Applied Behavior Analysis

LOS ANGELES, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 01/27/10 --

WHAT: Home-SAFE, a nonprofit organization that provides a broad range of child-development and parent-support services to low-income families residing in Hollywood, Mid-Wilshire and adjacent neighborhoods, is actively reaching out to pregnant women and mothers with children under the age of 3. The agency, which is a division of Vista Del Mar Child and Family Services, has launched this outreach effort because, starting Feb. 1, Home-SAFE is more than doubling the number of mothers and children served through its Early Head Start (EHS) program. (EHS is a federally funded program for pregnant women as well as low-income families with infants and toddlers. The program is designed to promote healthy pregnancies, enhance early childhood development, and improve family functioning.) EHS expansion was made possible through a two-year, $2.2-million grant Home-SAFE received recently as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. As a result of the grant, Home-SAFE also has been able to hire several additional staff members -- and will be hiring several more in the coming weeks -- thus providing much-needed jobs.

"This grant is beneficial on many levels," explains Paula Kaplan, Vista Del Mar's director of community based services. "First, we are now able to provide free home visits and center-based child care to more families than ever before. Not only will the child-development and health-care information we share strengthen parenting skills, but by providing child care, parents who are unemployed can pursue job opportunities or receive job training." Adding, "Home-SAFE has been able to expand its staff as well, and in this economy that's very positive."

Women interested in receiving Home-SAFE's EHS services are asked to contact Ron Portillo at (323) 934-7979.

WHERE:
Home-SAFE
6926 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA  90038

AVAILABILITIES:
Interviews are available with:
-- Director Paula Kaplan
-- Those enrolled in Home-SAFE's expanded EHS program
-- Home-SAFE staff members hired as a result of recently received grant

ABOUT

Home-SAFE: Founded in 1973, Home-SAFE is a division of Vista Del Mar Child and Family Services -- one of the nation's leading child-welfare organizations. Home-SAFE provides low-income and at-risk families with: child care; mental health services; family support services; home visit counseling; parent education; teen parent program; child development services; advocacy and case management.

ABOUT

Vista: Vista Del Mar Child and Family Services was established in 1908 and, over the course of more than a century, has evolved from an orphanage to a union of five specialized agencies working together to provide comprehensive, therapeutic, as well as educational programs and services for children and their families on a picturesque, 18-acre campus in West Los Angeles. These agencies include: Vista Del Mar; Julia Ann Singer Center; Reiss Davis Child Study Center; Home-SAFE (located in Hollywood); and Family Service of Santa Monica (located in Santa Monica). Between the nonprofit's residential, outpatient, community-based, and education services, Vista Del Mar provides 45 programs to nearly 6,000 children and families annually. Services provided by the agency include, but are not limited to: therapeutic, residential treatment for severely emotionally disturbed youth; private adoption services for both domestic and international adoptions; community-based foster care; a network of mental health and case management services for children at risk of out-of-home placement; a private, special needs school (K-12); mental health services to students in schools throughout Los Angeles; therapeutic services for children with autism; individual and group counseling for children and families; educational assessments and treatment; child abuse prevention services; and early childhood care and provider training. For additional information, visit www.vistadelmar.org.