2007 FSA Peer-to=Peer Training Session Application and Overview

National Council of La Raza (NCLR)/Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF) Family Strengthening Awards Program Affiliate Peer-to-Peer Training Session Application

The National Council of La Raza (NCLR) is proud to offer its annual Affiliate Peer-to-Peer Training Sessions for fall 2007. This is a unique opportunity for up to 35 staff from NCLR Affiliates to attend a free technical assistance seminar focused on building institutional capacity and peer networks. Airfare, lodging, and meals for two days will be covered for each participant (read details below).

The NCLR Affiliate Member Services (AMS) Team encourages all Affiliate Members to apply.

FAMILY STRENGTHENING AWARD (FSA) PROGRAM OVERVIEW NCLR and AECF believe that for children to have the opportunities necessary to achieve and grow up in an healthy environment, their families must have access to services and social networks that strengthen their ability to provide for and nurture their children. The factors necessary to strengthen families include opportunities to work, earn a decent living, and build assets; to build social networks that help isolated families link with friends and neighbors as well as social, civic, and religious institutions; and to have access to responsive public services, such as good health care, decent schools, and fair and effective law enforcement. In partnership, NCLR and AECF reward those community-based organizations that help improve outcomes for families by connecting them to the trustworthy and responsive resources they need to succeed.

NCLR selects successful programs from its Affiliate Network each year as recipients of the NCLR/AECF FSA. As part of the responsibilities associated with their award, the winning programs provide Peer-to-Peer Training Sessions to other members of the NCLR Affiliate Network who are committed to learning best practices in family strengthening.

PEER-TO-PEER TRAINING SESSION OVERVIEW NCLR will arrange for 25-35 representatives of NCLR Affiliates to attend on-site training sessions with selected 2007 Family Strengthening Award winners. The sessions will include an on-site facilities visit, meetings with the winning program s clients and key program staff, and discussions

1

on funding and best practices. The winning programs will outline the best practices they have used to strengthen Hispanic families in their communities, and will provide open dialogue for the participating Affiliates to share and develop potential solutions to the challenges they face in running their own programs. Each session will involve at least one representative from the winning program and 5-12 participants from selected NCLR Affiliates. Selected Affiliates will participate in at least one conference call prior to the training session to clearly identify their goals, objectives, and desired results from attending the session.

NCLR will pay for one roundtrip plane ticket (up to $500) and two nights in a hotel near the winning program s facilities for one representative from each selected Affiliate organization. The Peer-to-Peer Training Session host will provide three meals during the event. NCLR Affiliates will assume any additional costs, such as taxi fare or parking.

The Affiliates selected to participate in the training sessions must coordinate their visit with the Affiliate Member Services (AMS) Team at NCLR and the Family Strengthening Award winner from whom they wish to receive training. Each selected Affiliate may send one representative to the session. Failure to participate in mandatory conference calls or respond to communications from NCLR will result in the NCLR Affiliate losing its place at the training session. All training sessions will take place during the fall of 2007.

APPLICATION PROCESS NCLR considers the following criteria in choosing Affiliates to participate in a Peer-to-Peer Training Session: The Affiliate is in good standing at NCLR and is current on its recertification documents (most recent Board of Directors list, audited financial statements, and a signed Memorandum of Understanding) and its annual membership fees.

The Affiliate is operating or has concrete plans to begin operating a program similar to the winning program from which it wants to receive training.

The Affiliate has a clear understanding of the goals it wishes to achieve through attending the training session.

The Affiliate has demonstrated a dedication to strengthening Hispanic families in its own programs or has concrete plans to operate a family strengthening program.

