Newsletter for February 2010

[GSC Web Admin]

The Great Start Collaborative (GSC) of Ionia County is pleased to provide community members with information on early childhood topics that they can disseminate to parents of young children in their organization. The articles will feature a different topic each month that is written by someone who works in the county with young children. The article will appear in three different formats: a long article with in-depth information, a short paragraph with the major points highlighted and one to two sentences with a key message for parents to remember. You may select whatever format best suits your needs and use it in isolation or put it into a newsletter, church bulletin or use a paycheck insert. Parent members of the GSC have told us that having information and knowing what resources are available to them in their community is their greatest need. There has been a significant amount of research lately that has focused on the impact that communities have on the outcomes of its youngest citizens. According to the Carnegie Corporation (1994), “We can now say with more confidence that a family's effectiveness as a childrearing system is bolstered by the existence of a supportive social network that includes people outside the immediate family. There is also increasing evidence that when people feel responsible for what happens in their neighborhoods, children benefit.” We hope that you will take the step and partner with us by providing parents in your networks accesses to this information.


Topic: Meth Exposure

Paycheck insert: Parental drug use can have a devastating impact on children. The risk of children being neglected or physically and sexually abused is very high because their parent/caregiver has lost the ability to attend to their physical and emotional needs. read more... (http://www.greatstartioniacounty.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=216&stc=1&d=1265226617)

Newsletter short version:While there are many illegal drugs that can impact a person’s ability to parent, methamphetamine (also known as” meth”) use is now epidemic. read more... (http://www.greatstartioniacounty.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=217&stc=1&d=1265226617)

Newsletter full version:Many people who become addicted to meth or other drugs often lose track of their priorities and present as disorganized and increasingly violent, in addition to experiencing many other problems. read more... (http://www.greatstartioniacounty.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=218&stc=1&d=1265226617)

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