Family Connection Partnership News

Family Connection Partnership Wraps Up Fiscal Year-End

Family Connection Partnership is pleased to share some highlights of our work during Fiscal Year 2004. This list serves as a quick summary of some of our recent accomplishments.

• Expanded active Family Connection county collaboratives to all 159 counties.
  
  
• Conducted planning forums with 68 counties initiating three-year strategic planning processes.
  
  
• Offered Learning Institutes and group training/technical assistance regionally, covering topics such as collaborative governance, evaluation, prevention, fiscal agent and finance requirements, and promising practices in specific programs, with more than 5,149 collaborative members and partners participating.
  
  
• Conducted individual technical assistance visits in counties, which involved 5,120 collaborative members and partners.
  
  
• Loaded all county strategic plans into a single database for use in responding to partner requests and identifying counties focusing on similar priorities for possible funding opportunities and pilots.
  
  
• Continued work in several state partner initiatives including: the Early Childhood Initiative (with the Appalachian Regional Commission); Earned Income Tax Credit campaigns (with the Annie E. Casey Foundation); Community Partnerships for Protecting Children (with the Division of Family and Children Services); community alternatives to detention (with the Commission on Children and Youth); and a fatherhood initiative (with the Department of Human Resources).
  
  
• Merged the Georgia Benchmark Database with the national KIDS COUNT database. (Georgia had the second highest number of "hits" of any state on the Web-based data site.) Produced and distributed Georgia 2004 KIDS COUNT packets-including a state summary, data guide, several fact sheets and other information-to community leaders, decision makers, and policy makers.
  
  
• Created a Fund Development team to research and respond to funding opportunities that are appropriate for Family Connection Partnership, Family Connection county collaboratives, and partners.
  
  
• Designed and produced a discussion paper using six local collaboratives as case studies to learn more about the relationship between governance structure and improvement of outcomes.
  
  
• Organized a biennial conference with more than 700 people attending. Feedback reflects the event was an overwhelming success.
  
  
• Worked closely with the First Lady of Georgia and her office to organize six summits across the state to kickoff the "Our Children Campaign."
  
  
• Hosted a Family Connection Day breakfast and Winter Training Event for communities. Nearly 400 people participated.
  
  
• Wrote a first draft of standards for collaborative development. Received feedback from collaboratives and partners. Pilot implementation will begin next year.
  
  
• Worked closely with communities and other child advocates to monitor the legislative session and publish weekly updates.
  
  
• Drafted an Information Technology plan to increase efficiency and use of Family Connection Partnership Web site and enable county collaboratives to submit all reports and deliverables electronically.
  
  
• Received several state and national inquiries regarding the Family Connection model.
  
  
• Served as a presenter in more than 23 different conferences and workshops.