Brothers and Sisters Project
Innovative Partnerships that Meet Community Needs
Coalition for Community School
April 8, 2010
Laurie Bohm, Sea Tac Community Schools Director, Community Schools Collaboration
Angelica Cardenas, Family, Friend and Neighbor Program Coordinator, Child Care Resources
AGENDA
• Participants will hear about our experience in partnering to
create the Brothers and Sisters Project.
• Participants will become familiar with the Brothers and Sisters
Project.
• Participants will learn how we are growing the program with
new partners and funders.
Community Schools Collaboration
(CSC)
– VISION: Schools are vibrant centers of thriving
communities that provide essential services, resources
and opportunities.
– MISSION: Engage and collaborate with schools and
community partners using culturally competent strategies
to support child, youth and family success.
Child Care Resources (CCR)
• VISION: Every child has a great start in school and in life.
• MISSION: Child Care Resources leads efforts to promote
equity for children, community stability, and school
readiness by:
– Helping families access and choose high quality child and
after school care.
– Partnering with providers and caregivers to offer
excellent care.
– Advocating for child care solutions that strengthen
communities.
Intersecting Vision/Mission
• CSC: Concern with school age children and
youth
• CCR: Concern with young children and their
caregivers
Although concerns are different they intersect
when talking about youth caring for young
children.
The Genesis of the Idea
Community Schools Collaboration needs assessment in SeaTac,
WA
• Youth not able to participate in after school programming
because they are caring for younger siblings.
• Parents not able to attend school events without child care.
• High percentage of young children from immigrant and low
income communities are not school ready.
The Genesis of the Idea
Child Care Resources Family, Friend and Neighbor Program
• Hearing from communities that there was a large percentage
of youth caring for younger siblings.
• Young children who are not adequately supported in their
development do not enter kindergarten ready.
• Youth were not part of program focus for reaching and
supporting FFN caregivers.
The IDEA!
• Youth caring for young children need to receive support,
information and education on how to do it well.
• Youth caring for young children have a skill set that can
translate to other career opportunities.
• With proper training and supervision, youth can be a resource
to provide quality childcare at school or community events.
“The Brothers and Sisters Project”
Finding the Right Partners
• Discussing the overall goal of the project.
• Assessing what we have, what we can offer and what pieces
we are missing.
• Inviting agencies that have necessary expertise and would be
interested in the goal.
• Looking for the vision/mission intersection – while thinking
outside of the “box” for those unlikely partners.
INVITING PARTNERS
• A youth from Tyee Educational Complex
• American Red Cross Serving King & Kitsap Counties
– Babysitting Certificate
– CPR/First Aid for Infants, Children and Adults
• Highline Community College
– College and Career Pathways
– Possible curriculum to use (Early Learning Center)
• Schools Out Washington
– Expertise on youth programming
– Possible trainers and resources
WHAT DOES IT TAKE FOR
PARTNERSHIPS TO WORK?
• Minimum of two visionary agencies, not just individuals
• The Squeaky wheel(s)
– Reach out and contact other partners
– Remind partners of why it is important
– Keep on top of action steps
• Note taker
• Convener and meeting reminder
• Flexibility
– location, date and time of meetings
– openness to new ideas and direction toward the common goal
WHAT DERAILS PARTNERSHIPS?
• Staff turnover
• Lack of clear understanding from all partners of the goal
• Agency mission/vision getting lost in the process
• Funding cuts leading to changing priorities
• Inconsistent meetings dates and times
• Lack of follow through on next steps
• Over promising and not delivering
• Too much process and not enough action
WHAT DID THE YOUTH PARTNER
BRING TO BSP?
• First hand experience for the needs he has in caring for his
younger sisters.
• Information on which youth were caring for young children
and would be interested in the project.
• Conducted a survey with youth to find out if there was any
interest in something like this and what date and time would
work best to hold the Brothers and Sisters Project.
• Recruited students into project
• Over time, he kept encouraging the students to continue
attending.
WHAT DID THE PARTNERS BRING TO
BSP?
Community Schools Collaboration
• Time and expertise of staff;
• Outreach to and coordination of youth for the classes;
• Facilities needs and logistics for trainings at the Tyee
Educational Complex;
• 1 AmeriCorps as a facilitator;
• $2000 towards training materials, supplies, food, and
incentives.
WHAT DID THE PARTNERS BRING TO
BSP?
Child Care Resources
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Time and expertise of staff;
Development of lesson plans;
Training of 1 CSC AmeriCorps on CCR lesson plans;
Copying and printing costs.
WHAT DID THE PARTNERS BRING TO
BSP?
American Red Cross Serving King and Kitsap Counties
• Time and expertise of staff;
• A trained Red Cross facilitator for the Babysitting, First Aid,
and Adult, Child and Infant CPR certification trainings;
• Discounted costs for Red Cross training materials and
certifications.
