“The Project POWER/AmeriCorps team member is a huge part of helping us serve our mission and a huge asset to the community,” says Kim Clark, operations manager for Asheville Museum of Science.
Author: Jodi Ford
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Give the gift that can change a life: volunteer
“Research confirms the long-term positive effects that mentoring can have on vulnerable children and recognizes that parents and teachers cannot provide all the help most at-risk children need to reach their full potential.”
Buncombe County has benefited from 20 years of Project POWER/AmeriCorps service in the community
“Take action! Contact your representatives and ask them to protect this program that turns minimal financial investments into huge returns for our most vulnerable children, veterans and the environment.”
The power of partnerships: Children First/CIS works with local agencies to find a family a home
“Bobby’s story highlights the spectrum of housing experiences that many families travel — homelessness, doubling up and public housing. This instability impacts families’ health, the ability to secure work and children’s academic success.”
Everyone deserves to see a doctor when they need to
“Now is the time to let your representatives know that you believe that everyone deserves access to healthcare. When everyone can see a doctor or get preventative care, we have a stronger economy, healthier communities and stable families.”
Asheville city bond will help create housing affordability
“These bonds will provide funding to build new homes and apartments all around the city that families can afford, as well as the infrastructure to connect neighborhoods to schools, work, grocery stores and parks — all at minimum risk for city residents.”
Volunteering is my retirement job: An interview with a Children First/CIS volunteer tutor
“As a volunteer tutor working with these children, you are planting a seed,” says Linda Kane, a longtime volunteer and supporter of local nonprofit Children First/Communities In Schools. “Hopefully, this seed will grow into a love of learning that will stay with them throughout their lives.”
ABC+P = student success: The helping hands of Children First/Communities In Schools student support specialists
“Our student support specialists give support so teachers can focus on teaching, and students can focus on schoolwork. We need to give our students every opportunity possible to reach their full potential.”
A sense of direction: An interview with Sean Sawyer of Children First/Communities In Schools
“Research shows that having a consistent, caring adult in the lives of vulnerable children is key to improving absenteeism, academics and behaviors.”
Nonprofit Children First/CIS offers 2015 highlights
“Last year, the organization served over 2,800 children, or 6 percent of all children living in Buncombe County.”
A community of helpers: Children First/CIS Holiday Giving Program
“We have to remember that the holidays can be a stressful time for some of our families who are living on tight margins,” says Lisa Barlow, Children First/CIS Student support specialist at Emma.
New report reveals impact of nonprofit Children First/Communities In Schools of Buncombe County
The report notes that 2,856 children in Buncombe County, or 6 percent of all children living in Buncombe County, were served through Children First/CIS services and programming.
Flying by the seat of our pants: The start of the Children First/CIS Family Resource Center
“Now, 20 years after the creation of the Family Resource Center at Emma, the need still exists in the Emma community, as unemployment and the number of students on the free and reduced lunch program are still extremely high.”
Buncombe County’s Super Summer Meals program helps alleviate summer food insecurity for children
“Currently in its fourth year, the Summer Food Service Program grew in response to the risk of summer food insecurity experienced by children who are on the free and reduced meal program during the school year. “
Michelle’s story: Closing the health insurance coverage gap
Michelle Wisda is a 44-year-old wife and mother. For 14 years, she and her husband raised their son in Chapel Hill, N.C., where Michelle worked in the public school system as a behavioral modification specialist, and her husband ran his own car-detailing business. In 2009, the recession hit hard, and her husband’s business felt the […]
Children First/Communities In Schools: Promoting student success
Children First/Communities In Schools (CIS) recognizes that when a child arrives prepared for school, their chances for success are exponentially increased, while the likelihood of dropping out of school is decreased.
Stretching the dollar: State changes to childcare subsidy eligibility disadvantage families
Local nonprofit Children First/CIS created a video highlighting changes to the child care subsidy program, and how it has affected one working mother, Kim Akbar, who spoke at the YWCA as part of Just Economics VOICES for Economic Justice.
Lighting up the holidays: The Children First/CIS holiday giving program
Guest columnist Jodi Ford explains the significance of CIS’s holiday giving program in the lives of local children from low-income families.
Start Every Day with Hope: Children First/CIS Project POWER/AmeriCorps
Now in its seventeenth year, Project POWER/AmeriCorps has served approximately 16,000 local at-risk youth, helping bridge the gap and increase the graduation rate with one-on-one assistance, participation in service learning projects and developmental training in conflict resolutions skills.
A friend for life: Children First/CIS summer campers at Horse Sense of the Carolinas
Horse Sense of the Carolinas, located in Marshall, is an internationally recognized leader in the field of equine-assisted psychotherapy and learning — used to foster positive emotional, mental, behavioral and social skills of those who may be at risk or have special issues including children dealing with food insecurity or crowded living-situations.
Inspiring Latino youth at MANOS
Guest columnist Jodi Ford introduces Children First/Communities In Schools’ program for Latino youth, MANOS.
