loading…
loading…
loading…
7
reducing poverty among children and families using a 2Gen Approach; (2) Cross-agency collaborations that promote 2Gen partnerships and systems change at the state level; (3) Create effective pathways to economic opportunity, including access to mainstream education, training and individualized services for those with barriers to employment; (4) Provide training that promotes a 2Gen approach and help human services staff at all levels of the department serve families more effectively and efficiently; (5) Ensure that families have access to economic and social supports to support upward mobility, while also assuring healthy child development; (6) Help families build social capital that can support both resilience and upward mobility; and (7) Engage and listen to the voices of the families. In 2014, DHS adopted the 2Gen Approach, which affords DHS the opportunity to be innovative and increase community collaboration in a way that moves children and their parent/caregiver towards educational success, economic stability, strong social capital, and health and well-being. Through this foundational framework, the Department has established several community and state government partnerships across Tennessee to deliver services in a manner that improves economic security and well-being for low-income families. The 2Gen and Community Grant partnerships promotes one or more of the four statutory purposes of the TANF program, and two of those being: 1) Provide assistance to needy families so that children can be cared for in their own homes; and 2) Reduce the dependency of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage. The TDHS’ 2Gen and Community Grant programs collectively offer a myriad of health and human services and/or family economic stability services directly or through referral linkage. Services include: • Non-medical, wraparound substance abuse and mental health resources to those individuals experiencing and families impacted by opioid addiction/crisis; • Increase the provision of early-intervention home visiting services and supports to mother at pregnancy or at birth, up to age five of the child to improve the health, development, and well-being of children and parent; • Legal Counseling to assist the families with any immediate civil legal issues such as existing family law issues (i.e., child support and alimony arrangements, violence in the home). Identification of special education issues that households are facing and provide in-school advocacy to increase services to children. Legal education sessions/workshops to increase advocacy skills. Screening for eligibility for Social Security disability or SSI benefits; • Early steps to school success by providing parents with support groups, resources, and knowledge to support their children and fosters strong home/school connections to ensure a smooth transition to school. Provide social emotional enhancements to both families and children on handling toxic stress to reduce ACE’s; therefore, decreasing psychological distress by improving health and wellbeing. • Employment training, life skills classes, parenting skills, enrollment in post-secondary opportunities, transportation assistance, enrollment in career certificate programs for