4rkidsearlychildhoodiowa

When: Wednesday May 22, 2019
Time: 12:00-1:00
Where: Church of Hope, 305 NE Dartmoor Drive Waukee, IA 50263

Come learn about the services that Four Oaks Foster and Adoptive Family Connections provide and what you can do to support the children in our foster care system. Presented by Mindy Alexander, Training Coordinator and Recruiter from Four Oaks Foster and Adoptive Family Connections. Please complete the registration to attend lunch, compliments of Four Oaks. Reservations are requested no later than May 20th at noon. You can register by going here.

For more information contact Melinda Alexander at (319) 784-2341 or malexander@fouroaks.org.

Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a disaster proclamation in response to flooding and flash flooding beginning March 13 and continuing.

The governor’s proclamation allows state resources to be utilized to respond to and recover from the effects of this severe weather across the entire state and activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program for qualifying residents, along with the Disaster Case Management Program for the following counties: Adair, Audubon, Appanoose, Black Hawk, Bremer, Buena Vista, Butler, Carroll, Cass, Cerro Gordo, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Clay, Clayton, Crawford, Dallas, Davis, Delaware, Dickinson, Emmet, Fayette, Franklin, Guthrie, Hamilton, Hancock, Hardin, Howard, Humboldt, Ida, Iowa, Kossuth, Louisa, Lucas, Madison, Mahaska, Marshall, Mitchell, Monroe, Montgomery, Muscatine, O’Brien, Page, Palo Alto, Plymouth, Scott, Sioux, Tama, Union, Webster, Winnebago, Winneshiek, Worth, and Wright.

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program provides grants of up to $5,000 for households with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level or a maximum annual income of $41,560 for a family of three. Grants are available for home or car repairs, replacement of clothing or food and temporary housing expenses. Original receipts are required for those seeking reimbursement for actual expenses related to storm recovery. The grant application and instructions are available on the Iowa Department of Human Services website. Potential applicants have 45 days from the date of the proclamation to submit a claim.

Effective immediately, Iowans can call 211 with questions or concerns about the massive flooding and what steps they can take toward recovery. The Flood Hotline is open 24-hours-a-day, seven days a week. In addition, Governor Kim Reynolds also launched an easy-to-navigate website at floods2019.iowa.gov.

The 2019 Iowa Floods website includes sections on:

1. Recovery resources- Grant programs, housing, rebuilding, staying safe, farming and agriculture resources, and replacing documents.
2. Travel information
3. Latest news
4. Social media information.

The 4 R Kids ECI board sponsors family friendly activitites that focuses on families with children under the age of 5. Below is the dates of the events.

Madison County – June 24, 2019 at 10:30, 11:30 and 12:30 – Discovery Dome at The Winterset Library

New county data snapshots from Iowa Kids Count take a deeper dive into the data, which outline 20 indicators of child and family health and well-being in every Iowa county. Our aim is to provide policymakers, educators, advocates, practitioners and engaged Iowans with the tools to make informed decisions around child and family issues.

Here is a list of legislators that represent Adair, Dallas, Madison, or Warren County.

Elected Officals in 4 R Kids Area 1-14-19

Here is a website to locate your legislator

Legislator Lookup

Here is a handy website to track bills regarding children and families

Bill Tracker

The U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 5-year Estimates (2012-2016) has issued data regarding the perecnt of households with children under age 6 with all parents in the workforce as well as the percent of households with children ages 6 -17 with all parents in the household in the labor force.

Below is a spreadsheet for each county.

Percent_Households_with_all_parents_in_workforce_by_county

2-1-1 Counts is a web-based tool to provide real-time, searchable, and visual presentations of data about community-specific needs of vulnerable populations. 2-1-1 Counts displays a count of 2-1-1 callers’ most pressing needs in usable form and reports data at the ZIP code, region, or call center level as recently as yesterday.  2-1-1 Counts enables users to check trends, make comparisons, and share information.

2-1-1 Counts enriches the dialogue in communities – especially among leaders – by calling attention to a wide range of factors that compromise the health and well-being of poor individuals and families.

Click here to see the most pressing needs in your community.

Below are the new federal poverty guidelines.

Federal Poverty Guidlines FY19

Federal poverty guidelines 18

Preschool Scholarships are available for children living in Adair, Dallas, Madison or Warren County. The Preschool Scholarships are located on the Warren County ISU Extension website or you can click Preschool Scholarships.