Intergenerational Program Database

Grand Family Camp is Harmony Family Center’s therapeutic pilot program for grandparents raising their grandchildren. In Tennessee an opiate addiction epidemic has led to child abuse/neglect and family dysfunction. As a result, more grandparents are stepping in to prevent their grandchildren from entering foster care; most are unprepared for the challenge of parenting children who have suffered trauma. The three-day Grand Family Camps offer grandparents and grandchildren a time for learning, respite, and healing – for bonding through shared experiences and for meeting other multi-generational families who share common challenges. Camp programming includes individual and family counseling, education on understanding the effects of traumatic stress and parenting children who have suffered trauma, and a range of recreational activities that promote child and family health and well-being and strengthen family connections. Camp emphasis is on having fun, promoting attachment, education, and practical, day-to-day issues, including grandparents’ rights and associated legal issues. Participant surveys for our first camp were enthusiastic. Grandparents especially enjoyed meeting other grandparents raising grandchildren. Grandchildren loved everything. We are convinced this model is effective in achieving our goals: family preservation, increasing health and stability of grandparent-headed families, and decreasing the number of children entering the child welfare system.

OASIS Tutoring is an in-school, curriculum-based literacy program that pairs older adult volunteer tutors with children in grades K-3 who have been identified as academically at risk because they are reading below grade level. New tutors complete 12 hours of training in the OASIS approach to literacy. Children are selected by their teachers and are paired with OASIS tutors. The tutor training and OASIS session plans are designed to align with state learning standards. Tutors work one-on-one with students, making a commitment to work with a child at least once a week for a full school year. The tutor reads quality literature with the child, writes the child’s thoughts in an OASIS journal, the student reads his/her journal entries, and they practices skill-building activities such as letter or word recognition and vocabulary exploration. OASIS tutors offer the one-on-one support that classroom teachers would like to provide to individual students – but they don’t have time for during the school day. In this literacy-based mentoring program, one-on-one OASIS tutoring sessions with a caring older adult also build confidence and self-esteem, forming the foundation for a better attitude toward reading and language arts and improved academic performance.

OASIS Tutoring is an in-school, curriculum-based literacy program that pairs older adult volunteer tutors with children in grades K-3 who have been identified as academically at risk because they are reading below grade level. New tutors complete 12 hours of training in the OASIS approach to literacy. Children are selected by their teachers and are paired with OASIS tutors. The tutor training and OASIS session plans are designed to align with state learning standards. Tutors work one-on-one with students, making a commitment to work with a child at least once a week for a full school year. The tutor reads quality literature with the child, writes the child’s thoughts in an OASIS journal, the student reads his/her journal entries, and they practice skill-building activities such as letter or word recognition and vocabulary exploration. OASIS tutors offer the one-on-one support that classroom teachers would like to provide to individual students – but they don’t have time for during the school day. In this literacy-based mentoring program, one-on-one OASIS tutoring sessions with a caring older adult also build confidence and self-esteem, forming the foundation for a better attitude toward reading and language arts and improved academic performance.

Mount Kisco Child Care Center is an Intergenerational shared site that partners with Family Services Of Westchester- My Second Home's Adult Day program. Both programs are under one roof and provide opportunities for children and older adults to get together 3 to 4 times each day to create art, make music, prepare food or share a meal. MKCCC is a non-profit organization serving 140 infants, toddlers, preschoolers and school-age children (before and after school programs). Our mission to provide high-quality care for all children in the community regardless of ability to pay. Keyword: Shared SIte

Jumpstart for Young Children’s DC Community Corps Program. In the spring of 2013, Jumpstart DC launched the Community Corps program to expand its reach beyond its five university partners to support even more young children. Community Corps engages older adult volunteers (aged 55 and over) in service to young children. Community Corps members are partnered with children at low-income preschools to deliver the same innovative program as Jumpstart's university Corps members. Leveraging the culture of commitment and service of older adults in our target communities allows us to deliver significantly more service potential in Washington, DC. Over the course of the academic year, Community Corps members commit 200 hours of service to their community and even receive a stipend. This hour commitment acknowledges the additional time constraints that older adults face, without compromising the fidelity and impact of Jumpstart's intervention.

Intergenerational Painting Programs are designed to give participants across the life span the opportunity to come together through art. Programs are held at nursing homes and senior centers in Hancock County and Allen County. Facilities are responsible for scheduling the class for their residents/ members, while the children/ students are responsible for registering via the AMA Studio or website.

The programs match youth between the ages of 6 and 14 with Seniors living in an Independent Living Senior Community. They meet once a week for a couple of hours each to share experiences and learn new things. This program is part of the overall youth mentoring programs of Big Brothers Big Sisters and helps multiple generations with the match. Statistics show that children spending a year in the program show stronger positive decision-making skills, strong resistance to the use of drugs and alcohol, more respect for peers and those in authority, better grades and more activity in extra-curricular activities. At the same time, the senior population is seeing strong positive effects also. They report being more active and involved, build a sense of worth and their overall outlook is strong and positive. Through such programs, we hope to work together to build strength in our communities while we share of our time and talents to help others.

Volunteers for Community Impact sponsors the Foster Grandparent Program, RSVP, and VCI Cyber-Seniors throughout Central Florida, allowing adults ages 55 and older to connect with young people through a variety of sources. The Foster Grandparent Program and RSVP create the opportunity for adults ages 55 and over to volunteer as little as 30 minutes up to 25 hours every week with special needs and at risk youth helping them learn to read, and stay on target for graduation. VCI Cyber-Seniors connects adults with a young mentor who teaches them how to reconnect to their friends, family, and community through technology. Be a Hero... Volunteer!

When children can’t be with their parents, they should be with their family. Foster Kinship is a local nonprofit exclusively focused on serving kinship families and the over 19,000 children in kinship care in Nevada. To improve outcomes for children in kinship care, Foster Kinship empowers kinship caregivers to provide the safest, most stable and permanent placements for the children in their home. Foster Kinship provides three free programs for kinship caregivers: support, advocacy and case management. By helping to “keep home in the family” for these vulnerable children, Foster Kinship envisions a safe and healthy childhood for ALL children in kinship care.

Our Grandfriends Intergenerational Volunteer Program is one of the longest, continuously operating, school-based intergenerational programs in Illinois. The program began in 1991. Our program matches local older adult volunteers with kindergarten-fifth grade classrooms. Volunteers, in collaboration with the classroom teachers, work with students in areas of reading, writing and math. Frequently Grandfriends share their own life experiences, which brings history to life. Additionally, volunteers have helped in the school office, the library and with the art and music teachers. We are a very culturally diverse community and our Grandfriends help students as they learn to communicate in English. Enduring relationships have developed between teachers, school staff and our wonderful volunteers. The volunteers love watching the children grow throughout the school year. Our Grandfriends often serve as "ambassadors at large," sharing the insights they have gained by being in the school throughout the wider community. Parents, students and school staff have all come to recognize and value the incredible resource our Grandfriends have become.