Chapter Nine: The Family Resource Center
Chapter Eleven: Safety Concerns - Myth vs. Reality"Change begins with children."
-Service Provider
Members of our community diagnosis team first became acquainted with the Trinity Court and Pritchard Park communities by interacting with the children who attend the Family Resource Center's After School Program. Providing a strong foundation for the youngest residents is one priority shared both by residents and service providers. Those who are familiar with Trinity Court and Pritchard Park acknowledge that the children are one of the greatest strengths in these two communities.
Seventy-seven individuals out of 139 total residents are under the age of 18. Therefore, more than half of all residents in Trinity Court and Pritchard Park are children or teenagers. There are 31 children under the age of five alone, which means that 40% of all the children in these communities are pre-school aged or younger (Chapel Hill Department of Housing, 1998). The needs of Trinity Court and Pritchard Park residents are certainly influenced by this unique demographic distribution.
Because young children comprise such a large segment of these populations, many of the services and activities available to residents specifically target the youngest residents of Trinity Court and Pritchard Park. As one service provider said, "The children seem to be the group that you can work with in order to effect change. The stuff you put in can actually have a positive impact and change their lives."
Family Resource Center (FRC) Programs. Of the services for children, the majority are provided through the Family Resource Center (these child services are discussed in Chapter Nine: The Family Resource Center). In fact, one service provider said, "I think the programs [through the FRC] for children were successful, particularly the After School Program and programs for school-aged kids." Several programs offered through the FRC are county or state funded. For instance, the FRC receives the majority of its funding from the state-wide Smart Start initiative and the North Carolina Division of Child Development described in the Health Policy Issues section of Chapter Six: Health. Many other county and state services and activities exist especially for the children (refer to the Health Policy Issues and Health Services sections in Chapter Six: Health, for examples).
Health Services. Several health services exist specifically for children as well. However, many are under-utilized by Trinity Court and Pritchard Park families. The Orange County Health Department's Well Child Clinic is in jeopardy of being closed due to lack of use and a shift in funding. Members of a focus group conducted in the Cedar Grove public housing community told facilitators from the Orange County Health Department that the Clinic's closure would have a negative impact because of changes in the health care system and available sources of care (Service provider, personal communication, January 28, 1999). Other clinics may suffer as well because if mothers have to go to more than one place for care, issues of transportation become a larger problem.
Education. Residents and service providers agree on the excellent quality of the education received by Trinity Court and Pritchard Park children at Chapel Hill - Carrboro City Schools. A non-school affiliated service provider said, "I think that a big strength is Estes Hills [Elementary], and the role it plays in the community. [The Family Specialist] is really involved in the community, is very caring, and works very hard for her children [in Trinity Court and Pritchard Park.]" The Liaison Extending Academic Performance (LEAP), described in Chapter Nine: The Family Resource Center, is one example of the educational services for children offered in the communities.
There may be several explanations for the wealth of child-directed programs. First of all, multiple sources of funding exist for child services. Therefore, communities will often tailor their services to areas in which funding is available. Communities like Trinity Court and Pritchard Park, with large numbers of children and few internal resources, are able to exhibit a real need for these funds. Chapel Hill Training-Outreach Project distributes grant funding for the FRC from child services, including Smart Start, the North Carolina Division of Child Development, and Early Head Start.
Secondly, because there is consensus among residents and service providers of Trinity Court and Pritchard Park on the need for child services in these communities, their efforts to provide for the children have been united. "In the past," one resident said, "they didn't have anything for the kids. Now things are changing. The [Family Resource] Center organizes things for the children now." A service provider agreed saying, "I think I really focused my attention on services for the children more than anything else....because the kids would come home after school and have nothing to do, [but] get into trouble." Service providers and residents identified and agreed upon the need to provide a strong foundation for the children in the community, and, in many ways, they have successfully filled that need to the advantage of the children.
On the other hand, many residents and service providers also believe that, in some ways, these communities can be a less than ideal place to raise a child. First of all, the physical environments in these two communities are not child-friendly. The economic and social positions of many families, as well as the lack of maturity and parenting experience, put some Trinity Court and Pritchard Park children at a disadvantage as well.
Environment. Many residents and service providers believe that the physical environment in these communities is unsafe or unsuitable for raising children. "This area is safe for kids crime-wise," one resident said, "but the hills and streets aren't safe. The kids don't have enough room to play, so they run into the parking lot." Before the Trinity Court playground was constructed, a service provider said, "[The children] need a playground...a safe place to play. They're always playing in the parking lot. [The buildings] just aren't designed for kids." During interviews, many suggestions were made for improving the physical environment and apartment units themselves to remove safety hazards for young residents. For example, "the rails on the balconies need to be closer together. Kids could fall through them," a resident pointed out.
Play Areas. Playtime is an important part of childhood. Unfortunately, Trinity Court and Pritchard Park have not always provided safe play areas for children. A new playground was constructed on the Trinity Court grounds in January of 1999, several years after a request for a play area was made. Though, as one resident said, "It took forever for...the playground," it has made a difference. A service provider recently remarked, "Since the playground [was put in], it's made [the community] seem friendly and warmer."
Pritchard Park children have fared better, with a large playground, climbing equipment, and a basketball court. However, a Pritchard Park resident revealed that there have been serious maintenance problems. In the fall of 1998, a sewage line leaked and overflowed into the sand playground (Community member, personal communication, February 26, 1998). "[The people who cleaned it up] should've taken out all the sand," a resident said. "They just took out some of it, pushed it around, and put new sand down right on top." Another resident expressed concern regarding the location of the Pritchard Park basketball court. According to a resident, "It's right up next to the big dumpster. There's broken glass all over." During interviews, informants agreed that simply providing safe play areas would make a large impact on the children in these communities.
Abuse and Neglect. As reported in the Maternal and Child Health section of Chapter Six: Health, 611 cases of child abuse, neglect, and dependency were reported between 1991 and 1995 in Orange County. Though child abuse and neglect were not mentioned during interviews as issues of concern by residents, several service providers mentioned them as significant problems for Trinity Court and Pritchard Park families. Unfortunately, no figures at the community level were available to us for Trinity Court and Pritchard Park. As a result, most of the discussion surrounding this subject comes from the perspective of service providers. One provider who is quite involved with the community said, "It's a family issue. Parents are more concerned about their kids getting hurt by others, but not so concerned about how they hurt their own children." A resident admitted that some parents did not monitor their children enough. "Some people let their kids stay out till all times of the night," a resident reported. "They should be in by 7:00 p.m." This seems to be one example of a cultural difference between service provider and residents. "By law it's okay to physically punish your kids," a service provider said on the subject. "Parents know they can't leave marks - this is neglect according to the State law," said one provider. "Only hospitalization or extreme cases are abuse. But remember - poverty is not neglect."
Despite the challenges they present for the communities, the children serve as a focal point of common concern for residents and service providers to band around. The Trinity Court and Pritchard Park children really bring these communities together and have already elicited positive change. However, opportunities to improve the physical and emotional environment for the children obviously still exist. These opportunities may be an excellent place to begin empowering the residents to bring about even more positive change for themselves.
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