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HEAD START & EARLY HEAD START WRAPAROUND CHILD CARE
HACAP Administrative Office
1515 Hawkeye Drive or PO Box 490
Hiawatha, Iowa 52233
1-800-469-2211 or (319) 393-7811
www.hacap.org
Head Start/Early Head Start are federally funded programs that provide comprehensive child development programs for low-income families with young children. Child care services are provided at no cost to eligible families.
The Empowerment Wraparound program enables families with children enrolled in the part day, part year Head Start or Early Head Start program the option to attend on a full day, full year basis. Empowerment funds allow additional child care services to be "wrapped around" the six hour preschool day to extend the program to ten hours for at least 245 days per year. The extended program is a crucial service for parents who are employed or attending school or job training. This option is available at the following Head Start child care center locations:
LINN COUNTY CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER WRAPAROUND CHILD CARE
520 11th Street NW
Cedar Rapids, IA 52405
(319) 892-5701
Established in 1969, this county-operated center has a licensed capacity of 68 children, ages 3-6 years, and is accredited by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs. The center places a priority on serving families on limited incomes and children with special needs, but also enrolls families on a private pay basis.
The Empowerment Wraparound program enables families with children enrolled in the center's part day, part year program the option to attend the center on a full day, full year basis. Empowerment funds allow additional child care services to be "wrapped around" the six hour preschool day and extend the program to eleven hours for at least 245 days per year. The center provides child development services from 6:30 AM to 5:30 PM at no cost to eligible families. The extended program is a crucial service for parents who are employed or attending school or job training.
GRANT EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTER WRAPAROUND CHILD CARE
245 Outlook Drive SW
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404
(319) 558-2020
The Grant Early Childhood Center is an early childhood building in the Cedar Rapids Community School District and serves Pre-kindergarten through first graders. Grant is also the site of a part day, part year Step-Up preschool program for at-risk or special needs children who are four years old. The Wraparound project enables low-income families with children enrolled in the Step-Up or Early Childhood Special Education program the option of full day, full year services.
Empowerment funds allow additional child care services to be "wrapped around" the part-time classroom day to extend the program to ten hours for at least 245 days per year. The school provides child development services from 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM at no cost to eligible families. This is a crucial service for parents who are employed or enrolled in school or job training program.
POLK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WRAPAROUND CHILD CARE
1500 B Avenue NE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52402
(319) 558-2475
Polk Elementary School is part of the Cedar Rapids Community School District and serves kindergarten through 5th grade students. In addition it is the site of a part day, part year Step-Up preschool program for at-risk three and four year old children. The Wraparound project enables low-income families with children enrolled in the Step-Up program the option of full day, full year services.
Empowerment funds allow additional child care services to be "wrapped around" the six hour classroom day to extend the program to ten hours for at least 245 days per year. The school provides child development services from 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM at no cost to eligible families. This is a crucial service for parents who are employed or enrolled in school or job training program.
CEDAR RAPIDS COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT
Educational Service Center
346 Second Avenue SW
Cedar Rapids IA 52404
(319) 558-2549
The Cedar Rapids Community School District's Transportation Department uses Empowerment funds to provide free transportation to eligible children enrolled in the eight Step-Up Preschools. Step-Up is a school based preschool program that serves at-risk children who are 4 years old.
PROVIDER AND CHILD CARE EDUCATION SERVICES (PACES)
HACAP Office
1515 Hawkeye Drive or PO Box 490
Hiawatha, Iowa 52233
(319) 393-7811
www.hacap.org
PACES works with home and center child care providers to expand the availability of quality child care in Linn County. Empowerment funds are used to improve the knowledge and skills of child care professionals by providing enhanced training opportunities, on-site visits and access to child care equipment and resources.
