Issue #14
Strengthening and Supporting Families
Problem,
Opportunity
Statement
Pennsylvania’s families face many challenges that threaten their livelihood and family well-being. These challenges impact families, socially and economically. Moreover, the nation is on the verge of a dramatic demographic change that has implications for many aspects of daily living (i.e., baby boomers, individuals born between 1946 and 1964 are reaching the end of their life cycle and will make up 28% of the U.S. population). Key areas affecting families are highlighted below.
Aging and
Intergenerational
Pennsylvania has the nation’s second-largest percentage of population older than 65. During the past two decades, the 60-and-older population in the Commonwealth grew nearly twice as fast as the rest of the population. Accordingly, new ways are needed to mobilize the talents, skills, energy and resources of older adults in service to others. At the same time, many elders have unmet needs for care and companionship. Intergenerational programs, i.e., those initiatives that bring older adults and young people together to interact, educate, support, and provide care for one another, show particular promise as a means for improving the quality of life of people of all ages and for promoting family cohesion and strengthening community support systems.
Child Care and Parenting
Families are fundamental to the lifeblood and strength of our country and world. They are the nurturers, care givers, role models, teachers, counselors, and instill values into their members. The family is the central core from which we prepare our children to assume the positions of leadership for the future. Today’s families struggle against enormous odds and continue to search for new ways to strengthen the family unit. Healthy child development requires strong, nurturing, supportive families and every level of our society is affected when families fail to serve as the source of support and guidance they need to be to their children.
Parents are faced with difficulties as they attempt to exercise their responsibilities, within the context of their culture, as the primary socializing agent of children and youth. The difficulties are especially severe for children living in poverty or near poverty situations.
Child care needs have increased tremendously over the past decade. Parents cannot work productively unless care for their children is available. Researchers say that access to affordable, high-quality child care is critical to success on the job. In addition, studies have indicated that far too much child care is below minimum quality levels. The training of child care providers remains one of the nation’s most critical needs.
Resource Management and
Consumer Issues
Access to resources and the ability to manage resources effectively are key factors to family stability and strength. Families must be able to save, to spend based on goals and to manage debt responsibly to be financially secure in the present and in the future. Americans are the lowest savers among all industrialized countries (savings rate of -0.1 in 2001). The economic stability of this country is directly related to citizens’ savings habits.
Consumer debt levels continue to grow out of control. Young adults are targeted as new customers by credit card issuers. Without financial education and few life experiences to guide them, young adults are likely to make poor decisions that could impact their well-being for decades.
Women who tend to live longer than men and have shorter or interrupted employment histories and baby boomers are particularly vulnerable. Financial security during later years is a challenge as financial responsibility shifts from the federal government and employers to employees.
The growing awareness that financial skills are critical to the financial stability of children, youth, and families was affirmed when “The Financial Literacy and Education Improvement Act” was signed into federal law on December 4, 2003.
Tobacco
Prevention
Tobacco use by Pennsylvania citizens continues to have serious health, economical and social consequences. Tobacco, specifically the smoking of tobacco, remains the number one cause of preventable disease and death in Pennsylvania. Smoking-attributable deaths in Pennsylvania for the year 1999 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) totaled 19,798. Each person who dies from smoking-related causes loses an average of 12 years from his/her expected lifespan. The total economic cost of smoking in Pennsylvania in 1990 for those over the age of 35 was over $3.4 billion—a cost of approximately $291 per Pennsylvania resident.
Mothers who smoked accounted for 30.4% (3,395) of low weight birth and for 24.2% (3,199) of premature births in Pennsylvania during the 1990s. Those who are continuously exposed to tobacco smoke pollution have increased risk of respiratory, cardiac and other smoke related diseases. Children in households where one or both parents smoke have twice the amount of bronchitis and pneumonia and are hospitalized more frequently before their first birthday than children of non-smoking parents. Due to the serious impact of tobacco use state government, local communities, families and individuals all have a vested interest in decreasing tobacco use among Pennsylvania citizens.
Workforce
Development
Pennsylvania’s families face economic challenges that threaten their livelihood and family well-being. Employment is a key factor to maintaining family stability. Yet, Pennsylvania, especially in its rural areas, is experiencing hard times with unemployment and underemployment remaining above the national average. Between 1992 and 2002 employment grew by only 11.4 percent in Pennsylvania, just over half the national growth of nearly 20 percent. Pennsylvania experienced mass layoff events in 2003. From December 2002 to July 2003, the state’s labor force declined by 125,000 people. This was the third largest decline since 1970.
Persistent poverty remains in Pennsylvania. In contrast to other Northeast states that experienced declines in the poverty rate, some of Pennsylvania's counties have experienced the largest increases of families living in poverty in over a decade. Forest County, Pennsylvania has the highest rate of families living in poverty (16.4%) among all counties in Northeastern states. Those who live in poverty struggle to meet basic needs.
