Pass it On
**A PCL Allocation Committee meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 7th from 3 - 4 p.m. at City Hall Council Chambers. Go to the PCL website here for the agenda.
**The 2014-15 independent audit of the PCL is complete and posted on the PCL website on this page.
**Organizations serving young adults who are parenting are invited to participate in the PDX Teen Parent Fair on Saturday, March 12th at Milwaukie High School, sponsored by Squires and South Portland YoungLives The event is open to all Portland area parents aged 25 and younger. The goals of the event is to provide an engaging environment where parents can connect with community resources, employment and education opportunities while having fun with their families. The event includes games, live entertainment, crafts for children, free food and beverages, and a chance to win raffle prizes. For more information go here.
**The Portland Children's Levy has a whole new look to its website! Click here to visit and let us know what you think by emailing marygay.broderick@portlandoregon.gov
**Follow PCL on Twitter here
** Prevent Child Abuse Oregon and the Children's Trust Fund have launched the 2016 Pinwheels for Prevention Campaign to raise awareness for child abuse prevention/intervention. The goals are to distribute 20,000 pinwheels, help coordinate a Pinwheel Garden in every county and engage 100 partners, organizations and businesses in the Pinwheels for Prevention Campaign. Kits to get started on a Pinwheels for Prevention Campaign come with 100 pinwheels, printed pinwheel campaign guide, a yard sign and 100 prevention handouts. A limited number of free kits are available after which, they can be purchased to host a campaign. The Pinwheels for Prevention webpage can be found here for more information.
**Playworks can help providers working with children integrate safe, healthy and inclusive student play into existing school activities through a series of thorough and interactive workshops that highlight constructive tools and methods. The trainings are designed for before-, after- and out-of-school program staff. Go here for more info.
**The YWCA offers high-quality and engaging social change trainings. All of the info can be found here.
** Meals 4 Kids, a PCL-funded program through Meals on Wheels People that delivers meals to children and their caregivers throughout Portland, is looking for volunteer drivers. Interested? Contact lynette.vicens@mealsonwheelspeople.org
Early Education News
**If you have families with children entering a PPS kindergarten next fall, please provide them the district link here for more information about Connect to Kindergarten events along with details about school choice. Connect is a great opportunity for families to meet school staff and other new parents, learn about school expectations and resources, and register early for school. PPS hopes every family will register for school by June 1, 2016, although earlier is better. Early registration allows school staff to contact families about open houses, the Early Kindergarten Transition program, home visits and more.
**Mt. Hood Community College Head Start and Early Head Start is accepting applications Monday, March 14th from noon - 6 p.m. at the East County Church, 24375 SE Stark St., Gresham. For more info go here.
**Friendly House Preschool Morning and Afternoon Class Openings. Sign-up for a child-centered preschool experience for 3-5-year-olds in a warm and welcoming classroom with seasoned teachers. Half-day classes; morning or afternoon available, includes homemade snacks and meals. Full scholarships offered for qualifying families. For more information call 503-228-4391 or go here.
Friendly House is also offering a free 6-week educational summer program focused on kindergarten readiness to qualifying families. The program is Monday-Friday, 8 am - 12pm, June 13-July 22nd. If approved for a scholarship, children must attend the full 6 weeks. For more information and to sign up, visit here.
PCL Programs Making a Difference: New Avenues for Youth
New Avenues for Youth recently launched its third social purpose enterprise: New Avenues thru Soup to provide even more paid job opportunities for underserved young adults, teens in foster care and and homeless youth. The soup cart will be serving fresh soups and rolls on the Urban Plaza at Portland State University and will be open weekdays, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
New Avenues also was recently selected, in a national competition through REDF, to receive grant funding in support of its social purpose enterprises and increase work experiences for the youth it serves by 50 percent over the next five years, and scale existing social purpose enterprises. Those include two Ben & Jerry's Partner Shops, its screen-printing business (New Avenues INK), and the recently launched soup cart, New Avenues thru Soup. More than 200 social enterprises from across 36 states submitted proposals; New Avenues was one of only 22 selected.