Partnering with Families...

Colorado families face challenges to achieve and maintain a quality life amidst concerns about individual and family safety, finances, relationships, and health care. Extension faculty have a commitment to strengthen Colorado's families through collaborative programs that improve family living skills, health and well-being, and decision-making abilities. A broad spectrum of people with interests in community issues bring diverse resources, skills and assets to create solutions and help empower at-risk families and transform their situations. Educational programs are localized to fit specific needs and problems while addressing concerns of citizens statewide.

Government Partnership Helps Limited-Resource Audiences Improve Health and Nutrition

Providing people with practical, usable skills and information as opposed to providing only food or food stamps is the most effective way to help them achieve good health and economic self-sufficiency. Well nourished, strong, productive families help ensure a continuing strong productive workforce. Colorado State University Extension delivers food and nutrition education programs to most Colorado counties through the Food Stamp Nutrition Education Program (FSNEP) and the Extension Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP), both funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Both focus on nutrition education for people with limited resources and both assist those audiences in getting the most nutrition for the lowest food cost.

Evaluations show that a high percentage of the participants adopt practices they learned in the lessons. Recent survey data indicated that EFNEP graduates are better able to use commodity foods, are better able to make informed decisions at the grocery store, are feeding their families more nutritiously and have reduced their food budget by an average of $100 per month, allowing more disposable income.

Statewide comparisons of entry and exit questionnaires show that most FSNEP participants showed improvement in two or more nutrition practices, and one or more food resource management practices; 70 percent of the participants made large changes in eating habits; 71 percent eat more nutritiously, and 64 percent lowered their food budgets. Forty-two graduates in one county saved an average of $91 a month on their food bills.

Collaborative Program Points The Way to Self-Sufficiency

Extension's Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) in El Paso County is also collaborating in a multi-agency, interdisciplinary effort with Department of Social Services and Goodwill Industries to deliver services through "Project Success," a welfare reform demonstration project designed to help recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children become self-sufficient. Fifteen other human service agencies are also providing some support for these families. The program puts a strong emphasis on budgeting and food purchasing to help families transition from food stamps to handling cash, as part of the Welfare Reform Act. About 300 families have successfully completed the program, and their graduation surveys show the following results--91 percent gained a high amount of nutrition information resulting in 86 percent who regularly eat a variety of foods, 69 percent who lowered their food expenditures, 86 percent who improved food shopping skills and 89 percent who reported that their families eat more nutritiously. Each graduate reported saving an average of $146.60 on their monthly grocery bill.

Strengthening Families is Jacque Miller's Number-One Goal

An old African proverb says it takes an entire village to raise a child. And Jacque Miller, Colorado State University Extension Consumer and family agent in the San Luis Valley, believes it takes entire communities to strengthen families.

Miller partners with citizens, community groups and government agencies to help strengthen families in the San Luis Valley. Such programs as Dare to Be You, La Cocina Saludable and the Cooperative for Pro-Family Services touch on subjects as diverse as nutrition, parenting, literacy, self-esteem, problem-solving and decision-making. These are the fabric of the programs, which make families stronger and, in turn, empower entire communities to help citizens become more effective parents and employees.

"These partnerships are about fitting pieces together," Miller says. "It's like putting the pieces of a puzzle together, but the challenge is that the puzzle changes--it's fluid. When you begin a puzzle, there's a picture on the box showing what the puzzle will look like when its finished. With a collaborative project, there's a vision and a passion that drives everyone, but it's not as clear as a picture on a box. That makes communication crucial."

When community concern about low literacy rates prompted community members to address the problem, Miller headed up a steering committee of local educators. Over the past year, the group established family centers in Alamosa, Monte Vista and San Luis. The Cooperative for Pro-Family Services that created the centers coordinates existing community services for working or single parents, foster parents, welfare recipients, migrants, teen mothers and learning-disabled parents. Services coordinated through the center include GED preparation, parenting education and English as a Second Language training.

"Adults with low reading levels, poor computer skills or limited math skills tap into these programs and resources to help them enhance their knowledge and ability and overcome barriers to their economic and professional goals," Miller said. Funding for the centers was provided through a State Strengthening Grant, received by Colorado State University's College of Applied Human Sciences. Pro-Family Services recently secured additional grant funding from the Colorado Department of Education for continued development of the centers.

"Although the centers are designed to address welfare reform, what's more important is that the centers are about family," Miller said. And, true to her word, family is the focus of other partnerships in which Miller is involved. Through Dare to be You, parents address such issues as self-esteem, communication, problem-solving and basic parenting skills, and through La Cocina Saludable, Miller partners with the federal government's Women, Infant and Children Program to help families lead a healthy lifestyle. Tailored for the area's Hispanic population, especially migrant workers, the program breaks through language barriers that often hinder proper nutrition habits and education by drawing on abuelas, elder Hispanic women who are highly regarded in the Hispanic culture, to teach healthy eating and food preparation.

Team Supports Parents Through Anger Management

Child abuse has become a problem of epidemic proportions. Nationally, more than 2.9 million reports are made annually; in Colorado, more than 34,000 investigations of child abuse were made last year. Preventing child abuse is second on the list of priorities for Coloradans. Research has shown that parents who abuse their children have been found to be less knowledgeable about parenting and child development, to have unrealistic expectations of their children and to use discipline techniques that are inappropriate for their children's level of development. When parents don't know how to react to a child's behavior or when they react primarily in anger, they are at greater risk of abusive behavior. More than $402 million is spent annually in Colorado due to the failure to prevent child abuse and neglect.

Colorado State Extension agents in Douglas, El Paso, Larimer, Lincoln, Morgan and Routt counties along with Bob Fetsch, Extension human development specialist, have presented the research-based program, RETHINK--Anger Management for Parents--for several years. Partnering with parents to provide an educational program that combines parenting- skills development with child-development knowledge and anger-management skills, helps produce more competent parents and healthy children by reducing anger and violence levels in the home. Working together, educators assist parents in improved communications skills and increased knowledge that foster supportive family relationships. The program has indicated significant results from participants: 95 percent of those who took the weekly classes made positive behavioral changes; 95 percent increased knowledge of parenting and child development; 84 percent reduced anger levels; 77 percent reported better communication techniques; 77 percent reduced their violence levels; and 64 percent increased anger management skills.

For more information, contact your local Colorado State University Extension office.

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