When Reba Nelson unexpectedly took custody of her 3-year-old twin granddaughters, she didn?t know where to turn for help.
“I just went and got them, but I wasn?t sure what to do,” the 55-year-old Columbia resident said.
Nelson called Howard?s Office of Children?s Services a few weeks ago, and she enrolled her two grandchildren in a Head Start program.
Now the county has launched a resource center for parents and caregivers like Nelson in need of information and referrals for children and adolescents.
The Child and Adolescent Resource center is staffed to answer questions from locating a sports team to counseling services. The staff is trained to address issues such as school readiness, child care, parenting classes and financial assistance.
“We?re expecting to connect people with resources,” Susan Rosenbaum, director of the Department of Citizen Services, said Wednesday at a news event announcing the call center.
The CARE center has taken calls from child care professionals since April and in some cases sends behavioral specialists to programs for assessments. The services recently expanded to offer help to the public.
The program grew out of a child care locator service, which has been running for about eight years, said Dale Jackson, administrator for the Officeof Children?s Services. Callers often needed more than just child care.
“We found many times there?s a variety of services we can provide,” she said.
It is also modeled after the county?s referral service for seniors or residents with disabilities, known as Maryland Access Point or MAP, Rosenbaum said.
Funding for the Child and Adolescent Resource center comes from the Governor?s Office for Children, the Maryland State Department of Education and Howard County government. The total budget is about $393,000, Jackson said.
The county is also planning to add a Family Navigator to the center, which would work closely with parents who have children with intensive needs, she said.
Contact information
The Child and Adolescent Resource Center is staffed Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and can be reached at 410-313-CARE or [email protected]
