SI FAMILIES CONNECT ADVISORY PANEL

GOAL: Families are strong and engaged in their child’s lives and learning with access to information, services and support they need to help their child succeed.
If we want children to succeed it is essential to support strong families.
This means we must:
- Recognize and Support Family Roles as their Child(ren)’s First Teacher
- Ensure that Families have Access to the Resources Needed to Provide Safe, Stable, Healthy and Economically Secure Homes
- Create Communities that Coordinate & Connect Initiatives to Ensure a Seamless Pipeline of Programs & Services
- Maximize Resources & Effectiveness of Programs
- Promote Policies and Practices that are Family Friendly
SIFamilies Connect is the Southern Illinois Coalition for Children and Families broad based initiative designed to strengthen families by connecting them to valuable services, resource and programs.
The Southern Illinois Coalition for Children and Families is looking for parents, agency representatives and other community members from throughout the southern fifteen counties to serve as members of the SIFamilies Connect Advisory Panel
The purpose of the SI Families Connect Advisory Panel is to:
* Provide guidance for content included in the SIFamilies.org website and Facebook pages including the identification of authoritative resource
* Assist in Identifying and recruiting additional contributors to the SIFamilies website and Facebook pages
* Identify opportunities for collaboration, coordination and linking of information between agencies and programs
* Explore innovative options for ways to connect southern Illinois families with resources through technology and mazimize already existing resources including 211, HSIDN Resource Guides, family resource guides, etc. etc.
* Develop systems to connect information from the region’s many interagency councils
* Identify and implement collaborative strategies to connect families to valuable resources and supports
* Identify and implement strategies to education agency staff and others about available resources including eligibility criteria
Anyone interested in serving on the panel or being part of this initiative should email carlacampbell@jalc.edu or tkwright@illinois.edu.
Chairpersons:
Toni K Wright- University of Illinois Extension Carla Campbell- Child Care Resource and Referral Panelists: Kim Honey MSW, LCSW Child & Adolescent/ Crisis Coordinator Union Co. Counseling Service, Inc. Ashley Cramer, MSW Illinois Department of Human Services Meg Stafford Unit Point School Family Circle Brittany Hale Prevention Specialist Prevent Child Abuse Illinois |
Jeff Franklin
SIU School of Medicine Lori Van Horn DCFS Licensing Representative Susan Sloop University of Illinois Extension |