To apply for the training sessions, the attached application form must be submitted to NCLR by Wednesday, October 17, 2007. Questions or concerns should be directed to Gabriela Mossi, FSA Consultant, at affiliate@nclr.org or (202) 776-1758. The form should be emailed or faxed to: Affiliate Member Services affiliate@nclr.org or Fax: (202) 318-0714

2

National Council of La Raza (NCLR)/Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF) FAMILY STRENGTHENING AWARD PROGRAM PEER-TO-PEER TRAINING SESSION 2007 APPLICATION FORM DEADLINE: Wednesday, October 17, 2007 Affiliate Organization: _____________________________________________________ Contact Name: ___________________________________________________________ Address: ________________________________________________________________ Phone Number: __________________________________________________________ Email: __________________________________________________________________

Please choose ONE of the following winning programs for a Peer-to-Peer Training Session. A full description of the winning programs is included on pages 5-7 of this form.

ENLACES Information, Referral, and Support Services, Conexión Américas, Nashville, TN Session date: Monday, December 10 and Tuesday, December 11 Community Health, Dallas Concilio of Hispanic Service Organizations, Dallas, TX Session date: Thursday, November 29 and Friday, November 30 Toddler/2-3-Year-Old Childcare Center, El Hogar del Niño, Chicago, IL Session date: Tuesday, November 13 and Wednesday, November 14 Luz Southside Coalition, Luz Social Services, Inc., Tucson, AZ Session date: Monday, December 3 and Tuesday, December 4 Promotores/as de Salud, Tiburcio Vásquez Health Center, Inc., Union City, CA Session date: Thursday, December 6 and Friday, December 7

3

Please write brief answers to the following questions. For ease of readability, please include each question before the corresponding answer. Limit your responses to three, double-spaced pages. Your answers and comments will help us tailor the training agenda to your program s needs.

1. Provide a description of your organization and the program it operates or plans to operate.

2. Explain how the program is similar to the winning FSA program in which you have chosen to participate. If you are not yet operating this program, please describe in what stage of planning you are and what, if any, funding has been secured.

3. What are the current challenges that your program is experiencing?

4. What are your top goals for attending a technical training session? Select three.

Increasing funding and revenue streams for our program.

Providing capacity-building for staff members.

Learning about creative and innovative ways to enhance our program.

Fostering community and national networks to strengthen our services.

Incorporating new program needs assessment and/or evaluation methods to improve our program.

Creating more peer contacts and increasing collaborative opportunities.

If you have other goals, please list______________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ Please read the statement below, sign, and include with your application submission: I confirm that the information contained here is true, that the NCLR Affiliate organization is currently operational, and that the organization is in good standing as an Affiliate of NCLR. The NCLR Affiliate organization applying for the Peer-to-Peer Training Session agrees to participate in any related conference calls prior to the session and to respond to any requests for information in a timely manner. If for some reason the organization is unable to send a representative to the training session, it will contact NCLR at least one week prior to the date of the session.

Signature of President/CEO

Date

Name of President/CEO

NCLR will pay for one roundtrip plane ticket (up to $500) and two nights in a hotel near the winning program s facilities for one representative from each chosen Affiliate organization. The Peer-to-Peer Training Session host will provide three meals during the event. NCLR Affiliates will assume any additional costs, such as taxi fare or parking.

4

2007 NCLR/AECF Family Strengthening Award WINNER PROFILES

Affiliate Organization: Tiburcio Vásquez Health Center, Inc. Region: California Winning Program: Promotores/as de Salud Since 1971, Tiburcio Vásquez Health Center (TVHC) has delivered multicultural and linguistically appropriate health care services to underserved communities in Southern Alameda County, California. TVHC operates a centralized and effective system of licensed medical providers and community health education, social work, and nutrition services. TVHC has been recognized for incorporating members of the clinic with the surrounding community.

Its Promotores/as de Salud program began in 1999, which is based on Brazilian educator Paulo Freire s empowerment concept people actively participating and taking responsibility for their own education while promoting the idea that the community is capable of taking control of its health and disease prevention awareness. TVHC community health educators recruit and work with a network of adult community volunteers who serve as lay health educators in their neighborhoods and schools. These promotores are trained in outreach, planning, and health topics that include the importance of immunizations, diabetes, HIV prevention, cancer, and cardiovascular disease prevention. They conduct community presentations, attend local health fairs, offer peer and doorto-door information, and teach chronic disease self-management.

