Children's Network Newsletter

Next Santa Cruz County Children's Network Meeting
Wednesday September 2, 2009 12-2pm
County Office of Education
400 Encinal, Santa Cruz CA

Prop 10 Briefings and State Budget

The July Prop 10 Briefings is posted at http://www.f5ac.org/item.asp?id=13. It contains coverage of the First 5 Association and First 5 California meetings that took place last week.
These meetings occurred before a budget deal was reached by Legislative leaders and the Governor. The Legislature is slated to vote on the leadership's proposal on Thursday or Friday of this week. Because no written documents have been released, no one has a complete analysis of the ultimate impact on children and families - and what that might mean for county commissions. However, early information indicates the following:
·         $124 million cut from Healthy Families -- $34 million more than had previously been projected, but with no changes in eligibility rules
·         $528 million from CalWORKs, along with policy changes that will cut employment services and child care by $375 million annually for two years (an estimated 26 percent cut from current levels), limit a family's consecutive time on aid, and significantly reduce "safety net" grants that cover children
·         $334 million from the Department of Developmental Services, including the $234 million from Early Start as previously proposed by the Governor
·         $4.3 billion from K - community college but with no suspension of Prop 98, which calls for funds to be paid back in the future
·         Continued state employee furloughs of 3 days/month through June 2010
·         $4.7 billion in cuts and borrowing from local government (cities, counties and special districts)
As you've probably read, local governments and the state employees' union are among the groups already threatening to sue, and some provisions are raising the hackles of legislators as they learn the details, so it is unclear what will ultimately happen. However, it is likely that the Healthy Families, CalWORKs, and Early Start cuts will remain in place. And, unless they prevail in court, our local government partners will sustain lossess that will cause significant pain.
I will send further information as soon as we learn anything more definite.
Thanks,
Sherry
Sherry Novick
Executive Director
First 5 Association of California
719 El Cerrito Plaza
El Cerrito, CA 94530
510-526-9999 ext. 11

Kresge Foundation Funding Opportunity

In response to the economic crisis and the impact it is having on front-line human service organizations, The Kresge Foundation has established a 24- to 36-month, interest-free program-related investment fund offering bridge loans of $250,000 to $500,000 to high-performance organizations so that they may be better able to meet the ever-increasing demand for their services.

Our programmatic approach
Competitive applicants will meet the following criteria:

Provide comprehensive front-line services (homeless and domestic-violence shelters, safety-net providers, affordable housing and supportive services, legal aid services, emergency-assistance providers, and multi-service health and human service organizations)

Have been in operation for three years

Have a solid base of net assets or net worth, or long-term history of recurring revenue

Can provide evidence of stable operating performance (net operating surplus over the past three to five years)

Possess audited financial statements for the past two years.

For more information click here

Live Oak Family Resource Center presents:

Positive Discipline for Parents w/children under 12

August 6 - August 27 from 6:30-8:30 pm Colleen Murphy will be presenting:
$25 for the 4-week series.

At Live Oak Family Resource Center, 1438 Capitola Road (Classroom in the back of the building)

Pre-registration is required

For more info or to register contact Evelyn Markasky by phone 476-7284 x110 or e-mail evelynm@cbridges.org.

To register for the class you need to fill out the registration forms and pay the class fees.

In This Issue

Article Headline

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Service Integration Brown Bag Lunch: Strategies for Increasing Father Involvement
Sponsored by First 5 Santa Cruz County

Does your organization work with "families" - yet you find that your clients are mostly mothers and children?
Has your agency tried to reach out to fathers, but it seemed like they just weren't interested in your services?
Do you want to learn how to encourage fathers to become more involved in their children's lives? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you won't want to miss the August Service Integration Brown Bag Lunches!

Learn about the importance of positive father-child relationships.
Understand how service providers can support fathers and father figures in being more involved in their children's lives.
Identify how your agency is currently engaging fathers and father figures in the services you provide.
Discuss how to create or enhance a father-friendly environment in your agency.

Who will benefit from this workshop:

Line staff, volunteers and interns that work directly with clients.
Managers and supervisors interested in learning how to enhance the father-friendliness of their organizations.

Featured speaker:
Deutron Kebebew, Project Director
Papás, Supporting Father Involvement

This course meets the qualifications for 2 hours of continuing education credit for MFTs and/or LCSWs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences. BBS Continuing Education Provider #PCE 3901.

Date/ Time/Location

Session 1
Monday, August 3
12:00 - 2:00
Watsonville Public Library, Meeting Room (2nd Floor)
275 Main St., Watsonville (in the new Civic Plaza Building)
View a map and get directions at http://tinyurl.com/6xgl2a

Recommended parking: parking garage on W. Beach St. (free) or the new parking garage behind the Civic Center (small fee)

Session 2
Friday, August 14
12:00 - 2:00

United Way Conference Room
1220 41st Ave., Capitola (in the Begonia Plaza)
View a map and get directions at http://tinyurl.com/5fals8

Recommended parking: Begonia Plaza parking lot or the parking garage behind the main Spa Fitness facility (enter at 1100 41st Ave.)

