OC Partnership for Young Children report 1999

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NEEDS ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY The Los Ninos Task Force The Orange County Partnership for Young Children created the Los Ninos Task Force as a strategy to better understand the resources and gaps in the community, and to collectively plan for services to meet the particular needs of Latino families with young children. Twenty -seven representatives from county agencies and nonprofit organizations that provide services to Latino families were invited to be a part of the Task Force. The Task Force was multi - tasked and considered: • The composition of the Spanish speaking community in Orange County; • Current resources and their relationships within the community; • Gaps in resources and barriers to effective service delivery; • Implications for children and families, and services providers; • Recommendations and strategies for enhancing services for Latino children ages 0 — 5. The Task Force met in three sessions between October 1998 and February 1999. A number of strategies were employed to assist Task Force members as they engaged in the exploration of critical issues and the creation of focused recommendations. These included individual assignments, work group tasks, full group brainstorming and directed discussions. Two of the meetings were conducted in both Spanish and English with the assistance of interpreters, which allowed for the participation of Spanish speaking parents. Task Force members were provided summaries and updated materials between meetings, and were encouraged to discuss issues among themselves, with their colleagues, and with the families. In addition, a Steering Committee comprised of representatives of key agencies assisted the Partnership in planning and identifying resources for the initiative. The Task Force was highly productive and served as a valuable forum for members to exchange information and strategies for use in their work with Latino families. Parent Focus Groups Task Force members also assisted the Partnership in conducting four parent focus groups. The facilitators received three hours of orientation and training from Partnership staff to ensure uniformity in moderation of the focus groups. The Steering Committee assisted staff in identifying sites for the focus groups to ensure diverse locations within the county, and diversity of participants. Questions for the focus groups were developed by the Task Force and translated into Spanish, and were designed to elicit discussion of family needs in the areas of child health, early childhood care and education, and family support. Focus group facilitators recruited participants through a variety of methods including personal invitation, distribution of flyers, and announcements at churches and agency meetings. The focus groups were held in January 1999 at four separate locations: St. Thomas More Catholic Church (Chapel Hill), Orange Water and Sewage Authority