Services for Child Care Providers
Providers who enroll in the PACES program have access to the following services at no cost:
FAMILY AND COMMUNITY HEALTH ALLIANCE
HACAP Administrative Office
1515 Hawkeye Drive or PO Box 490
Hiawatha, Iowa 52233
(319) 393-7811
www.hacap.org
The Family and Community Health Alliance offers a variety of health and support services to pregnant women and families with young children. The core services for pregnant women include the WIC nutrition program and maternal health services. Empowerment funds enhance the core services by allowing the Alliance to offer comprehensive child health and family support services at no cost to eligible families. The Alliance services can be accessed at various neighborhood locations throughout Linn County. Please contact the Alliance to obtain the current location of services.
Linn County Community Empowerment assists the Alliance in offering the following services:
Well Child Screening Clinics
Comprehensive services include physicals, developmental screening, hearing and vision testing, nutrition assessment, social assessment, immunizations and lead testing. These services are for children with no insurance, those with Title 19 or private insurance that does not cover well child care.
Dental Funds
Funds are available to assist families with the cost of a dental exam and treatment.
Women Infants and Children (WIC)/Maternal Health
A supplemental nutrition program for Women, Infants, and Children that provides nutrition education and healthy food packages to help families meet their nutritional needs. Prenatal education, nutritional education and social assessments are provided for pregnant women. Home visits are offered to women with high-risk pregnancies.
Health Insurance
An Outreach Specialist can assist you with an application for hawk-i or Title 19 health insurance programs. Community presentations on hawk-i can be arranged by contacting the Family and Community Health Alliance.
Support Services
Child Life Specialists provide enhanced age appropriate developmental education to parents, child care providers and others in the community through presentations and workshops at various rural libraries in Linn County.
FAMILY VIOLENCE COLLABORATIVE
Family Services Agency
819 5th Street SE
Cedar Rapids, IA 52401
(319) 398-3943
Families that are experiencing, or are at risk for, violence to a family member may access the services of this program. Empowerment funds allow the Family Violence Collaborative to offer direct services to families who would benefit from assistance with their housing, counseling, transportation, child care, self-sufficiency and financial management needs. The program strives to reduce risks-- child, domestic, and substance abuse-- in families where at least one child is under the age of six.
Families may access the following Empowerment funded services:
Family Support Worker
A Support Worker is a family advocate and can help secure quality child care, find affordable housing, identify transportation resources, procure help with substance abuse or mental health issues, refer to parenting classes and provide education on budgeting skills.
Homeless Liaison
Provides services to homeless families in the Cedar Rapids Community School District. Linn County Empowerment and the Cedar Rapids School District jointly fund this position. Many of the identified homeless families have children under the age of six and issues are present that may affect the safety of those children.
Liaison services to families with young children include referrals to quality, affordable child care programs, assistance finding housing, food and clothing, connecting families to health care options and development of safety plans.
Children At Risk Task Force
Families are referred to the Task Force for services when a newborn tests positive for an illegal substance. Services include visits from the Visiting Nurse Association, referral to the Department of Human Services and assistance from Early ACCESS in regard to developmental needs.
Task Force Coordinator provides case management services to ensure that relevant services are available to families and that appropriate referrals have been made. Staff also provides extensive community training and educational presentations on the impact of substance abuse on children.
PARENT EDUCATION CONSORTIUM (PEC)
1120 33rd Avenue SW
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404
(319) 399-6809
http://www.aea10.k12.ia.us/schcomplan/pec/index.html
Through the use of Empowerment funds the Parent Education Consortium (PEC) provides a variety of support services for parents of young children and for professionals who serve parents with young children.
Parenting Classes
Because parents are their children's first and most important teachers the PEC offers a variety of education options. Parenting classes are open to all parents with young children (birth-5 years) and specialized classes may be available for newly divorced parents, stepfamilies, fathers or parents that are court ordered to attend.
Parent classes are held at a variety of locations and are provided at no cost to the participant. Those who participate in classes receive the following:
For a listing of current class schedules please click on the following link:
http://www.aea10.k12.ia.us/schcomplan/pec/index.html
Other Parent Support Services