VILLAGE COMMUNITY RESOURCE CENTER
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Mission Statement
At VCRC, we believe that ALL children deserve an equal opportunity to succeed in school, work, and life. Therefore, we support and encourage children’s social-emotional and academic development through educational programs while helping families actively engage in their children’s education. Village Community Resource Center (VCRC) is a community-based nonprofit organization with a 20 year history of providing education and family support services to low and very low income residents in East Contra Costa County. VCRC’s organizational strengths including dedicated leadership, strong collaborations, positive reputation in the community, and quality programs have helped it to effectively serve clients residing in East Contra Costa County. Our mission is to provide information, support, and coordination of resources to empower and improve the quality of life of disadvantaged children and their families in a culturally sensitive environment.
About This Cause
History: In 1997, in response to the fatal shooting of a 15-year old boy on Village Drive, neighbors gathered to address growing gang and drug problems in the community. While we were originally designed to be an adjunct group for the City of Brentwood, to help alleviate violence in the area, we have been operating as an independent agency, with expanded offerings for over a decade. VCRC’s organizational strengths including dedicated leadership, strong collaborations, positive reputation in the community, and quality programs have helped it to effectively serve clients residing in East Contra Costa County. VCRC works with children and families on challenges, teaching them to be responsible for their choices, live with integrity and honesty, to become self-sufficient and proactive citizens with the hope of nurturing lifelong learners. Our clients generally have multiple risk factors; therefore, both immediate and long-term needs must be met in order to empower families. Our commitment to providing opportunities for underserved residents extends well beyond our internal programs. We have developed strong collaborative relationships allowing us to provide an array of quality services while being good stewards of the community’s shared resources. VCRC’s long tenure in the community has allowed it to become a trusted resource in providing crucial support for family focused, bilingual, health, social service, and academic programming for low and very low income residents. Programs: Youth Development TK-5th Grade Summer Camp Aquatic Programs Parent Leadership & Community Organizing John Muir Mobile Health Clinic Counseling Services Parent Support Group Case Management Services Weekly Food Distribution Referral Services Translation Services Clients: The families with whom we work truly want the best future for their children. However, due to educational history, language barriers, and lack of experience navigating schools in the United States these parents often require the skills to know how to help their children succeed academically. VCRC provides services that benefit students with near-term success and long-term fulfillment. The children in our programs build self-esteem, strong peer-peer relationships, and truly look forward to participating in learning activities. The After School Academy provides literacy intervention and academic support to K-6th students while equipping parents and caregivers with the resources and skills to support their children academically. Our team helps families navigate the school system, understand school policies and procedures, and advocate for students when necessary so that our students might have opportunities equal to their classmates. Many of the families involved in our program are struggling to live day by day. The goal of VCRC case management is to help low-income families develop the ability to access resources and acquire the skills they need to build family capacity, successfully reach their goals, and become more self-sufficient. Our case management services build on each family’s current assets, providing an opportunity to acknowledge family strengths, while challenging adults to raise expectations for themselves and their children. VCRC Student Statistics: • 93% Hispanic/Latino • 94% qualify for free or reduced price school lunch • 84% English learners Program Impact: The impact of our After School Academy is demonstrated through a series of quantitative and qualitative measures including the Weikart Center’s School Age Program Quality Assessment (PQA), internal program assessments, as well as student and parent surveys; and portfolio assessment. Surveys provide qualitative data about changes in scholars’ self-concept and social competency as well as program satisfaction. In addition to weekly staff meetings the Program Director holds check-ins and individualized coaching with staff. Pre and post student surveys assess students’ attitude towards reading, connection with literature, outlook towards school, and level of social connections both at school and VCRC. Our After School Academy program development focus areas for the 2015-2016 year were: family engagement, social emotional learning, and school age planning. We developed a parent support group, piloted case management, & formed parent event planning committees. Our support group has grown into a close and encouraging community. For these women, the first step to achieving long term stability is to establish support systems in the community. One parent who has two sons diagnosed with ADHD says, “Meeting people in the community, other parents that are going through the same thing, [makes us realize] that we are not alone.” The goal of our case management service is to help families develop the ability to access resources & acquire the skills needed to build family capacity, reach goals, & become more self-sufficient. Maria, a single mother who had left an abusive relationship, had the goal of increasing her income. She had only worked in the fields & spoke little English. After developing a plan, Maria attended ESL classes, applied for work & today has two jobs (increasing income & decreasing reliance on subsidies). Practices implemented last academic year have had a dramatic impact on our students’ self esteem & behavior. Each session began with social-emotional learning & ended with students reviewing their behavior. After discussing the word citizenship one student picked up trash in her neighborhood. She said, “I just needed to get out of the house & do something good.” When asked what three traits best describe him, another student responded, “Helpful, brave, & respectful-I learned a lot of these traits here at VCRC.” After School Academy Metrics: Overarching Goals: • Increased academic performance • Improved self-concept • Improved social skills Questions Guiding Outcome Measurement Process of VCRC’s After School Academy: • Did students demonstrate improved literacy skills? • Did students report higher levels of self-esteem? • Did scholars demonstrate improved social skills? • Did parents engage in scholars’ education? • Did the program meet parents’ expectations? Assessments: • Communication with families o We will continue to use daily homework logs for communicating with parents regarding (homework completion and behavior) o Increased dialogue with parents of struggling students in order to help identify and discuss areas of difficulty. o Provide support to parents of struggling students as they reach out to teachers and school administrators • David P. Weikart Center’s School Age PQA (validated instrument which measures the quality of youth programs) • Student survey (administered by Partnership for Children & Youth; data compiled by Public Profit) Testimonials: “My son was struggling in school with reading and literature. It was very frustrating for me or my husband to help him with his homework because neither of us speaks English. By participating in the After School Academy, my son is now doing better in school and has learned so much. He has opened up more and is doing much better socializing with other children. My child has successfully advanced so much in school. His teacher is very happy that he is coming to VCRC for help. He is progressing in reading. I have noticed improvements both in school and in social situations.” ~Martha Sandoval “Thanks to you all, my child has overcome many obstacles and has learned how to read. I have noticed academic advancement. He was shy and now he started to open up and this program has helped a lot with that. He now knows how to interact with children, thanks to the attention that you all give to him.” ~Jenny Martinez “The Village Community Resource Center is an integral program in our community. They provide much needed stability and educational support to empower children to achieve success in school and in life. Without hesitation, I would recommend support of this program.” ~Dr. Dana Eaton (Brentwood Union School District Superintendent)