Quarterly newsletter, Nov. 2010

Governor's Office for
Children and Families

QUARTER 2 NOVEMBER 2010

Meet Our Staff
Jen Bennecke Executive Director
Cora Alexander System of Care Coordinator
Dahlia Bell Research Analyst
Robert Clark Special Projects
Coordinator
Sarah Dempsey Family Violence Training Specialist
Heather McDaniel Youth Development Program Coordinator
Quincie McKibben Grants Monitor
Frances Milton Financial Operations
Danielle Ruedt Family Violence Program Coordinator
Lydell Samples Finance Director
Susan Smithgall Budget Officer
Carole Steele Prevention Programs
Coordinator
Christina Taylor Administrative Assistant
Joe Vignati Justice Programs
Coordinator

Quarterly Newsletter
GOCF and your communities work hard to strengthen Georgia's children and families. So, the intent of this publication is to keep you updated with recent events, new trends and research, and upcoming opportunities that are being provided by GOCF and your communities. We hope that it will be a useful resource for you!
November is Parent Engagement Month!
To find out how you can get involved with your child this month, click here.
Community Highlight
Troup County Named One of the Nation's 100 Best Communities for Young People By America's Promise Alliance and ING
Troup County was named one of the nation's 100 best because of the community's long-term approach to addressing the challenges young people face by engaging them from birth to adulthood. Troup BELL (Building Early Learners for Life) was created as cross-sector collaboration between the Chamber of Commerce, Troup County School System, United Way, local health agencies and education programs, to provide early-learning education for at-risk children and their families. Believing that education is the solution to ending the cycle of poverty, the community created BELL to ensure that all children enter kindergarten ready to learn by providing resources and support during the critical early years of a child's life. Troup BELL was awarded a grant in 2008 from the Governor's Office for Children and Families. This grant supports the System of Care in Troup County along with community support with Early Learning (birth-5 years old) the key focus. Troup BELL's key partners are Parents as Teachers Georgia Network & National Center of St Louis and Troup County Community & the Governor's Office for Children and Families.
The entire 2010 list of 100 Best Communities for Young People and their accomplishments can be found at www.americaspromise.org/100Best.

DATES TO REMEMBER:
Regional System of Care Trainings December 7 & 9, 2010
Early Childhood Education Public Meeting December 9, 2010 Abstinence Education Application Due November 8, 2010
GOCF Advisory Board Members
Judge Steve Teske, Chair Steve Lowe, Vice Chair
Susan Allison Andy Barclay John Bowden Gaylyn Cole
Ken Dobbs Rachel Ewald Marquis Harris Brittany Jean Carole Kaczorowski Shaquita Ogletree Linda Parker
Gene Pope Dan Provence Kathy Schrader Michele Smith Duane Whitley

We Unite and Empower Communities So They Can Unite and Empower Families

We Unite and Empower Communities So They Can Unite and Empower Families

QUARTER 2: PAGE 2

New Research and Publications
Adolescent Girls in Georgia's Sex Trade August Data Released Each quarter data is released on the number of girls indentified as being commercially sexually exploited in Georgia. The count for August 2010 indicates another decrease with a total of 353 girls identified. The counts began in 2007 and Georgia has never experienced a decline with two back to back counts. This is encouraging news as the Governor's Office for Children and Families, Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children Task Force and collaborative partners continue to expand services for victims and raise the awareness of the problem. To view the quarterly data visit www.children.ga.gov and click on the Family Violence tab or click here.
Upcoming White Paper Release by the Governor's Office for Children and Families GOCF's next white paper will focus on a multi-disciplinary assessment of and approach to runaway and homeless youth that will include a discussion of the connection with the family violence continuum (domestic violence, sexual assault and teen dating violence). This report will be released on the GOCF website in December 2010.
RFP Releases and Funding Updates
Georgia's Title V Abstinence Education Award On behalf of the state of Georgia, GOCF was recently awarded $1.8 million in funding under the Title V, Section 510 State Abstinence Grant Program, from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Family and Youth Services Bureau. The purpose of this federal grant is to promote abstinence from sexual activity as the expected outcome for youth. To find out what funding opportunities can be provided for you through this grant, please click here.
Abstinence Education and Youth Development Grant Program Request for Proposals GOCF recently released the Request for Proposals (RFP) for the Abstinence Education and Youth Development grant program. The grant program will focus on implementation of abstinence education in an intensive positive youth development framework that is inclusive of the system of care philosophy. For more information and to access the RFP, please click here.
Grant Awards
System of Care: Caring Community Grant Program Awards The Governor's Office for Children and Families announced fourteen (14) Caring Community Continuation Grant Program Awards on November 2, 2010. The grant awards totaled $2,828,603 and were given to communities all across Georgia.
City of Madison: $131,850 City of Perry: $231,818 City of Savannah: $243,750 Cobb County Community Services Board: $233,068 Cook County Board of Education: $217,192 Douglas County Community Services Board: $162, 436 Floyd County Board of Commissioners: $243,750 Jenkins County Board of Education: $159,845 Multi-Agency Alliance for Children, Inc.: $240,000 Murray County Government: $232,457 Newton County School System: $199,350 Pickens County Government: $208,087 Troup County Board of Education: $162,500 Walton County Board of Education: $162,500