WHAT DID THE PARTNERS BRING TO
BSP?
Highline Community College (HCC)
• Time and expertise of staff;
• Use of HCC curricula and resources towards the development
of appropriate career pathways lesson plans.
The Brothers and Sisters Project
Areas Covered
• Child Development
•Behavior Management
• Home Safety
• Adult /Child/Infant CPR, and First Aid
• Educational and Career Pathways
The Brothers and Sisters Project
Format
• 8 week session
• Meeting 2 times a week, 2
hours each week
• 12 started and 8 graduated
• Youth were required to
attend all sessions
Who Participated
• 3 males
• 6 females
• Very culturally diverse youths:
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Liberian
Ivorian
Senegalese
Latino
Haitian
Ethiopian
Somali
Thai
Vietnamese
Celebration
• Youth invited their parents, friends and teachers to the
event.
• Youth did skits and a PowerPoint presentation on what
they learned.
• Youth left with a tailored resume that included their new
skills.
• Youth received:
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CPR/First Aid certificate
American Red Cross Babysitting certificate
Brothers and Sister Project Certificate
Target Gift Card
GRADUATION!
What is it?
An 8-week program where students learn about:
•Early Childhood
Development
•CPR
•Safe baby-sitting
practices
•First-Aid
Response
How to give proper CPR (Cardiopulmonary
Resuscitation)
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Make sure the area is safe
Tap the person on the shoulder
Ask someone to call 911
Check for signs of life
Rescue breaths
Perform CPR
Early Childhood Development
The different stages of development:
First-Aid Response
• What to do when someone is injured
• Proper ways of putting and removing gloves
• Applying gauze and bandage
• When someone is experiencing
hypoglycemia (diabetic)
• F.A.S.T. (Recognition of Stroke)
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Face
Arm
Speech
Time
Thanks to…
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The American Red Cross
Child Care Resources
Highline Community College
Ms. Jewel Robinson (Career Center)
Community Schools Collaboration
Programmatic Lessons Learned
• Snacks are important!
• Students found videos to be informative but boring.
• Given the make up of the participants reading out loud
was not an appropriate strategy for the youth.
• Students enjoyed and actively participated in hands on
activities.
Programmatic Lessons Learned
• Relationship with the facilitator is paramount.
• Curriculum needs to be hands on and active.
• Curriculum needs to have regular time for reflection on what
they are learning and how it will change the way they care
for children.
• Curriculum needs to include intentional discussion on
cultural differences in childrearing.
What Students Told Us
All youth indicated that the information they learned would change the way
they care for young children.
• “It made me a better person to take care of little kids so that I know what to do
when danger comes.”
• “I learned a lot about young children that I never knew before!”
• “I liked the day where we worked on how to make children not do something
without making him or her feel bad.”
• “I learned a lot of things I didn’t know before, especially how to manage kids
behavior.”
• “It taught me to be a better role model and keep the (children’s) environment
wonderful always.”
• “I learned how to talk to a child and how to make rules for them.”
“Now I am not afraid to be left alone with my 2 year old
brother!”
Year Two
Partnerships
• Lost American Red Cross and Highline Community College
• Gained King County Library System
• Community Schools Collaboration took on career pathways
component
Partner Lessons Learned
• Without buy in from organization/management
project loses momentum.
• Partnerships can change and/or end based on
the lessons learned.
• Partnerships need to be active even in the
down time.
• Be always on the lookout for potential partners
who may be able to contribute to the project.
Year Two
Moving to Scale
Implemented in three high schools
• Tyee Educational Complex, SeaTac
• Evergreen Campus, White Center
• Foster High School, Tukwila
Year Two
Funding
• Funding Sources
– United Way of King County
– White Center Community Development Association
– FACES South
• The funding was used to:
– Hire contract coordinators at each school
 Coordinate/facilitate lessons;
 Coordinate graduation;
 Develop relationships with area organizations to provide volunteer/paid opportunities
for the students based on their new BSP skills.
– Pay CCR’s Provider Services for creation of a BSP specific curriculum
– Three CCR staff to facilitate BSP curriculum
– Received First Aid kits and Play Kits
Plans for the Future
• Replicable in other communities
• Available for middle school students
• Develop BSP Module 2:
– Healthy Habits: For youth and children in their care
– Social Marketing: Sharing what they learned with their
families and communities
– Career Pathways: Preparing for the future with more in depth
experiences through volunteer opportunities and/or paid
internships.
QUESTIONS?
BROTHERS AND SISTERS PROJECT
Laurie Bohm, SeaTac Community Schools Director, Community Schools
Collaboration
laurie@cscwa.org 206.433.2516
Angelica Cardenas, FFN Program Coordinator, Child Care Resource
cardenas@childcare.org 206.329.1011 xt 216
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