+ The Centre County Office of Children and Youth Services Lauren - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

+ The Centre County Office of Children and Youth Services Lauren Grimes, Molly Horn, and Amber Bosland

+ Background Information ! Provide social services to Centre county ! Currently 80 children in either homes, group homes, rehabilitation, or out of county services ! Foster care process for children ! Foster care process for parents ! State supervision ! Ethel Beaver Fund

+ Problem ! Only a small percentage of Centre County residents enroll in the CYS foster care system and are aware of the need and benefits of foster care, with most adults opting for a more traditional family unit, resulting in one –third of CYS children left without residential placement and only 55% of CYS foster parents enrolled for long-term (12 to 18 months) care.

+ Situation Analysis ! Internal Factors ! External Factors ! Demographics ! Foster parent attitudes ! Foster children attitudes

+ Research Interviewed Parents' Age Demographics 16% ! Primary 20-29 42% ! Interviews 40-49 50-59 42% !"#$%&'( $)*(+,-./#'$( $)*(0'%#1( %2'( !!!" #" $" %&'"()" !!!" %" $" (('"(&" !!!" *+,-" .%" %%'"%#" !!!" #/" $." %)'"%0" !!!" 0" /" (/'"(%" !!!" ." &12%" $/'"$0"

+ Research ! Secondary ! AdoptUsKids ! Open Your Heart, Open Your Home

+ Goals & Objectives ! To have 60% of Centre County adults ages 25 to 45 view foster care as a viable alternative to traditional family units or adoption by December 1, 2010 with Children and Youth Services as the main resource for education, increasing long- term foster parent enrollment and retainment by 30%. ! Informational ! Predisposition ! Behavioral

+ Target Audience ! Primary ! Secondary ! Moderating & Intervening

+ Strategy ! Address negative misconceptions via sharing of information and positive images ! Take a grassroots approach ! Improve foster care friendly activities to enroll new foster parents and retain current parents

+ Tactics & Rationale ! Postcard distribution ! Feature stories in local and national press ! Brochure informing about need for and process of becoming foster parents in Centre County ! Advertising in newspapers ! PSAs on radio and television ! Blue-Ribbon Events ! Summer Series social events for foster families and prospective new parents (Spikes Games, basketball, bowling, DelGrosso’s Amusement Park) ! Social events designed for foster family support and interaction (house parties, book club meetings, support group meetings)

+ Social Media Plan ! Twitter ! YouTube viral PSA video campaign ! Revamping CYS Web site

+ Messages & Slogan ! Becoming a foster parent means offering a warm and loving home. Becoming a foster parent means opening your heart to the love of a child. Becoming a foster parent means making a difference in the life of a child. ! Be their second chance. Be their foster parent.

+ Evaluation ! Preparation ! Content Analysis ! Implementation ! TA message exposure ! Impact ! Changed attitudes & behavior

+ The End