OC Partnership for Young Children report 1999

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NEEDS ASSESSMENT RESULTS Focus Group Participants Profile A total of 33 parents participated in the four focus groups. Twenty -six participants completed a demographic survey in Spanish at the completion of the session. Twenty - five of the participants listed Mexico as their country of birth, while one was from South America. Fifty percent of families had annual incomes less than $15,000. The majority of respondents had 3 or 4 household members. Eighty -one percent _lived in Chapel Hill or Carrboro, with the remainder residing in northern Orange County. Only one -third of the respondents' children were born in the United States. Almost all of the participants live in a two- parent household, with only three reporting that they are single parents. Focus Group Results Although the four focus groups were held in diverse locations in the county with different participants, there was remarkable consistency in the themes expressed across groups. The major points that emerged from the discussions included the following: Early Childhood Care and Education The focus group participants expressed concerns about child care that are much like those of other parents with young children. They wanted to trust the people who care for their children, and they wanted to be able to afford the services. It was apparent that these Latino parents do not extensively use out -of -home child care. However, those who have enrolled their children in Head Start were very pleased with the program. • Participants stressed the importance of being able to trust child care providers, and preferred to leave their child with a friend or relative whenever possible. • Although some seemed to prefer informal care arrangements, concern was expressed over the lack of reliability of this type of child care. "Now, the person that takes care of Amy son] makes him happy, but I know that at any moment this person can tell me that they are going to Mexico... that's why I want Head Start. " - Iglesia Unida de Cristo Focus Group Participant • Families trust Head Start and feel it does a good job of preparing children for school, but some expressed frustration at not being eligible for Head Start because their income was too high. • Parents feel that learning English and increased social interactions are a benefit for children attending child care. • Some indicated that they would sacrifice income or further education to stay at home with their child. "It's very important to us Spanish speaking people that we have a good family and we have a good family relationship... We don't enjoy leaving the kids behind. Sometimes it's better to make a sacrifice. " - OWASA Focus Group Participant 10