LACCA RECIPIENT OF THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY’S JOHN GLENN INSTITUTE BEST PRACTICE AWARD
On January 20, 2010, The Ohio State University’s John Glenn Institute, the Ohio Association of Community Action Agencies (OACAA) and the Ohio Department of Development awarded Lima Allen Council on Community Affairs’ (LACCA) “Kindergarten Kamp” a Best Practice Award for its program innovation and outstanding service to the community. LACCA Head Start, along with representatives of the Lima City Schools, the United Way of Greater Lima, and Allen County Family and Children First Council, attended the OACCA award luncheon on Wednesday. Jacqueline Fox, Chief Executive Officer, LACCA, accepted the award on behalf of all partners who have helped make this initiative a success.
The Kindergarten Kamp Initiative has been in existence for approximately one year, however the concept has been in the making for over five years. This initiative, is a collaboration among several agencies: LACCA, Lima City Schools, United Way of Greater Lima, Allen County Family and Children First Council, and the Allen County Chamber of Commerce. The project is a five-week Summer Kindergarten Kamp to help transition at-risk children to kindergarten. The project had three goals: increase children’s KRAL (Kindergarten Readiness Assessment-Literacy) scores, initiate relationships between Kindergarten teachers and Head Start staff, and increase collaborations that will impact children’s learning outcomes.
LACCA’s collaborations with the Lima City Schools has resulted in better partnerships, the ability to track Head Start children, as well as children in Kindergarten Kamp, better communication among educators during the transition process, and most importantly, a significant increase of KRAL scores among children who attended the Kamp over students who did not, in both schools.
These Best Practice Awards were developed to honor innovative and effective Community Action Agency programs that measurably meet the needs of their customers, their families, and their communities by helping low-income people become more self-sufficient. Using a strong evaluation system and judging by the John Glenn Institute, the Best Practices Awards serve as a showcase for innovative Community Action Agency efforts that make a measurable and life-changing difference. In addition to LACCA receiving an award, six other Ohio Community Action Agencies were honored with Best Practice Awards.
For further information about the Kindergarten Kamp and other opportunities at Lima Allen Council on Community Affairs (LACCA), please contact Jacqueline Fox, Chief Executive Officer.