We Unite and Empower Communities So They Can Unite and Empower Families

QUARTER 2: PAGE 3

Trainings and Conferences
Upcoming trainings hosted by GOCF that are not listed on this newsletter can be found by visiting GOCF's training calendar at http://gocfweb.com. Be sure to check them out!

Upcoming Events
Statewide Family Violence Community Engagement Forums
In order to commence the development of a state plan to reduce family violence along with managing for domestic violence shelters and sexual assault centers, GOCF conducted six family violence community engagement forums throughout the state during September and October. Forums were held in the judicial districts of Tifton, Savannah, Augusta, Cumming, Atlanta, and Macon. Qualitative data was collected to gauge the landscape of family violence in Georgia. Valuable information was collected regarding effective local approaches, gaps in service, and the framework of a state plan. The forums were attended by domestic violence and sexual assault service providers, law enforcement, judges, attorneys, representatives from state agencies, advocates and community members to name just a few. Meeting records from each forum along with a state report will be on our website at www.children.ga.gov in December 2010.
Regional System of Care Trainings
The Governor's Office for Children and Families is hosting two regional trainings during December 2010. The purpose of these sessions is to provide communities, local agencies, non-profit organizations, and others information regarding the System of Care model prior to the release of the 2011 System of Care Request for Proposal (grant opportunity). The dates and locations of trainings will be December 7, 2010 at the Georgia Mountains Center in Gainesville, GA, and December 9, 2010 at the UGA-Tifton Campus Conference Center in Tifton, GA. The trainings are free, however, registration is required as space is limited. A registration link will be posted on the GOCF training calendar soon.
Public Meeting Regarding the Draft Outline of a Comprehensive Plan for the Georgia State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care
The Georgia State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care has drafted an outline of a comprehensive plan that will direct the Council's work for the next three years. The plan presents a vision for how Georgia should support young children and their families; an assessment of how Georgia is currently serving young children and their families; and a plan for getting from where the state is to where it should be. The date and location for this meeting will be December 9, 2010 at the UGA Tifton Conference Center in Tifton, GA from 5:00pm 6:00pm.
To access a copy of the draft outline for the comprehensive plan, visit their website at www.decal.ga.gov.

Event Results
2010 Juvenile Justice Forum
The Juvenile Justice forum, sponsored by GOCF, was held September 14 15, 2010. The Council of Juvenile Court Judges and the Department of Juvenile Justice members attended the forum where juvenile justice issues were discussed face to face. GOCF was represented at this forum by Joe Vignati, the Justice Programs Coordinator for the office, who facilitated several of the discussions. To view articles on this forum released by the Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, please visit http://journalismfor.us or click here for article one and here for article two.
2010 Georgia Truancy and Delinquency Prevention Conference
The 2010 Georgia Truancy and Delinquency Prevention Conference, sponsored by GOCF, was held in October and attended by approximately 150 people from throughout the State. The goals of the conference were to share information regarding promising practices in the field and to encourage collaboration between the various stakeholders (schools, courts, nonprofits, etc). To view articles on this forum released by the Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, please visit http://journalismfor.us or click here for article one and here for article two.