Affiliate Organization: Conexión Américas Region: East Coast Winning Program: ENLACES Information, Referral, and Support Services Conexión Américas was founded in 2002 to address some of the most pressing challenges and opportunities created by recent demographic changes in Tennessee. Its mission of social and economic advancement for the Latino family through integration is accomplished through an innovative, two-pronged service: 1) Providing information about and referrals to social services, homebuying, small business development, and leadership skills to Latino families, and 2) helping the host community (nonprofit groups, government agencies, and businesses) understand the presence, contributions, and challenges of Latino families through technical assistance, public policy advocacy, and its Latino Cultural Competency Training .

Its ENLACES Information, Referral, and Support Services program connects Latino families with information, resources, support networks, and tools needed to address immediate, midterm, and long-range challenges. The program s strategy includes a Spanish Help Line a number that community members can call to get information and a physical site where face-to-face assistance and trainings are provided. Topics range from tax preparation and legal referrals to starting a family business.

5

Affiliate Organization: Luz Social Services, Inc. Region: Far West Winning Program: Luz Southside Coalition Luz Social Services, Inc. has been committed for the past 36 years to developing and delivering culturally competent prevention, education, and health services for the Latino community in Tucson through advocacy, community mobilization, and research. Luz has been recognized nationally for its service to children, youth, and families through its provision of comprehensive community-based prevention programs and school-based education via its charter schools, Luz-Guerrero Early College, and the Adalberto M. Guerrero Middle School. Its approach to strengthening families is centered on the premise that it is necessary to build a comprehensive system, combining the strengths of youth, parents, schools, leaders, and the community in a collaborative effort against juvenile crime, school dropout rates, substance abuse, youth pregnancy, youth violence, economic disadvantages, and the loss of cultural tenets.

The Luz Southside Coalition program targets Tucson s Southside community and its families through three components. The first provides culturally appropriate parenting classes focused on the reduction of drug and alcohol use, teen suicide, juvenile delinquency, and domestic violence, and improving parenting skills through Strengthening Multi-Ethnic Families and Communities (SMEFC). The second component integrates parent graduates from the SMEFC program into PADRES (Parents Against Drugs through Recreation, Education, and Service) where they can receive further training and become promotores. An environmental prevention effort, the third component, mobilizes the Latino community to decrease the effects of laws, policies, and norms that contribute to alcohol and substance abuse.

Affiliate Organization: El Hogar del Ni単o Region: Midwest Winning Program: Toddler/2-3-Year-Old Childcare Center For more than 34 years, El Hogar del Ni単o has assessed the immediate needs of Chicago s Pilsen and Little Village residents and developed programs to meet them. The agency s primary mission is to provide quality comprehensive bilingual/bicultural early childhood development programs and meet the needs of the entire family so that children can develop in environments that are culturally, emotionally, psychologically, socially, and financially strong.

While the Toddler/2-3-Year-Old Childcare Center addresses the educational, developmental, cognitive, and social needs of young children, other El Hogar del Ni単o programs and partner agencies support and strengthen the Center s families. Mothers receive early childhood parenting and development education as well as medical services, and the entire family benefits from a comprehensive network of services including employment, education, emergency food and energy assistance, and family reintegration/remedial reading programs.

6

Affiliate Organization: Dallas Concilio of Hispanic Service Organizations Region: Texas Winning Program: Community Health Dallas Concilio of Hispanic Service Organizations advocates for and enhances the quality of life of Hispanics and their families in the Greater Dallas area through community partnerships. Families are served directly through Dallas Concilio s education and community health programs while the areas of housing, employment, advocacy, counseling, domestic violence, food, and legal services are addressed by their partner organizations.

The Community Health program provides Latino families with linguistically appropriate health and nutrition education, referrals to affordable health care services, and physical activity sessions.

Specific activities include CHIP (Texas Children s Health Insurance Program) and MedicareApproved Drug Discount enrollment, a diabetes education and risk-reduction program, and the family walking program, Pasos Saludables, which includes regular health monitoring.

7