Between 1990 and 2000, Pennsylvania lost a higher percentage of young adults than all but eight other states as nearly 7 percent of young adults moved out of the state yearly. With the “brain drain” of Pennsylvania’s youth so goes the future workforce as well as the fuel to attract and maintain viable employment.
Connecting
Families
Remarkable changes in family demography occurred in the United States from 1975-2000. These changes transformed many family behaviors and practices, especially in the areas of marriage and fertility. Two dramatic changes occurred that affect children and families, especially low-income families. Cohabitation is a common practice among adults and appears to be a modal practice to marriage. Although cohabitation is a more tenuous relationship than marriage, about 53 percent of cohabiting unions “end” in marriage.
Other changes in behaviors related to childbirth have occurred simultaneously. Larger numbers of children are being born to unmarried women ages 15-44. Most children born outside of marriage will live below or just above the poverty line and many will spend time on welfare.
In response to these
changes, the Reauthorization of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity
Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) will increase the role that government will play in
promoting marriage and strengthening relationship building and parenting skills
by providing educational skill-building opportunities for couples.
Subject Matter Areas
§ Child Growth & Development
§ Interpersonal Communication
§ Behavior Management
§ Health & Safety
§ Developmentally Appropriate Activities
§ Balancing Work & Family
§ Community Collaborations
§ Administration
§ Child Assessment
§ Child Growth & Development
§ Communication
§ Core Body of Knowledge
§ Curriculum & Environment
§ Families & Society
§ Health & Safety
§ Professional Development
§ Balancing Work/Life
§ Basic Financial Management
§ Basic Partnering
§ Communication Skills
§ Decision-making/Problem-Solving
§ Employment Readiness
§ Entrepreneurship
§ Occupational/Career Choice
§ Skill sets/Occupational Clusters
§ Basic Financial Management
§ Basic Parenting
§ Communication Skills
§ Decision-making/Problem-solving Skills
§ Indicators of Healthy, Sustainable Marriages (Relationships)
§ Interpersonal Relationship Skills
§ Negotiation/Conflict Resolution Skills
§ Subject Matter Areas for Connecting Families
Program Titles and/or
Program Topics
§ Budgeting
§ Consumer Fraud
§ Consummer Issues
§ Debt Management
§ Life Events Planning
§ Retirement Issues
§ Saving
Adult
Youth
Families
Resources
o
Extension educators
o
Print resources
o
Internet/ web based resources
o
Curriculum developed by PSU CES, PA Dept. of Aging
o
o
Extension Educators
o
Local Trainers
o
PA Pathways Funding for educational programs
o
PA Pathways Training Calendar
o
Curriculum
o
Collaborations/Agency Partnerships
o
Local ECE groups (CCRD County Funded)
o
Professional organizations (NAEYC, PACCA)
o
Libraries
o
Theme Kits
o
Publications
o
Distance Education
§
Web Based
§
Video/Paper Based
o
New Staff Orientation Video Series
o
State Provided Evaluation Tools
o
Act 48 Hours
o
CEUs
o
Community Conferences
o
Federal grant
o
State funding
o
Extension educators
§
Skills
§
Community networks
o
Curriculums
o
Equipment
o
Agency Partnerships
o
Extension educators
o
Curriculum materials
o
Regional resource libraries
o
Print resources
o
Web Based resources
o
Extension educators
o
Publications
o
Lending library
o
Curriculum
o
Local agencies
o
Internet
o
Web Site-based Programs and Local Programming
o
Train-the-trainer Volunteers
o
State Funds for Extension Staff
o
Federal & State Grant Funding for Specific Issues
o
Local Community Organizations, Agencies (Partners,
referrals, or hosts)
o
o
4-H Clubs
o
Evaluations
o
Collaborate with Extension staff (e.g. NEP, EFENP, Farm
Management, others) to present to target audiences
o
Funding from the PA DOH and other funding sources
o
Technical support & training
o
Collaboration among PSU Extension, PA DOH, Local
Communities, & Tobacco Control Coalitions, and additional organizations
(e.g.,
o
Informational resources:
§
CDC
§
Department of Health and Human Services
§
Other state and federal agencies
o
Extension Educators
o
Curriculums
o
Partnerships
o
Grants (state & local)
o
In-kind support
o
Local employers
o
Local training programs
o
CareerLink and WIB system
o
Mini-Society and other 4-H projects
Indicators
Aging Issues and
Intergenerational (AII)
Child Care and
Parenting (CCP)
Connecting
Families—Youth (CF-Y)
Connecting
Families—Adults (CF-A)
Resource Management
and Consumer Issues (RMCI)
Tobacco Prevention
(TP)
Workforce Development
(WD)
o Number of training partnerships formed.
o Number of frontline family workers participating in Family Development Credentialing programs.