County Services News

Making Collaboration Work -
Focus of March Training Institute
Are you worried about how children and families in your community are faring? Is your community capitalizing on all of the strengths and resources it has to meet the needs of its youngest and most vulnerable citizens? Are all the key stakeholders in your community working together with families to ensure that children have the chance to have bright and healthy futures or is your community still addressing the needs of children and families in a piecemeal fashion?

On March 16­17, the Local Collaboration for Children and Youth, with the support of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, is sponsoring a one and one-half day training institute in Jefferson County/Louisville, Ky. for county, city and school officials. (NACo is one of six national organizations representing local government and school systems that participates in the Local Collaboration for Children and Youth.)

The training institute, "Making Collaboration Work" will focus on the Neighborhood Place, an award winning collaboration in Jefferson County/Louisville, that through a system of neighborhood-based family centers, is successfully providing blended and accessible health, education, employment and human services that support children and families.

The training institute will highlight how to:

• Effectively involve all community stakeholders in a collaborative partnership
• Break down turf issues between agencies and organizations
• Engage parents as the foundation of collaborative efforts
• Effectively manage community boards
• Avoid the pitfalls of collaboration; and
• Finance programs.

The registration fee for the training institute is $75. Room rates at the Holiday Inn in downtown Louisville are $69 for a single room and $79 for a double.

For more information on the training institute, or to obtain a registration form, please contact Sandy Markwood at NACo, 202/942-4235.

(County Services News was written by Sandy Markwood, director of program development.)