A Message from The Family Success Institute
Happy Holidays to all and wishing you a joyous 2023. We cannot close out the year without noting the mounting volume of family success activities in the last two months, reflecting the growing commitment to supporting children and families. From the Father Center’s statewide summit in New Brunswick, to the Wealth Disparity Task Force hearings in Trenton, to Brick Education Network’s “Healthy Moms, Thriving Babies” Symposium in Newark, to The Community Planning & Advocacy Council’s LEAD event, to Nurture New Jersey’s virtual statewide summit that reviewed their multi-faceted and comprehensive 2021 Strategic Plan – these are all new occurrences that are focusing more attention on how to enable children and families to succeed in our state.
We also admire the Immigration and Resettlement event organized by the United Way of Central Jersey. And of course the Monmouth ACTS Initiative grows with its burgeoning Community Engagement Network, its cutting edge and compassionate children and family mental health initiative and its developing resident resource navigation system. Thanks to all for these important ventures that reflect your individual commitments to active positive change and our collective values.
At the same time, our Community Action Forums, launched in July and growing in number, are engaging parents, children, community leaders and advocates in defining the obstacles they face every day and the tools and resources they need to succeed. Read on for more about the Forums below.
Likewise, the family success movement is pursuing transformative change in state policy, programming and funding. This requires a firm commitment by the state – and two family success bills developed by the members of our movement are garnering support in the legislative. Read on for a legislative update below.
Each and all of you are the foundational bedrock to this movement. Without you and your incredible work, progress cannot occur. Please have a safe and peaceful holiday and stay strong for 2023, which promises to be a big year for family success.
Tim Carden, Executive Director
Tom Blatner, Co-Founder & President, Board of Directors
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It’s a busy holiday season, and we know that plenty of worthy causes are asking for your support.
We ask you to consider a gift of any size to The Family Success Institute (FSI), to help us continue our work of promoting success for EVERY family. Thank you for your consideration.
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Let's Get Social!
We need your help to amplify the family success movement on social media! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn and share our posts, and we’ll share yours too. You can also subscribe to our YouTube channel.
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Legislative News
The family success movement is committed to supporting ALL families (The Bill of Rights for Children and Families) and to empowering communities to design and manage holistic service networks that will enable families to succeed (The Community Recovery & Family Success Act). These pieces of legislation are gaining momentum!
More Senators are indicating support, and the Community Recovery & Family Success Act (A4819) has garnered a great deal of new co-sponsors from the Assembly whom we would like to thank for voicing their support for the family success movement:
• Asm. Ralph R. Caputo (D-Essex)
• Asw. Linda S. Carter (D-Middlesex, Somerset and Union)
• Asw. Annette Chaparro (D-Hudson)
• Asw. Shama A. Haider (D-Bergen)
• Asw. Sadaf F. Jaffer (D-Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
• Asw. Mila M. Jasey (D-Essex and Morris)
• Asw. Angelica M. Jimenez (D-Bergen and Hudson)
• Asm. Robert J. Karabinchak (D-Middlesex)
• Asm. James J. Kennedy (D-Middlesex, Somerset and Union)
• Asm. Pedro Mejia (D-Bergen and Hudson)
• Asm. William B. Sampson IV (D-Hudson)
• Asm. Gary S. Schaer (D-Bergen and Passaic)
• Asm. William W. Spearman (D-Camden)
• Asw. Shanique Speight (D-Essex)
• Asm. Sterley S. Stanley (D-Middlesex)
• Asw. Britnee N. Timberlake (D-Essex and Passaic)
• Asw. Cleopatra G. Tucker (D-Essex)
• Asm. Benjie E. Wimberly (D-Bergen and Passaic)
Thank you to ALL of our bill sponsors! You can familiarize yourself with our two pieces of legislation here.
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Community Action Forums Update
Our Community Action Forums are underway! Convened by Learning Community members who are trusted in their communities, these small group forums are laying the foundation for transforming state programs and funding to invest in the success of every family in our state.
- Center for Family Services, Community Planning & Advocacy Council and LISC convened a group forum in Camden that explored issues of financial security.
- Parents Inc. held discussions in New Brunswick on the challenges of parenting and how public resources can be better directed to supporting parents.
- United Way of Central Jersey convened a group of young mothers participating in the Nurse Family Partnership program in Milltown to share ideas on how public resources and service providers can help alleviate the stress and demands young mothers face.
This is just the beginning: There are 10+ forums planned and more expected as we head into the new year. The policy papers that FSI/Learning Community Working Groups collaborated in developing, are providing a substantive framework and direction for these forums but are not limiting the breadth of topics or proposals emerging from this targeted community outreach.
Any Learning Community member or partner interested in convening a small group forum of community members to explore the components of family success should contact Erica Harris Devalve, FSI Director of Strategic Initiatives, who is leading this project. These gatherings are the first stage of FSI’s process for giving direction and purpose to a statewide summit on Family Success that is being planned for the second or third quarter of next year.
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Upcoming Learning Community Member Events
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Check out one of our Learning Community’s upcoming events, and watch our social media pages, where we’ll share events that promote family success in real time!
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Save the date for NJ Community Development Corporation’s annual Casino Night Fundraiser – March 24, 2023.
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Family Success Movement in Action: Watch Monmouth ACTS Video
Watch the latest video from Monmouth ACTS (Assisting Communities Through Services), which spotlights their Early Childhood Success Hub and Family Advocate Dorys Reitsma. The Family Advocate, a County-funded position, gets to know families and meets with them one-on-one to help them navigate resources.
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The Family Success Movement in the News
In case you missed it – FSI authored an OpEd on the need for equity for all families that was published in NJ Spotlight News. If you haven’t already, please read and share with your networks!
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