I hope that you turned your Lund Annual Report calendar over to February several weeks ago. If you need to check out the online version, check here. This month, we are shining a program spotlight on Kids-A-Part.
From the Annual Report: Last year Kids-A-Part helped 218 incarcerated mothers continue to build the bond with their 381 children.
Let’s learn more about Kids-A-Part:
- Kids-A-Part works with mothers incarcerated at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility, their children and caregivers. The goal is to decrease the traumatic effect of a mother’s incarceration on children, increase parental capacity of incarcerated mothers, and to help the children’s caregivers support and care for them.
- The Kids-A-Part Parenting Coordinator works inside the correctional facility helping moms who enter the facility to take care of the long and short term needs of their children. This includes helping them to evaluate for child safety, guardianship arrangements, coordination and collaboration with DCF Family services when involved, coordination with caregivers, and visitation plans. She also provides opportunities for moms to stay connected to their kids through free phone calls and letters.
- The Kids-A-Part Community Case Manager provides support and education to caregivers on understanding the unique needs of children of incarcerated parents as well as information and support to ensure that children’s developmental and emotional needs are being met. She also provides group opportunities to moms inside the facility to explore their relationships with their children and their caregivers, increase knowledge of child development, prepare to return to the community with focus on the needs of their children during the transition period.
- Kids-A-Part facilitates group and individual visiting opportunities for children to see their moms in the Kids-A-Part child friendly visiting space. Moms and children can snuggle on the couch together, share snacks, play sports in the gym and enjoy each other’s company without the restrictions of the facility visiting room. KAP also offers 6 longer themed or enhanced visits each year to celebrate holidays or annual highlights such as back to school.
- Kids-A-Part is the only program in Vermont working with this population and following an innovative model working both inside the correctional facility and outside in the community.
Read about a volunteer’s experience helping with Saturday morning visits here.
Read about the 2018 Mother’s Day visit at the correctional facility here.
Watch a NECN report about Kids-A-Part and hear from a mom who participated in KAP programming.
