County Commissioners Hear Children and Family Issues Presentations At CSAB Work Session

MANATEE-- Directors of six children and family issue programs in Manatee County made presentations to the board of county commissioners at Tuesday’s Children’s Advisory Board (CSAB) work session at the administrative center building.

The purpose of the session is to assist board members to better understand the needs of the CSAB and determine funding priorities for programs in the upcoming year. ”Our goal is to come up with a plan which will come before the county commission in December for approval“, said Commissioner Donna Hayes, who chaired today’s work session.

The CSAB is funded by the children’s services dedicated millage which began in 1991 to fund, develop and provide for the operation of continuing programs and services for the prevention and treatment of abused, neglected or at-risk children in Manatee County.

The CSAB is a board appointed by the BCC to evaluate, prioritize and make recommendations concerning the needs of Manatee County’s children and families. Those recommendations are provided to the commissioners on an annual basis to allocate funding. The CSAB budget for fiscal year 2010-2011 is just over $8.7 million.

Fred Leonard Director Healthy Start Coalition

Fred Leonard, Director of the Healthy Start Coalition of Manatee County spoke about the increase in poverty, teen birth rate and infant mortality over the last three years in Manatee County. He noted the uninsured rate was 20.7% in the county which is above the state and national average. ”Only 50% of our identified needs are currently funded“, Mr. Leonard said. ”There is virtually no funding for our pre-conception prevention program.“

Other presenters included Manatee County Exceptional Student Education Coordinator Dr. Jeff Schneiderman who spoke about the benefits of a pre-kindergarten program which is designed to help prepare two-thirds of county students for kindergarten. ”Just fewer than 90% of Manatee County’s VPK students enter school ready to learn at a developmentally appropriate level“, Dr. Schneiderman said.

Linda Johnson, Manatee County’s Operations Program Manager for the Department of Children and Families spoke about the rise in county residents receiving assistance from 21,277 in 2008 to 43,718 in 2010. Monica Ausborn, Family Court Manager of the 12th Judicial Circuit Court explained the need for funding of its mediation and parenting plan services.

Sharon Kramer, Director of the Manatee Substance Abuse Coalition and Frank Gargett, Superintendent of the Manatee Regional Detention Center also gave presentations for their respective programs and reiterated the need for continued funding.

Commissioners Larry Bustle and Carol Whitmore each commented on the importance of all the programs that were presented at Tuesday’s work session. Commissioner Whitmore suggested the next CSAB meeting might be a day long session in order to have more time for dialogue on these programs.