Starfish Family Services

Strengthening families to create brighter futures for children

Employee Learning Week: December 4-8, 2017

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So what is Employee Learning Week?

Employee Learning Week is a national awareness campaign highlighting the important connection between employee learning and achieving the organizational mission. Most importantly, it’s a celebration of all the great things our Starfish Staff does when it comes to training. Watch the video training here!

Staff can get involved by participating in engaging learning activities, nominating their co-workers for learning awards, and more.

Staff: learn more at the Employee Learning Week SharePoint website

You can also learn more through the Association for Talent Development’s website!

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Press Alert: Collaborative Launches 2-Year Evaluation Project to Improve the Impact of Head Start Services for Detroit Children and their Families

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Download Full Press Release

INKSTER, MICH. (July 07, 2017) – Thrive by Five Detroit (TB5D), a collaborative led by Starfish Family Services and in partnership with Focus: HOPE, Development Centers, Inc., and Southwest Solutions, has begun a project to assess the effectiveness of their birth to five preschool services in Detroit and apply learnings to program improvements

The project is funded by a $450,000 grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) of Battle Creek Michigan.

Selected by the Office of Head Start, in 2014, to participate in a national birth to five pilot program to create innovative and effective early childhood programs, TB5D currently serves over 1,100 children and their families annually.

“Process evaluation doesn’t sound very exciting,” said Ann Kalass, CEO of Starfish Family Services “but we know it’s critically important that we objectively assess our programs to ensure that they are effective and impactful. Thrive by Five has a transformational vision: that preschool services in Detroit will be superior to any other community in our nation.  By supporting a process evaluation of our collaborative efforts, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation ensures that the lessons we’ve learned thus far will help inform early childhood efforts within Detroit and throughout the nation.”

The two-year project will examine key program components such as effectiveness of the model, collaboration, infrastructure, professional development, costs, and impact. The evaluation will result in an Evaluation Report, Executive Summary, and Recommendations for Improvement.

About the W.K. Kellogg Foundation: The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF), founded in 1930 as an independent, private foundation by breakfast cereal pioneer, Will Keith Kellogg, is among the largest philanthropic foundations in the United States. Guided by the belief that all children should have an equal opportunity to thrive, WKKF works with communities to create conditions for vulnerable children so they can realize their full potential in school, work and life.

The Kellogg Foundation is based in Battle Creek, Michigan, and works throughout the United States and internationally, as well as with sovereign tribes. Special emphasis is paid to priority places where there are high concentrations of poverty and where children face significant barriers to success. WKKF priority places in the U.S. are in Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico and New Orleans; and internationally, are in Mexico and Haiti. For more information, visit www.wkkf.org.

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Press Alert: Starfish Family Services to Honor The Jewish Fund at the Great Hearts Gala, Thursday June 8

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Download Full Press Release (PDF)

INKSTER, MICHIGAN (May 22, 2017) – Starfish Family Services is pleased to announce it will honor the Jewish Fund with its 2017 Great Hearts Award at the agency’s annual Great Hearts Gala on Thursday, June 8, at Cobo Center in Detroit.

The Great Hearts Award annually recognizes an individual or organization that is making a profound difference in the lives of Starfish families.  Starfish and the broader community have greatly benefited from the Jewish Fund’s generous support. Since 2004, Starfish has received grants totaling nearly half a million dollars from The Jewish Fund to launch innovative and high impact programs like Baby Power, a collaboration between Starfish and the University of Michigan Department of Psychiatry.  Baby Power serves new and expectant mothers and their babies who face challenges like maternal depression, trauma, and parenting stress that, if unaddressed, could impede their baby’s healthy development.  Baby Power offers home visits, group therapy sessions for mothers, and developmental support for children.

Since launching Baby Power in 2012, Starfish has been able to serve over 700 mothers and their children. Early results have been overwhelmingly positive, and the program has moved from a philanthropically-funded service to a Medicaid-billable service.

“At Starfish, we believe that healthy relationships are the foundation for lifelong learning and success.  And, no relationship is more important than the one between a mother and her baby.  The Jewish Fund has been a huge champion and supporter of our work, recognizing that healthy child development is linked to our parents’ ability to cope with life stressors,” said Starfish CEO Ann Kalass.  “We are very grateful for the Jewish Fund’s support that enabled us to test and refine the Baby Power model and provide this critical program to new mothers. We are now using our learnings from Baby Power to develop and launch a similar program for fathers.”

Our 2017 Great Hearts Gala supports key initiatives like:  Building Resilience: Starfish is committed to building resilience in children who have experienced emotional and physical trauma. Strengthening the Parent – Child Bond: Programs like Dad Power bring together fathers in weekly sessions, providing a unique space for them to share their stressors and successes with one another.  Empowering Parents: Starfish is committed to helping parents succeed with their children and with their own goals.

This year’s gala co-chairs, Nancy Grosfeld and Karen Schoenberg, invite you to attend the 2017 Great Hearts Gala. Event tickets are $225.00 and include complimentary valet parking, a cocktail reception, and plated dinner. Event sponsorships are still available.  For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit www.starfishgala.org.

 

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Strengthening families to create brighter futures for children.

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