by Emily Blanchard
Setting
My field placement site is the Learning Community Center of South Omaha. The LCCSO works to challenge the opportunity gap through early childhood education, family engagement and educational preparation programs. Their clients are children and their families (a two generation approach), and their partners are school districts and community organizations. The combined mission statement and goals of the LCCSO are to demonstrate, share, and implement more effective practices to measurably improve educational outcomes for children and families in poverty. Their vision is that all children within the Learning Community achieve academic success without regard to social or economic circumstance.
Parent Intake and Interview Questions
After meeting with the LCCSO staff and teachers, my first item of business has been to sit down and talk with the parent participants in the English language classes. Interview questions were developed by me and the LCCSO team regarding healthcare navigation and early signs of childhood developmental concerns, submitted for potential addition to client intake. I am interviewing parents using these questions (and will later categorize, analyze, and present the data from their responses). The interviews are voluntary and anonymous. Right now the challenge is getting participants; I’ve had more than I initially thought I would, but it’s a slow trickle. I’m a new face, and it’s tough to break their routine. The staff and teachers have been absolutely phenomenal, not only at welcoming me but at helping me reach out to parents and encouraging their participation in my project.
Upon completion of this project, the LCCSO will gain a developed set of potential supplemental questions to the client intake form, which will add to their knowledge base of each participant and their needs and concerns. The analyzed responses will also help the LCCSO staff develop additional topics for future parent workshops, which have been very popular amongst the parents and are generally well attended.