Hagedorn-Hempstead Initiative

Family and Children's Association will use their funds for capacity building for the Hagedorn-Hempstead Initiative to retain full-time community outreach specialists at the Hagedorn Family Resource Center; develop and distribute bilingual outreach materials for public awareness; fully establish the Hagedorn-Hempstead Advisory Board; solidify a formal relationship with all community stakeholders to ensure a continuum of care for all children and teens in need of services in the Village of Hempstead; expand program services for aging-out teenagers who are at risk of gang involvement, drug/alcohol use, dropping out of school, pregnancies, and incarceration; and sustain capacity to apply for competitive government grants and research-grants from private foundations to address the needs of children, teens and families. The Hagedorn-Hempstead Initiative is a unique collaboration between a municipality, school district and private, non-profit human service agency. It has already been able to win support from major donors and a healthcare organization to share a common vision. The Hagedorn Center works to reduce violent crimes among children and adolescents. The Center targets academically underachieving children in pre-K and elementary school grades and provides effective and early interventions to help divert these children from later involvement in the juvenile justice system. These efforts are helping to reduce and/or break the cycles of underachievement among Village of Hempstead children and youth. NCA/NCF