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Pick one session and register by July 30 at First 5 Santa Cruz County's website: http://www.first5scc.orgindex.php?page=brownbagreg#Register

Save these dates for upcoming Service Integration Brown Bag Lunches:

Services for Children With Special Needs: September 11 (Capitola) and September 14 (Watsonville)

Establishing Effective Supervisory Relationships: October 5 (Watsonville) and October 9 (Capitola)

Full schedule with topics for FY 09-10 will be distributed soon.

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Nicole M. Young, MSW
Owner/Principal Consultant
Optimal Solutions Consulting
3824 Vienna Dr.
Aptos, CA 95003
Phone: (831) 594-1498
Fax: (831) 685-2485
nicole@opti-solutions.com
www.opti-solutions.com

Santa Cruz County Community Counseling Center Job Announcement: Community Relations Manager

Overview
Santa Cruz Community Counseling Center (SCCCC) is seeking a highly qualified Community Relations Manager who will develop, recommend and implement an overall community relations and resource development plan for SCCCC consistent with the mission and vision of the organization. SCCCC has been primarily a publicly funded agency; we are looking to strategically increase our profile in the community, as well as investment in our services from individual donors, the business community, and foundations.

Santa Cruz Community Counseling Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation which has been providing social services in Santa Cruz County since 1973. SCCCC's annual budget is $20M; we employ 375 people who work in 40 locations throughout the County. Client services are provided through four major divisions: Youth Services; Community Recovery Services (substance abuse treatment); Child and Family Development Programs (Head Start/Early Head Start), and Community Support Services (adult mental health and transition age foster youth services). SCCCC also provides property management services for affiliated HUD corporations serving 135 tenants with psychiatric disabilities.

Job Summary
The Community Relations Manager will oversee planning, implementation, and evaluation of community relations and marketing activities that support SCCCC's mission and goals. The Community Relations Manager will also be responsible for coordinating giving and grant programs which may include: annual appeals, foundation and business requests, planned giving, establishing an endowment fund, annual community fund-raiser; as well as supporting elements such as: donor relations, collateral materials, database management, research.

This position reports to the SCCCC Executive Director, serves as staff to the Board of Trustees Resource Development Committee, is a part of SCCCC's Administrative Services Management Team, and coordinates activities with Division Directors and their staff. This position receives clerical support from the Executive Assistant.

The major responsibility areas of the Community Relations Manager are:
Ø Coordinate with Board of Trustees, senior management, staff, and volunteers to manage the organization's community relations and resource development activities.
Ø Establish objectives and specify the strategies, actions, organizational policies and procedures to achieve them.
Ø Develop and produce marketing and public information strategies that communicate the value of SCCCC services to constituents; evaluate message effectiveness.
Ø Oversee the design, content, and maintenance of the SCCCC website, donor database, and collateral materials including: brochures, annual report, newsletter, cases for support; may include working with external contractors and volunteers.
Ø Plan and implement effective resource development strategies including direct mail, individual major gifts, corporate and foundation grants, special events, donor recognition and stewardship.
Ø Represent SCCCC publicly at meetings and other activities as required.
Ø Provide regular reports on job-related activities as appropriate and be flexible to perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications
Ø Education and/or experience equivalent to Bachelor's Degree in marketing, public relations, communications or a related field with a minimum of three years experience in a similar position.
Ø Demonstrated successful track record in fund development and marketing/ communications.
Ø Strong interpersonal and presentation skills including excellence in oral and written communication.
Ø Ability to relate well to diverse individuals including: public and private funders, donors, Board members, community leaders, volunteers and staff.
Ø Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, website management, donor database systems, and familiarity with software such as: InDesign and Photoshop.
Ø Excellent organizational skills, attention to detail, the ability to manage multiple projects and priorities.
Ø Ability to work independently in a dynamic, participatory decision-making environment, and as an effective team member.
Ø Access to car; may work occasional evenings and weekends when required.
Compensation:
Salary Range: $55-75K. SCCCC offers a generous benefit package which includes employer paid health and dental insurance for employees and dependents, life insurance, tax deferred annuity plan, 17 vacation days to start, 12 sick days, 11.5 holidays.

To Apply:
1. Apply on-line at http://www.scccc.org/job-opportunities/
2. Or send in your application packet consisting of:

Letter of interest

Up-to-date resumé - including at least three referencesand salary history

TO:      Community Relations Manager Search
            Santa Cruz Community Counseling Center
            195 Harvey West Blvd.
            Santa Cruz, CA 95060

FAX: (831) 425-1905
email: megan.booth@scccc.org

INITIAL SCREENING DEADLINE: Wednesday, August 5, 2009 by 5:00 pm

28th Annual UC Davis National Child Abuse and Neglect Conference

Registration is now open:
September 21 - 24, 2009, at the Hyatt Regency
Sacramento, CA

Single-day registration is $155, three-day registration is $360
See workshop descriptions and register on-line at www.canconference.com

The Conference within a Conference format includes
The Fifth Annual Clinical Forensic Medicine and SART Institute
The California Drug Endangered Children (DEC) Institute
Day 4 Post-Conference PCIT Institute
Keynote Speakers are Chris Crutcher, Allison Gopnik, PhD, Jim Pelley, and Manuel Vega

For more information, e-mail 2009@canconference.com
www.canconference.com