July 2008

TORCH celebrates recent graduates!

The Tackling Obstacles and Raising College Hopes (TORCH) initiative celebrated the high school graduation of 13 of its students at a reception in late June. Eleven of the students have been accepted into college for the fall.

Started in 2006, the goal of TORCH is to increase the high school graduation and college attendance rates of Northfield’s Latino and ESL students, as well as students who would be first-generation college attendees.

TORCH provides individualized services/supports including: one-on-one mentoring; homework help and tutoring; visits to colleges; assistance with college applications and scholarships; ACT test prep; and after school programs.

In the past two years, nearly 90% of TORCH seniors have graduated from high school. Today, more than 150 Northfield students in grades 6-12 participate in TORCH.

TORCH is a collaboration between the Northfield Public Schools, Familias en Accion, HCI, the Mentoring Coalition, Carleton College, St. Olaf College, and the Minnesota Alliance with Youth – Promise Fellows. The program is funded through grants from the Minnesota Office of Higher Education and the Minnesota Juvenile Justice Advisory Council.

For more information on TORCH or to get involved, contact Beth Berry (TORCH High School Coordinator) at Beth.Berry@nfld.k12.mn.us or Susan Sanderson (TORCH Middle School Coordinator) at Susan.Sanderson@nfld.k12.mn.us.

Growing Up Healthy welcomes new neighborhood organizers

Rice County Growing Up Healthy has hired 14 community leaders to serve as neighborhood organizers and liaisons. The team of nine Faribault leaders and five Northfield leaders attended two full days of training on June 7 and 14, gaining community organizing and resource identification skills. The majority of the training was provided by Family & Children’s Services out of Minneapolis, with the remainder being led by various partner organizations involved in Growing Up Healthy.

These newly trained neighborhood leaders will help facilitate the project goal of increasing the level of community connectedness experienced by marginalized families with children under the age of five in Rice County. Neighborhood leaders will serve as advocates and resource people in their neighborhoods, and will assist residents in identifying and addressing specific issues for their neighborhoods.

Organized in 2006, the Rice County Growing Up Healthy initiative is funded by a grant from the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation. The initiative is coordinated by Janet Lewis Muth and supported by various partners throughout Rice County.

For more information on the Growing Up Healthy project, visit their website or email Janet@growinguphealthy.org.

Online resource directories available

Through partnership with the Rice County Family Services Collaborative, HCI is pleased to host the following online resource directories:

Mental Health Resource Directory – listing of mental health services offered in the community (available in English and Spanish)
Chemical Health Resource Directory – listing of local drug and alcohol prevention and intervention services (available in English and Spanish)
Parent Education Resource Directory – listing of community resources available to support local parents

All three directories include resources from across Rice County.
Click here to visit these directories.

Carey Tinkelenberg receives "Making a Difference Award"

Carey Tinkelenberg is the June recipient of HCI’s “Making a Difference Award.” The honor celebrates those groups and individuals in the community who have a positive influence on Northfield youth.

Tinkelenberg is the founder, executive director, and head coach of the Northfield Skating School. A Carleton College alumna, Tinkelenberg saw the need for a skating program in Northfield and opened the skating school in 2005. Participants range in age from 4 years old to adult.

Along with her commitment to the skating school, Tinkelenberg collaborates with the Girls Scouts, Northfield Dance Academy, and Shattuck St. Mary's Skating Academy to offer additional youth programming. She is a board member of Northfield IceNow and a member of the Northfield Youth Sports Collaborative.

“Carey has the unique talent of building the children’s self-esteem and getting the most out of them,” said a parent who nominated Carey. "Her love of the sport truly shows through her patience and dedication to help each student learn. We are lucky to have people like Carey to work with our youth!"

The Healthy Community Initiative and the Northfield News present the Making a Difference Award cooperatively.

If you know an individual or group that you would like to nominate for this award, click here for nomination guidelines and the easy-to-complete application.

Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis and are selected by a review team of HCI board members and local youth.

Safe Communities shares new teen driving regulations

The Rice County Safe Communities Coalition wishes to share some important information for parents and teens about new Minnesota laws for licensed teen drivers. Click here for an easy-to-read fact sheet on the new regulations. Among the topics covered:

Nighttime driving limitations for teens
Teen passenger limitations
Seatbelt usage
Cell phone and text message restrictions

The Rice County Safe Communities Coalition seeks to reduce the number of driving fatalities and serious injuries in our community among drivers of all ages.

For more information on the coalition and its work, contact Kathy Cooper (the coalition’s coordinator) at kathy.cooper0215@gmail.com.

Two Promise Fellow positions available locally

Those interested in working with Northfield youth encouraged to apply!

Northfield is partnering with the Minnesota Alliance With Youth to host two AmeriCorps Promise Fellows during the 2008-09 school year. The Promise Fellows each work with cohorts of 25-30 students to help assure the young people achieve academic success and are further connected to their community.

Fellows will be placed at the Northfield Middle School and Northfield Union of Youth/The Key. Click below for position descriptions for each Fellow opening. Interested candidates should send a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three references to the person listed on each position description.

Application review begins July 10, so apply today!

Questions? Call HCI at 507-664-3524 or the contacts listed on the descriptions.

Northfield Middle School

Northfield Union of Youth/The Key

Northfield HCI Home Page

info@northfieldhci.org

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