About ILGARD / News

The Times Leader, Martins Ferry, OH
Tuesday April 22, 1997

The Intelligencer, Wheeling, WV
Tuesday, April 1, 1997

Belmount County program gives residents an 'even start'

MARTINS FERRY - A General Education Development (GED) practice test before him, 21-year-old Richard Van Curen ignores the conversations going on around him as he pays attention to the teacher reviewing his answers.

Earning the equivalence of a high school diploma is important to Van Curen because he knows the consequences without one.

"I’d probably be at a dead-end-minimum wage job," he admitted.

Van Curen has been preparing to take the test for some time and is now in the home stretch thanks to a Belmont County program called Even Start, located at St. Myer Terrace Apartments in Martins Ferry.

A demonstration project for Belmont County created by federal legislation and funded by a grant from the Ohio Department of Education, Even Start is designed to alleviate barriers of continuing adult education by providing transportation to the program site and making day care available to participants.

Adults enroll voluntarily or may referred by an outside agency, such as the Department of Human Services located in the same complex.

There are four basic components of Even Start: education of the parent, Parent and Child Time (PACT), parenting skills and child education, said program coordinator Susan Stobbs and parent educator Letty Coast.

Even Start’s goal is to take a comprehensive approach improving parent literacy and parenting skills while improving the preparation for children entering school and encouraging parents to participate in their child’s education.

Since its inception in September, about 30 children and 16 adults have participated in Even Start. To be eligible, adults must live in Belmont County and have a child under age 7.

Parents participate in the program at the Even Start site four days each week. They take Adult Basic and Literacy Education (ABLE) classes twice a week and spend two days in parenting sessions, job skills classes and pact time. Topics include nutrition, cooking, budgeting, communication, child behavior modification, resumes, interviewing and raising awareness of agency help in the county.

Children, ages 3-5, in Even Start are enrolled, if eligible, in Head Start, also located at St. Myer.

PACT sessions are held in the Head Start classroom and emphasize play interaction and listening to children. Coast also conducts PACT time in homes for parents, such as Van Curen, whose child is not eligible for Head Start. Home visits typically incorporate age-appropriate activities for the entire family such as making play-doh and playing games. The goal, said Coast, is for parents and children to spend quality time together.

An advisory council made up of more than a dozen area agency and organization representatives takes an active role in helping Even Start meet its goals and objectives and is reviewing the program to ensure its mission is being fulfilled, said council chairman Gary Obloy.

Obloy is also chief administrator of the Community Action Commission of Belmont County, Inc., the administrative entity for Even Start.

The Institute for Local Government Administration and Rural Development (ILGARD) at Ohio University is responsible for Even Start’s evaluation.

"We are helping develop the evaluating mechanisms for the program such as the way the program tracks progress," said evaluator Marsha Lewis, a public management and policy specialist for ILGARD. "We will provide ongoing technical assistance and will complete the evaluation report at the end of this project year."

The length of the program varies for each individual. The goal of those attending ABLE classes is to earn a diploma and find a job. That’s one thing most Even Start participants have in common.

Carolyn Tice, faculty associate with ILGARD and chair of the Department of Social Work, is also involved with the program. She noted that Even Start is significant for several reasons.

"It builds on a foundation of literacy and effective parenting skills," she said. "Parents, children and agencies are encouraged to collaborate around issues of education at the community level."

She also explained that Even Start’s location "fosters a network of services related to housing, child care and public assistance."

ILGARD is designing training materials and a training program on interagency collaboration that will be used in Belmont County. It will also serve as a model for other counties.

Even Start has joined with ABLE instruction from the Mid-East Ohio Vocational School District to provide GED and basic skills instruction.

In addition to referrals, the Department of Human Services also offers six hours of job skill instruction each week and makes day care available to participants. The Belmont Metropolitan Housing Authority provides Even Start’s office and classroom space and aids in recruitment.

The Community Action Commission also provides the program with a van for transporting participants. Special programs, such as a nutrition workshop offered by the Ohio State University Extension, are also a segment of Even Start.

Stobbs said that services such as providing transportation to the Even Start site and making day care available also help people participate in the program.

Even Start’s staff is not only establishing a foundation of trust with clients, but is also finding crucial support from key community leaders.

Martins Ferry School Superintendent Steve Kish, who is a member of the advisory council, said Even Start is a positive program for parents and their children.

"Anything we can do for our young is a positive (thing) and I appreciate the fact that we are doing this," Kish said.

Coast said that Even Start’s clients also receive praise and efforts to boost their self-esteem.

A peer-tutoring effort, now in the planning stages, was initiated after participants expressed interest in spending more time working toward their GED certificates.