chagas RupaDand ParomitaDutt Sherri Edgar Angela Evertez Mari Grajales Angelina Hernandez Regina Lima Adriana Mendoza Milagros Perez Tom Thomassen Jennifer Wolke Caroline LaFleur - Staff And thanks to the many, many other volunteers who contributed to this work!

6. Parent Resource InitiativeConnecting Danbury Parents to Resources and Each Other Discovery Oversight Committee Members: Mark Boughton– Danbury Mayor Ann Burke – BoehringerIngelheim Angela Evertez- Parent JuleenFlanigan– Education Connection Elizabeth Goehring– United Way of Western Connecticut Julia Horne – Principal, Shelter Rock School Patti Keckeisen– Parent Co-Chair Carolyn Keenan Smith – Parents as Partners Committee Kristen Kennen– Education Connection, 3Rs Linda Kosko– Danbury Children First Caroline LaFleur – Danbury Children First Craig Mowrey– Walnut Hill Community Church Sal Pascarella– Danbury Public Schools Superintendent Debbie Pietras-Nolan – Danbury Public Schools Leticia Rocha – Parent Co-Chair Darla Shaw – Western Connecticut State University Mary Teicholz– Danbury Common Council Jennifer Wolke– Parents as Partners Committee

7. How did we collect information? Information was gathered in the following ways: • Parent Surveys • Community Conversation on the Quality of Life for Young Children and Families • Community Engagement Interviews • Social Networking Strategy Sessions • Focus Groups

8. How did we collect information? • The research process was also designed as a way to engage community members. • We wanted to mobilize the community to reflect on the resources and needs of our families with young children, and build the will to make the changes and investments, necessary to ensure that all families have the access to information, support, and education they need for their children to succeed in school.

9. How did we collect information? Community Conversation on the Quality of Life for Young Children • Held on October 28, 2008 • 80 participants from many sectors of the community • 5 discussion groups, including one in Spanish and one in Portuguese • Each group had a moderator and recorder

10. How did we collect information? Community Engagement Interviews • Parent Advisory Board members interviewed 24 members of the Danbury community. • Interviewees included agency personnel, business people, city department employees, members of the faith community, educators, and behavioral health providers.

11. How did we collect information? Social Networking Strategy Sessions • 3 Sessions were held by Parent Advisory Board Members, 1 in Spanish • 12 parents participated

12. How did we collect information? Focus Groups on Behavioral Health 65 parents participated. 7 Focus Groups were held with:• Latino Parents • African American Parents • Caucasian Parents • Brazilian Parents • Cambodian Parents • Indian Parents • Portuguese Parents

13. How did we collect information? Danbury Parent Surveys • Surveys available in hard copy format and online through Survey Monkey. • Surveys available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. • Surveys distributed and collected through: -- Community outreach events -- Childcare centers, preschools, Head Start, Even Start and many other venues

14. How did we collect information? Danbury Parent Surveys • 486 Total Surveys Completed • 323 Surveys in English (66%) • 153 Surveys in Spanish (32%) • 10 Surveys in Portuguese (2%)

15. Results from all sources fell into the following categories: • Access to family information, services, and supports • Quality of life issues • Health • Education

16. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • Parents get most of their information through “word of mouth.” What we learned: • Knowledge of services was cited as a major barrier to access. • Service providers have difficulty getting information to parents.

17. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports What we learned: • Other barriers to access are: • Cost • Working Hours • Not enough capacity/waiting lists • Childcare • Quality of Service • Language • Transportation

18. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • Parents pay attention to the information they get from schools— What we learned: • But they would like more information about what’s going on in the schools and how the schools work. They also want more information in their native languages.

19. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • More multilingual/bilingual staff people—and culturally competent staff people—are needed at schools, social service agencies, and health providers. What we learned: • Middle income families may not have as much access to services as lower income families.

20. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • For families that have children with special needs, childcare is a major barrier to access. What we learned:

21. How would you find out about services or resources for your children or family?

22. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • For subgroups not fairing well in the achievement gap, more receive information from the school than from the Internet. (Survey) • For parents of children with special needs, 62% find out from service providers. (Survey)

23. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • Information should be provided in person, in addition to printed materials. (Social Networking Strategy Sessions) • Information should be presented at multiple times and in multiple places/ways. (Social Networking Strategy Sessions) • Parents need information on children’s developmental stages. (Community Conversation)

24. When parents have difficultly in finding or using programs, how big of a factor is each item listed below.

25. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • 86% of parents of children with special needs report that childcare is a big or moderate factor. (Survey) • 79% of Hispanic parents report that transportation is a big or moderate factor. (Survey) • 84% of Hispanic parents report that language is a big or moderate factor. (Survey)

26. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • More resources are needed for families with very young children, ages birth to three. (Community Conversation) • “Low literacy levels among parents” was identified as an additional barrier to accessing information. (Community Interviews)

27. Access to Family Information, Services, and Supports • More coordination and centralization of services is needed (Community Conversation, Social Networking Strategy Sessions, and Focus Groups) • Improved communications is needed between parents and the support/education systems in our community, as parents are the responsible “first line” in raising and teaching their children. (Community Conversation)

28. Quality of Life for Families in Danbury • Most parents agree that Danbury is a great place to live and a good place to raise their children. What we learned: • Most families feel mostly or very safe moving in and around Danbury. • Most parents value diversity as a strength of the Danbury community.

29. Quality of Life for Families in Danbury • Parents want more activities that they can do with their children—and more activities for younger children. What we learned: • People want more kid-friendly neighborhoods, with sidewalks and safe places for biking.

30. Quality of Life for Families in Danbury What we learned: • Parents want more out-of-school time activities and recreational activities, including activities for children with special needs. Activities should be offered at times that allow children with working parents to participate. • Children with special needs and Latino/Hispanic children are not accessing activities and recreational programs at the same rate as their peers.

31. Quality of Life for Families in Danbury • Many parents and professionals are concerned about the economic pressures families are facing and the high cost of living in Danbury. What we learned:

32. Danbury is a great place to live.

33. How safe do you feel living and moving around in Danbury?

34. Quality of Life for Families in Danbury • When parents were asked what are the strengths of Danbury and the best thing about living in Danbury, the diversity of the community was cited most often. (Survey-Qualitative Information) • There is a strong sense of having a caring community, including good social service agencies, teachers, volunteers, community members, and faith communities. (Survey-Qualitative Information)

35. What kinds of recreation activities does your youngest school-age child attend?

36. Quality of Life for Families in Danbury • Information on recreation, community events, and low-cost, affordable family entertainment was identified as important. (Social Networking Strategy Sessions) • Parents of children with mental/behavioral issues need more recreational and family activities available, and at times that accommodate working parents’ schedules. (Focus Groups)

37. Quality of Life for Families in Danbury • Needs identified included more parent education programs and more family activities in the community, especially for families with young children. “Family-friendly” roads and neighborhoods are desired, so outdoor play is safe. (Community Interviews) • Affordable music lessons are desired for children. (Social Networking Strategies)

38. Quality of Life for Families in Danbury • More indoor recreation spaces are needed, especially in the winter and for families with very young children. (Surveys, Social Networking Strategy Sessions) • More recreational and educational out-of-school time activities are needed for pre-teens and teens. (Survey, Social Networking Strategy Sessions)

39. Education and Preschool in Danbury • Most parents are attending school functions and parent-teacher conferences. Those who don’t attend cite work hours and fatigue. What we learned: • Most young children are having preschool experiences. • Parents want more/better communication with teachers and parents need more information about what is going on in schools.

40. Education and Preschool in Danbury • “Schools should do a better job of getting information to families about what is going on in the schools.” (Community Interviews) • More parent involvement in education is needed. (Community Interviews) • Parents want teachers to know that parents do want to get involved. (Community Conversation)

41. Education and Preschool in Danbury • Parents of children with mental/behavioral health need would like teachers to know more about working with children with special needs. (Focus Group) • Hispanic/Latino parents need support to help their children with homework. (Social Networking Strategy Sessions) • Programs for gifted children was cited as a need. (Survey-Qualitative Information)

42. Do you attend school functions such as open houses and parent-teacher conferences?

43. If there are children under 5 years old living in your home, check if they have attended: * Most surveys, but not all, from families of lower economic means came from publically funded childcare centers, which skews this result.

44. Healthcare for Danbury’s Children • Almost all children are receiving routine healthcare. What we learned: • Parents identified a lack of dental services—and a lack of affordable dental services. • Parents identified a lack of mental/behavioral health services—and a lack of affordable mental/behavioral health services.

45. Is there a particular clinic, health center, hospital, doctor’s office, or other place that your child usually goes for routine healthcare? I have not been to the doctor or a healthcare provider for my child: 1%

46. When you go to the doctor for your child, does the doctor or nurse explain things to you in a way that you can understand?

47. Percent who agree or strongly agree with the following:

48. Healthcare for Danbury’s Children • More information on getting health insurance is needed to access medical and dental services (Social Networking Strategy Sessions). • Parents of children with mental/behavioral health issues need more help with health insurance, paying for services and medication, and hours that will accommodate their work schedules. (Focus Groups) • For those whose first language isn’t English, there is a greater need for translations and multicultural staff. (Focus Groups)

49. Healthcare for Danbury’s Children • Parents of children with mental/behavioral health needs seek more qualified staff at schools, at the state agencies, and at local services. (Focus Groups) • Parents need real dialogue with systems (state, medical, DCF, schools) to improve their children’s mental/behavioral health. (Focus Groups) • Parents of children with mental/behavioral health issues found help could be limited and appointment times with doctors too short. Sometimes they need more information, and they need more respect as the ones who know their children best. (Focus Groups)

50. Next Steps: • Prioritize immediate actions needed to provide support for all Danbury parents. • Coordinate with 3R’s (Ready Children and Families, Ready Communities, Ready Schools) Early Childhood Plan to improve service delivery to families with young children. • Explore the possibility of a Parent Center, which was identified as a means of connecting parents with resources and each other.